2026 Season Preview: Carolina Hurricanes
Twenty years after their first, the Carolina Hurricanes are Stanley Cup Champions. But do they have what it takes to repeat?
For the longest time, the Carolina Hurricanes felt like a team that just weren’t capable of getting over the hump. Over the past seven seasons, they lost in the first round once, and the Conference Semifinal and Conference Final three times each. The 2026 playoffs felt like a now-or-never moment, and after their first game of their opening series, it felt like it was clear they were a team on a championship mission.
2025-26 Outcome
Regular Season Results: 53-22-7
Postseason Results: Won Stanley Cup
Carolina is a team that has a reputation for being process oriented. They play a very particular style of hockey driven by head coach (and former team captain) Rod Brind’Amour. It’s a type of hockey that’s not meant for everyone, as we’ve seen with Jake Guentzel and Mikko Rantanen. But, as shown this season, if you buy into it fully, it can be highly effective.
The Hurricanes went into the season just as they do every year. They didn’t go crazy, spending large amounts of money on the open market. They took proper measures to ensure they get their guys back under contract, and they made minimal, yet carefully calculated, moves in acquiring specific players on interest to them (K’Andre Miller prior to the season, Nic Deslauriers at the trade deadline), which proved enough for them to not only get to the Final, but to win it all.
With essentially the same exact team set to head into next season, the question becomes, do they have what it takes to do it all over again? Let’s get into it.
Who's In and Who's Out
The Hurricanes made almost no changes to their roster aside from letting Frederik Andersen walk to unrestricted free agency, where he went on to sign in Edmonton. However, with Brandon Bussi and Pyotr Kochetkov still in the picture, there was no need for Carolina to go out of their way to pay Andersen more money on another contract. They added to their goaltending depth by signing Zachary Sawchenko, an undrafted journeyman who has suited up in seven games with the San Jose Sharks at the NHL level, to a one-year deal.
Other than that, they signed depth forward Viktor Neuchev, who they acquired at the 2025 trade deadline, as well as defenseman Jusso Valimaki. Neuchev is a 24-year-old drafted by Buffalo in the third round of 2022 who could have some untapped potential or could end up back in the KHL in a couple of years. As for Valimaki, he’s bounced around the league in recent years, but the Hurricanes have a more than fine track record of turning just about anyone into an effective NHL defensemen.
