RALEIGH — The first half of the Hurricanes’ season can be summarized in one word: inconsistent.
From Martin Necas’ red-hot November to pedestrian December, Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho’s 5-on-5 woes, and a rotating cast of five goalies, Carolina has at times looked dominant and other times totally lost.
It is, however, worth remembering that some thought the team’s offseason roster overhaul would perhaps end the Hurricanes’ six-season playoff streak. That doesn’t appear likely — in fact, Carolina’s summer additions have proven to be a success.
Carolina played its 41st game of the season last week, marking the midway point of the 2024-25 season.
Here are some of the best and worst of the season’s first three months.
Necas breaks through, then doesn’t
Necas looked like he was headed out of Raleigh in the offseason, but Carolina didn’t get a good enough offer to deal their tantalizing winger and instead re-signed the 25-year-old to a two-year extension.
The Hurricanes looked like geniuses in the season’s first two months as Necas sat near or atop the NHL in scoring, and he had 44 points through 30 games.
It hasn’t gone as well since. Necas went without a point in his next six and has just three points — his lone goal was into an empty net — in the last 10.
Carolina probably isn’t firmly in a playoff spot with Necas’ remarkable start, but if this team is going anywhere in the spring, the speedy forward needs to at least show some flashes of what made him so effective earlier in the season.
Meanwhile, Aho and Svechnikov have struggled to score at 5-on-5 (five and one goals, respectively, though Aho looks like he’s finally starting to heat up.
New guys, right guys
The Hurricanes lost a wealth of talent to free agency: Jake Guentzel, Brett Pesce, Brady Skjei and Teuvo Teravainen all departed for greener pastures over the summer — namely more than $160 million in combined salary over the life of their new deals.
Carolina simply didn’t have the salary cap space to match those offers, so new GM Eric Tulsky had to shop for cheaper replacements.
Those signings have panned out.
The Hurricanes plugged their two holes on defense with Shayne Gostisbehere and Sean Walker for a combined $6.8 million — $200,000 less than Skjei will cost Nashville against the cap this season — and have gotten their money’s worth.
Gostisbehere, who is currently week to week with an injury, is 15th among NHL defensemen in scoring despite having missed six games. His work on the first power play unit — where he has 18 points, second only to Colorado’s Cale Makar — helped Carolina to the top of the league with the man advantage.
Walker’s impact isn’t as noticeable on the stat sheet, but he has gotten better as the season progressed and brought some bite to the back end despite being one of the league’s smaller defensemen.
Jack Roslovic and Eric Robinson may not have the name recognition of Guentzel and Teravainen, but both are on pace for career years.
Roslovic already has 17 goals — five shy of his career high — and is trending toward a 50-point season. Robinson has nine goals and 20 points through 40 games, and he’s been a perfect fit for coach Rod Brind’Amour’s aggressive forecheck.
Speaking of ideal matches, William Carrier has seamlessly fit alongside Jordan Staal and Jordan Martinook on Carolina’s checking line.
Squad goals
The Hurricanes have played five different goalies this season, led by Pyotr Kocketkov.
It’s been an up-and-down year so far for the Russian goalie, who has won 15 of 23 decisions but has hovered around a .900 save percentage all season. Frederik Andersen is again injured, but he should be back before March barring any setbacks.
Spencer Martin posted his first career NHL shutout before stumbling, and Dustin Tokarski has filled in admirably since, winning three of four starts.
What’s ahead?
Carolina has a pretty even split of home and road games in the season’s second half, playing 21 at home compared to 20 on the road. According to Tankathon.com, the Hurricanes have one of the easier strengths of schedule, ranking in the bottom quarter of the league for remaining difficulty.
The Hurricanes should have the ability to add at the trade deadline, plus prized prospect Alexander Nikishin will likely join the team as soon as his KHL season is over.
