The Carolina Hurricanes might have suffered two major losses mere weeks before the playoffs as goaltender Frederik Andersen had to be helped off the ice late in Saturday’s loss to the Colorado Avalanche and captain Jordan Staal also left the game early.
It’s unclear exactly how Andersen was injured but with just over five minutes to go in the third period, he was slow to get up after what appeared to be a routine save. The veteran goalie then had to be helped off the ice and Antti Raanta came in to finish the game.
Staal was injured mid-way through the third period on a hit from Cale Makar. After the game, head coach Rod Brind’Amour didn’t have an update on their conditions but said “It doesn’t look good.”
“I didn’t like the result,” Brind’Amour added, referencing the team’s 7-4 loss. “Then we get a couple of guys get hurt. That’s really the major concern. It’s not a good night for us. That’s for sure.”
Andersen has been one of the NHL’s best goalies this season after joining the Hurricanes as a free agent over the summer. His 2.07 goals-against average is second in the NHL and his .926 save percentage is tied for third.
Staal had two goals in the game and has 16 on the ice to equal his total from last year. He also is one of the best faceoff men in the NHL, winning more than 57 per cent of his draws to rank within the top 10 league-wide.
“Never fun to watch your own teammate go down,” said Hurricanes star Sebastian Aho. “We have a little adversity right now. We’ll see what we’re about right now. It hasn’t gone our way lately. A couple very big players go down tonight. These are the moments that a team has to come together, come back even stronger. [I’m] 100 per cent confident that’s exactly what’s going to happen.”
The Hurricanes and Rangers are tied for first in the Metropolitan Division lead, with 104 points each, but the Hurricanes hold the tiebreaker by carrying one game in hand. Carolina has seven games remaining on the season and will be back in action Monday against the Arizona Coyotes.
