The Carolina Hurricanes finalize their Opening Night roster without any surprises

The Carolina Hurricanes set their Opening Night roster on Monday evening, releasing the 23 men who'll ride into battle against the New Jersey Devils when the season begins on Thursday. The release didn't come with any big surprises for the team, giving us about what we expected to see from the outset of training camp.

To finalize their roster, the Hurricanes sent defenseman Charles-Alexis Legault to the Chicago Wolves, marking the final cut of the preseason. Forward Juha Jaaska will begin the season on the team's "Injured-Non Roster" list after missing the entire preseason with an injury. Once he's healthy, I expect that he'll make his way to the Wolves as well.

The only semi-surprise on the Opening Night roster is Brandon Bussi, who the team claimed off waivers from the Florida Panthers on Sunday. The team appeared to claim him in preparation for Cayden Primeau to be claimed when he was placed on waivers Sunday afternoon. As expected, the Toronto Maple Leafs snagged him when the announcement came through on Monday.

How will the Carolina Hurricanes line up on Thursday?

Without any major surprises among the 23 players on the roster, the Hurricanes seem to have their forward group in place. We got a good look at them during the preseason finale on Saturday in a losing effort against the Nashville Predators. The team must feel confident in Logan Stankoven as the 2C, keeping him there for now.

The only question for the forward group is whether Jesperi Kotkaniemi will be ready to go by Thursday. Kotkaniemi returned to practice in his normal sweater on Monday after suffering an injury earlier in camp. If he’s healthy enough to play, Mark Jankowski will likely be the healthy extra up front. If he’s not good to go, then Jankowski will center the fourth line.

The back end of the roster has a few more dominoes set to fall if one player isn’t ready to go. Jalen Chatfield made his preseason debut on Saturday, but he wasn’t present for the team’s practice on Monday, seemingly signaling that he might not be ready for Opening Night. His availability will alter the configuration of the defense.

Without Chatfield in the lineup, the defense will probably look as it did at Monday’s practice. Mike Reilly will step in next to Alexander Nikishin, giving the team five lefties and only one righty. With Chatfield in the lineup, he’ll probably play next to K’Andre Miller, allowing Shayne Gostisbehere to play with the Russian rookie, as they have throughout camp.

In the net, there shouldn’t be any surprises. Frederik Andersen should get the nod for his fifth straight Opening Night start with the Hurricanes. Pyotr Kochetkov will be listed as the backup, but he'll likely get the start against the Flyers on Saturday night as he alternates starts with Andersen for as long as their bodies will allow.

With these 23 men, the Carolina Hurricanes will begin their pursuit of the Stanley Cup, a trophy that has eluded them for the past 20 years. As the 2025-26 season marks two decades since the team's lone Stanley Cup triumph, this team feels properly positioned to do it again. Thursday night will be the first true test as they meet the Devils in a postseason rematch.