Schedule (ET)

TBD

The Skinny

A playoff meeting between the Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils wasn’t always a lock.

When the calendar turned to 2025, the Devils were just a point adrift of the Washington Capitals and the Metropolitan Division lead. With the Canes in the mix five points behind Jersey, it was anyone’s ball game.

By Feb. 1, though, the Capitals had pulled ahead of the field after a torrid start to 2025 (9-1-4). Since then, their nearest competitors have undergone significant changes.

For the Hurricanes, a monumental trade for superstar winger Mikko Rantanen was followed by another deal that sent Rantanen to the Dallas Stars after a few weeks of ham-handed contract negotiations.

The fiasco raised questions over whether a market like Raleigh could attract the biggest names and whether exacting coach Rod Brind’Amour was even willing to integrate such a player into his rigid system.

Those questions found their way to the locker room, where an “us against the world” attitude helped fire the Canes to a 9-2 run in their first 11 games after the deadline. Since? They’re 0-3-1, including multi-goal losses to the Red Wings, Sabres, and Bruins.

At least the Rantanen trade(s) netted Carolina Logan Stankoven and Taylor Hall. The Devils have taken nothing but misery from a brutal second half. Since Jan. 1, they’ve struggled to stay above .500 (17-17-4), let alone press Washington or Carolina in the standings.

A knee injury that derailed starting goalie Jacob Markstrom’s season on Jan. 22 didn’t help, nor did subsequent injuries to defensemen Jonas Siegenthaler (out since 2/4) and Dougie Hamilton (3/4).

If that wasn’t enough bad luck, Jack Hughes’s year-ending tumble into the boards on March 3 felt like a death knell for the Devils’ Cup ambitions. It will take more resolve than Sheldon Keefe’s men have shown thus far to power through a Hurricanes team that hasn’t lost in the first round since 2020.

Head to Head

Carolina: 2-2-0
New Jersey: 2-2-0

A perfect 50/50 points split and a 13-12 total score (in Carolina’s favor) tell the story of an evenly matched season series between these defensively conscious division rivals. Those games were between two very different teams, though.

Since they last met in a home-and-away split from Dec. 27-28, Carolina has the fourth-best points percentage in the Eastern Conference, while New Jersey has the fourth-worst.

The Devils will take heart from Markstrom’s performances (2-1, .916 SV%) against the Canes, who did not start oft-injured veteran Frederik Andersen against New Jersey this season.

Top Five Scorers

Carolina

Sebastian Aho, 71 points
Seth Jarvis, 63 points
Andrei Svechnikov, 46 points
Shayne Gostisbehere, 44 points
Jack Roslovic, 38 points

New Jersey

Jesper Bratt, 88 points
Jack Hughes*, 70 points
Nico Hischier, 66 points
Timo Meier, 49 points
Luke Hughes, 42 points

*out for season

X-Factor

The NHL’s second-oldest skater, Brent Burns has been ancient by NHL standards for some time. The problem is that he finally looks old.

Unable to rely on his once-elite skating (52nd percentile in NHL top speed, down from 93rd in 2022-23) to carry the puck into the neutral zone, Burns is succumbing to the forecheck more than ever. His giveaways, which totaled just 108 in his first two seasons in Carolina combined, have climbed into the triple digits for the first time since his free-scoring prime.

Then, they were a symptom of a gifted passer’s willingness to take a risk to make a play. Now, Burns loses the puck through panicked, frenetic clearances unbecoming of his vast experience.

Burns’s metrics are still sterling (he’s attached at the hip to Team USA standout Jaccob Slavin), but his offense is gone (26 points, 2 power-play points), his zone exits are sloppy, and, despite a 6’5, 230 lb frame, physicality has never been his strong suit.

Burns looked especially past it during a late-season tilt with the Boston Bruins, whose David Pastrnak-led top line scored five goals at his expense. Getting burned by Pastrnak, one of the game’s few unstoppable players, is not shameful in and of itself, but Burns’s game film was even uglier than his -5 rating.

Boston goal!

Scored by Elias Lindholm with 00:13 remaining in the 1st period.

Assisted by David Pastrnak and Morgan Geekie.

Boston: 2
Carolina: 0#CARvsBOS #NHLBruins #RaiseUp pic.twitter.com/tRTyA4SuYE
— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) April 5, 2025

The Czech superstar targeted Burns over and over, effortlessly gliding around the 40-year-old and going through him just as easily. The Devils might not have Pastrnak, but could their lively forecheck be enough to break Burns down?

That’s a scary thought for Brind’Amour, who still plays the durable D-man more than 20 minutes a night.

Offense

For as much as they control the puck, Brind’Amour’s Hurricanes have never been terribly efficient at putting it in the back of the net. They’re third in shots on goal, but a down goalscoring year by talisman Sebastian Aho (shooting 14%, down from 16.9% from 2019-24) and a power play that has cratered since the turn of the year (11.7% since 1/1) have capped their offensive output at ninth.

As with any top-ten scoring offense, there are still positives. Eric Robinson (14 G), Jack Roslovic (21 G), and trade acquisition Mark Jankowski (7 G in 14 GP) have chipped in valuable depth scoring, and Taylor Hall (7 G, 13 P in last 16 GP) has settled in nicely despite a rotating cast of linemates.

Most importantly, a stellar top line of Aho, talented agitator Seth Jarvis, and rookie Jackson Blake emerged since the deadline, controlling over 64% of expected goals and 68% of actual ones. Brind’Amour, a relentless tinkerer even at the best of times, has kept the trio together for over a month now.

On the power play, Shayne Gostisbehere (26 PPP, fourth among defensemen) keeps on trucking despite the rest of the team’s struggles and mercurial power forward Andrei Svechnikov has posted nine PPG despite missing 10 games through various ailments.

While the Canes have struggled at five-on-four, the Devils rely heavily on their 3rd-ranked power play (27.9%), which makes up over a quarter of their offense and continues to thrive despite Jack Hughes and Hamilton’s injuries. That’s great for top-scorer Jesper Bratt (34 PPP, eighth-most in the NHL), but is it a winning formula against Carolina’s league-best PK (84.9%)?

The Devils have been abysmal at five-on-five since the elder Hughes went down (outscored 27-42), and the superstar’s injury has magnified the continued struggles of speedster Dawson Mercer and veteran Ondrej Palat.

Beyond Bratt, captain Nico Hischier (2023 Selke runner-up), and former big-ticket trade acquisition Timo Meier, journeyman sniper Stefan Noesen is the only active Devils’ forward to eclipse the 40-point mark.

Keefe has gotten some down lineup production from Cody Glass (6 P in 10 GP for NJD) and Paul Cotter (16 G), but he’ll need to ride the Hischier line hard to avoid getting buried at even strength.

Defense

While captain Jordan Staal is a perennial Selke Trophy contender (runner-up last season) and Slavin is at the front of the line for any hypothetical defensive defenseman award, Carolina’s long-standing defensive success is more due to its system than to the contributions of any player.

You can’t give up goals if you don’t lose the puck, and the Canes dominate nearly 60% of shot attempts. That starts up front, where Staal and right-hand man Jordan Martinook (58.89% high-danger chance share as a duo) anchor a dominant checking line. Aho and Jarvis (league-leading 5 SHG) have also bought in. Incredibly, they have an even rating in the 90+ minutes they’ve shared the ice on the PK.

The blueline itself is somewhat less inspiring. Brind’Amour’s system encourages mobile defenders like Jalen Chatfield and Sean Walker to gap up and kill plays in the neutral zone, but on the rare occasions they’re pinned back, they do a poor job of clearing the crease and limiting high-danger chances. Could incoming KHL superstar Alexander Nikishin help fix that?

The Devils would have a clear advantage on the back end if Hamilton and Siegenthaler were still available, but they’ve managed to ice a respectable lineup in their absence.

Luke Hughes, primarily known as an offensive dynamo (7 G, 47 P), has made massive strides in his own zone under Keefe. He and former Carolina stalwart Brett Pesce have driven positive results (55.1% chance share) despite massive usage and bad luck (.973 PDO, second-worst among units with 800+ minutes played).

Veteran Brian Dumoulin (5 A, +5 in 15 GP for NJD) has done a respectable job filling in for Siegenthaler next to emerging shutdown option Jonathan Kovacevic, who made himself a rich man this season with his blood-and-guts game.

If Hamilton (40 P, +9 in 63 GP) can return next to Brenden Dillon on what was Jersey’s top pair to start the year, then Keefe can split playoff contests evenly between three effective units.

Goaltending

The Hurricanes’ goaltending felt like a potential weak link on opening night, and after nearly six months and 80 games, not much has changed. Pyotr Kochetkov (2.58 GAA, .897 SV%) has the athleticism to make highlight-reel saves, but he handles the puck like it’s a live grenade and is prone to ugly slumps. He’s in one such slump (1-5, 4.20 GAA, .809 SV% in L5) just in time for the postseason, and Frederik Andersen is likely in line for a Game 1 start.

Ole’ Freddy is still excellent at using his big frame to cut shooting angles (.911 SV%), but he does not have the durability (68 starts since 2022) to play seven games on the hop at this stage. Last year, Andersen fell apart during a second-round exit (.878 SV%). A tandem might be the Canes’ only option.

The Devils thought they put their own goaltending woes behind them when they traded for Markstrom during the offseason, and if the season ended on Jan. 21, the big Swede would have landed on Vezina ballots. It didn’t, and the same knee injury that robbed Markstrom of a place in the Four Nations Faceoff has ostensibly ruined his game.

Since his March 3 return, the 34-year-old is 5-6-1 with a shocking .862 SV%. When it seemed he finally got on track with a four-game heater culminating in a shutout of the rival New York Rangers, the Bruins tagged a floundering Markstrom for seven goals. Could veteran backup Jake Allen (2.59 GAA, .909 SV%) get a look if ‘Marky’ buckles?

Injuries

The Hurricanes’ list of nagging ailments is long, but they haven’t been under any pressure to rush players back into the lineup.

Svechnikov and Staal were in against the Capitals April 10 after brief absences, with the former notching an assist. Gostisbehere and middle-six center Jesperi Kotkaniemi were out but should be back for the playoffs.

Finally, veteran forechecker William Carrier will return from his three-month surgery absence any day. It’s tough to tell who would come out of a healthy Carolina lineup to accommodate him.

The Devils’ injuries are far more serious. Jack Hughes is out for the year. Siegenthaler will likely need his buddies to win at least a series without him to make a postseason return. Hamilton’s status for the first round is up in the air, but Game 1 feels like a long shot.

If Bratt, Hischier, or Luke Hughes pick up so much as a common cold in the next week, it will become even more obvious the Hockey Gods are still mad at New Jersey for plunging the NHL into the Dead Puck era.

Intangibles

The Hurricanes don’t have a superstar, MVP-caliber player. They have neither a legitimate second line nor a nailed-on starting goalie. They play in the third-smallest American NHL market. These facts could be used to paint them as scrappy overachievers who have adopted Brind’Amour’s peerless work ethic, but that would be disingenuous.

Carolina’s lack of superstar players (ones that stick around, at least) is by choice. They know ‘Rod the Bod’ will churn 100 points and a playoff berth out of any roster of worker bees and a few relevant point producers. It’s an M.O. that keeps salaries low and live gates high, but how obvious must it become that they won’t win the Cup this way for the fans in Raleigh to become discouraged?

The Hurricanes have been too good for too long to fly under the radar. They must feel at least some pressure to prove their oddball ways can actually yield a championship. Bulldozing the Devils would be a good start, and an extra game at the Lenovo Center, where they’re 19-9 in the postseason since 2021, won’t hurt their chances.

Too much has gone wrong already for New Jersey to hold onto similarly lofty goals, and losing their best player a month out from the postseason felt like one catastrophe too many. Since then, the Devils have played like a team that feels sorry for itself rather than one unburdened by expectations.

That’s the last thing Keefe, who oversaw his share of collapses as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, will want to hear. If the Devils are doomed to fail, they at least need to black some eyes on the way down and show some of the fight Kovacevic talked about a few weeks back.

If they make a good show of it against a Canes outfit that fully expects to crush them, it will add some well-needed positivity to a dreary end to the season in New Jersey.

Series Prediction

The red flags on the Hurricanes’ home jersey aren’t the only warning signs around this team, who have shown cracks down the stretch. New Jersey might not have enough left in the tank for that to matter.

The Canes, who broke down the New York Islanders in conference quarterfinal matchups in 2023 and 2024, should have no problem repeating the trick against the toothless Devils.

Hurricanes in five games.

______

POST SPONSORED BY bet365

_____