2025-26 Regular Season, Game 6 Preview: Carolina Hurricanes at Vegas Golden Knights

Last Game: The Carolina Hurricanes finished their California swing on Saturday night with a 4-3 overtime victory over the Anaheim Ducks. The Canes got off to a hot start, scoring 12 seconds into the contest and hitting a milestone in the process. Jordan Staal scored career goal #300 to get the scoring started, and he wasn't done there. Staal scored #301 enarly four minutes later, starting the Canes on the right path. Jesperi Kotkaniemi added to the lead early in the second by burying a beautiful breakaway chance from K'Andre Miller. The Kings played like a desperate team to claw back into the game. Trevor Moore responded to Kotkaniemi's goal almost immediately, and Andrei Kuzmenko scored on the power play to make it a one-goal game after 40 minutes. Kevin Fiala notched the tying goal midway through the third, setting the Canes and the Kings on course to settle their differences in overtime. Seth Jarvis played the hero, scoring 1:45 into overtime to push the Canes to a perfect 5-0-0 with three wins in California. Brandon Bussi made 25 stops to record his second win in as many starts.

Injury Report
Shayne Gostisbehere: The newest name on the list, Gostisbehere left Saturday's win in the first period with a lower-body injury. Described as a "tweak," it's unclear whether he'll be good to go on Monday.
Jaccob Slavin: He's not on the trip, and I don't expect him to join them. 
Pyotr Kochetkov: He's also not on the trip, and he doesn't need to be with how well Bussi is playing.

The Opponent: Vegas Golden Knights (4-0-2, 10 Points; 110 Points, 1st in the Pacific last season)
Last Season's Meetings: The Hurricanes traveled to Vegas in mid-November a year ago for the second stop of a three-game journey. They dominated the Golden Knights in their barn, jumping out to a 4-0 lead through two periods. Eric Robinson and Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored in the first period, while Jordan Staal and Tyson Jost, in his Hurricanes debut, scored in the second. Jack Eichel got one back before Jordan Martinook scored into the empty net. Ivan Barbashev added a garbage-time PPG in a 5-2 Hurricanes win. The Golden Knights made the return trip to Raleigh two months later. Tomas Hertl opened the scoring in the second, but the Canes scored three unanswered to regain the lead. Seth Jarvis scored twice and Jackson Blake scored in between. Shea Theodore brough Vegas back within a goal, but the Canes held on to sweep the season series in a 3-2 victory.

Since We Last Met: The Golden Knights are still trying to recapture the mojo that saw them win the Stanley Cup in 2023. They're coming off a 110-point season and a division title, but they fell in the 2nd round to the Edmonton Oilers. Vegas made the biggest move of the offseason, completing a sign-and-trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs to acquire pending UFA Mitch Marner before he could hit the market, sending former Hurricane Nicolas Roy to Toronto. They was the majority of their work this offseason, along with getting Jack Eichel extended before the season began. It has all worked in their favor to begin the season. The Golden Knights have points in all six of their games, joining the Hurricanes and the Avalanche in an exclusive group without a regulation loss. Jack Eichel sits atop the league in points (15), Mark Stone leads the league in assists (11), and Pavel Dorofeyev is tied for second in the league in goals (6). Marner is third on the team with eight points, scoring his first two goals with the Golden Knights in their demolition of the Calgary Flames on Saturday.

Stories to Watch
1. Who will be healthy for each team?
Neither team is coming into this game at full strength. The Canes are without two of their top defensemen and their backup goalie. With Slavin almost certainly out, and Gostisbehere uncertain for the game, it could signal Charles Alexis Legault's NHL debut after being recalled before the trip. Vegas played their contest against the Flames without Noah Hanifin and Brett Howden in the lineup. While both are considered day-to-day, it's not clear whether either will be in the lineup. The real concern is Mark Stone, who exited Saturday's game in the third period with what appeared to be a hand or wrist injury. If he doesn't play, it would be a huge loss for Vegas, though playing without him has become second nature at this point.

2. The Canes continue their hellacious trip
The good news for the Hurricanes is that they finished their journey through California perfect and ensured no worse than a .500 record on this trip. The bad news is that the combined records of the team's they're about to play is 12-2-3, as of Sunday, which means a .500 finish to the trip isn't an impossibility. The Canes will have two days on the other side of this game before facing the Colorado Avalanche in Denver on Thursday. The group needs to get as close to empty as they can on Monday and head into their extra-day break with good feelings. 

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