"Manitoba Mercenaries": 2025-26 Regular Season, Game 24: Carolina Hurricanes vs. Winnipeg Jets

The Hurricanes have Thanksgiving behind them, so it's back to our regularly scheduled broadcast as the group continues its homestand. They didn't get off on the best foot on Wednesday night against the Rangers, dropping their second game in a row. They remain without their captain, who'll miss his 3rd straight game, keeping the team's lineup the same. Against one of the best top lines in the league, the Canes will have their work cut out for them. They'll also have to contend with a goalie making his NHL debut as Thomas Milic took the net for the Winnipeg Jets. What's the worst that could happen?

Scoring Summary

1st Period

CAR (16:06)- Seth Jarvis (13) (Shayne Gostisbehere (14) & Sebastian Aho (16))

2nd Period

WPG (10:41)- Mark Scheifele (13) (Gabriel Vilardi (9))

3rd Period

CAR (11:52)- Jordan Martinook (3) (Mark Jankowski (3) & Shayne Gostisbehere (15))

CAR (12:39)- Seth Jarrvis (14) (K'Andre Miller (9) & Andrei Svechnikov (6))

CAR (18:57-EN)- Seth Jarvis (15) (Andrei Svechnikov (7))

CAR (19:37)- Alexander Nikishin (3) (Justin Robidas (1) & Eric Robinson (2))

My Thoughts

The moment this game could've gotten away from the Hurricanes came with the team on the power play early in the third. What started as a man advantage almost ended with the Jets stealing the lead. Kyle Connor is the last man you want to see barrelling at you without a defender in the way. Alas, Connor had the puck on his stick for a short-handed breakaway in a 1-1 game. While Brandon Bussi bit on the first move, he reached back and robbed him with his right pad, keeping the puck out of the net. It was one of 12 stops Bussi made in the contest, but it was easily his biggest. If that shot goes in, there's a chance we don't see what would transpire throughout the remainder of the third period.

During the aforementioned third period, the Hurricanes scored four unanswered goals. Two of those came off the stick of Seth Jarvis, who added one in the first period to record the 2nd hat trick of his career. This gave Jarvis four goals in two games against his hometown team in a week after scoring in Winnipeg last Friday night. His goal in the first period was especially important with how well Thomas Milic started his debut. Getting that first one put my mind at ease, proving that the Jets' rookie could be beaten. Then, he quickly added to the Canes' lead in the third, putting the game away for good with his empty-net goal to complete the hat trick. The star forward is up to 15 goals in 24 games, putting him on pace for 51 goals. While we need to keep things a little realistic, this was a game we've been waiting to see from Jarvis. His eight shots were nearly as many as Winnipeg had the entire night.

While the personnel remained the same from Wednesday night, other than Bussi in the net, there was one small difference in the lines. Mark Jankowski moved into the captain's spot on the third line as Jordan Staal missed his third game, while Justin Robidas centered the fourth line. While Jankowski isn't Staal, he fits perfectly between Jordan Martinook and William Carrier. He styles meshes better with them than Robidas, and it worked well on the game-winning goal. Jankowski fit a pass through three Jets to hit Martinook in the right dot before the Manitoban put it off the post and into the net to put the Canes ahead, 2-1. To his credit, Robidas played a good game, too. He was rewarded with an assist in the final minute. 

There were good nights all across the blue line as well. Shayne Gostisbehere provided assists on the first two Carolina goals, making a sweet pass to Jarvis to open the scoring. He has multiple points in the last two games, 11 points in nine games since returning from injury, and 18 points in 15 games this season. He's now the owner of the second-most points per game by a defenseman in the NHL (1.20). K'Andre Miller added an assist, finding Jarvis on his second goal. Alexander Nikishin had himself a fine evening on both ends of the ice. He rang the post with a backhand in the third before getting one to go into the net in the final minute on a drive from the boards. It was a well-earned goal to cap an outstanding effort for him.

First Star of the Game: Seth Jarvis

There are plenty of choices to pick from, but getting a hat trick makes you an automatic lock as the player of the game. Seth Jarvis was firing on all cylinders tonight, getting three into the net for the second time in his career. His first two were to nearly identical spots against Thomas Milic before finishing it with the rookie netminder on the bench. After that stretch during which he was snake-bitten, Jarvis has responded with five goals in four games.

Next Up: The Canes finish November against the Calgary Flames on Sunday, marking the third game of their seven-game homestand. The team gets a rare three-day break between games before picking up their stay against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday. This begins three games in four nights, concluding with a back-to-back against Nashville and San Jose over the weekend.