Thanksgiving has come and gone. The holiday season has taken its grasp of the world and in a blink of an eye, we will be watching the ball drop for the new year. The Carolina Hurricanes have an important month of hockey ahead of them but let’s look at the schedule as the players get ready for some Canadian weather.
First things first, the month of November still has three more days this week and the Canes will play two critical divisional games against the Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Islanders. New York’s game will be played at PNC Arena, while the Canes will head North to Philadelphia.
The Flyers are currently just one point behind Carolina in the standings and the Islanders have also jumped up to just one point below the Canes with a string of victories. The Metro Division is tight right now, and many teams will flip-flop as the year progresses.
December will begin with an Eastern Conference showdown as the Canes will host the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres have 20 points so far this season and sit low in the Atlantic Division.
The next six days will have the Canes leaving the country and heading farther up North to face some Canadian teams. The five games following the Sabres match will be in Canada, starting off with the Winnipeg Jets on Monday, December 4th. From there, Carolina will travel West to Alberta. The Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames will host the Canes.
A quick trip to Vancouver to face the Canucks will be followed up by a trip back East to the nation’s capital, Ottawa. The struggling Senators will host Carolina on December 12th.
A stop in Detroit will get the boys back in the States before finally heading home to play 5 out of 7 games on home ice for the holidays.
Before the 2023 calendar flips over to 2024, the Canes will play one final game on December 30th in none other than Canada! Another Canadian team will host the Canes for the New Year’s weekend. In Toronto, the Hurricanes will close out the 2023 schedule and head home for New Year’s Eve.