2025-26 Regular Season, Game 35 Preview: Carolina Hurricanes at Tampa Bay Lightning

Last Game: The Carolina Hurricanes allowed a 3-0 lead to slip through their hands against the Florida Panthers on Friday night. Things got off to a good start after Jordan Staal popped home a rebound for his 10th goal of the season. It was the only goal on the board until Sebastian Aho scored on a breakaway early in the third period to double the lead. Aho was on the spot to make it a three-goal game when he snapped a rebound past Sergei Bobrovsky on the power play. That's when things fell apart. The Panthers started playing their agitating game, leading to a comeback. Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett, and Sam Reinhart scored during the final ten minutes of regulation, sending the game to overtime. Early on, Seth Jarvis exited the game after being tripped and crashing into the goal post. Neither team scored in overtime, and the Panthers were one shot better in the shootout, ending Brandon Bussi's win streak at nine games and the team's win streak at six. Aho (2G), Jarvis (2A), and Andrei Svechnikov (2A) handled most of the scoring for the Canes, and Bussi made 38 saves in the loss.

Injury Report

Seth Javis: He's not going to play tonight, and he'll be out "a while" per the head coach, so it's anyone's guess how long that really is.

Jordan Martinook: Labeled as day-to-day before the Florida game, if he isn't able to play, the Canes might be going 11/7 tonight.

The Opponent: Tampa Bay Lightning (18-13-3, 39 Points; 5th in the Atlantic Division)

Last Season's Meetings: The Bolts took two of the three meetings a season ago. It began on Opening Night. Jordan Staal scored the opening goal, and the Canes held the Lightning in check for a good portion of the contest. Brayden Point scored on the power play in the second, and Nikita Kucherov followed it up with a natural hat trick in the third, including a pair into the empty net, to open the season with a 4-1 victory in Raleigh. The second meeting was simply heartbreaking for the Hurricanes. They worked back from one-goal deficits twice, getting tallies from Andrei Svechnikov and Staal, but Point scored with under a minute to go in regulation to steal at least one point from the Canes in a 3-2 win. Carolina avoided the sweep in the final battle. Pyotr Kochetkov outdueled Andrei Vasilevskiy, and the home team never took its foot off the gas. They salvaged something positive from the season series with a 4-1 victory on home ice.

Since We Last Met: Despite another 100-point season and a second-place finish in the Atlantic Division, the Bolts provided little resistance to the Florida Panthers in the first round, falling, like the Canes did, in five games. Andrei Vasilevskiy and the defense allowed 16 goals in a series defeat, though there didn't appear to be much panic from the organization following their early exit. They pretty much held serve during the offseason. Pontus Holmberg would be the only player I'd classify as a "semi-big" addition. Otherwise, they're pretty much the exact same team. Now, they're dealing with non-stop injuries that have torn through the team. Victor Hedman is likely out until February. Brandon Hagel missed their game on Thursday with a lower-body injury. Nikita Kucherov also missed with an illness after taking warm-ups. Anthony Cirelli was hurt in the 2-1 loss to the Kings. Add missed games for Andrei Vasilevskiy, Brayden Point, Nick Paul, Erik Cernak, and Ryan McDonagh, and it's a little impressive that the Bolts have stuck near the top of the division as long as they have. Then again, it's not too surprising, given the star power. Kucherov is eighth in assists (29) and scoring (42). Brandon Hagel leads the team with 18 goals. Jake Guentzel is a point-per-game contributor. Vasilevskiy, when healthy, is still one of the best goalies in the league, currently in the Top 10 in save percentage (.915) and GAA (2.30). They're one of the teams that you know what to expect when you see them on the schedule.

Stories to Watch

1. Leave Friday in the past

There's a part of me that believes that the Hurricanes having a game immediately after blowing a 3-0 lead is going to be a good thing. It doesn't allow them to stew on the events of Friday's loss, forcing them to flip the switch and focus on the Lightning. Of course, it could have the opposite effect, but I'm not ready to deal with that possibility. In the words of Ted Lasso, they'll need to be a goldfish and not allow their final stop to be dictated by what happened in Sunrise.

2. Sebastian Aho is hot, and he'll be needed more than ever now

This short trip has gotten Sebastian Aho going at the perfect time. He has four goals and five points through two stops, recording back-to-back multi-goal games against the Predators and the Panthers. Now, with Jarvis out of the lineup for the time being, it might be as important as ever that he has found his scoring touch again. Someone will need to be promoted to the top line to play next to him and Andrei Svechnikov, who has two multi-point games in a row of his own.