Despite the Carolina Hurricanes hoping the injury to goalie Frederik Andersen would be week-to-week, the netminder is going to be out much longer.
The team confirmed on Thursday that the 35-year-old Andersen will have surgery Friday, which will keep him out of action for eight to 12 weeks.
While the specifics of the injury were not disclosed, Andersen has not played since he made 18 saves in a 4-1 win over the Seattle Kraken on Oct. 26.
In four games this season, Andersen has a 3-1-0 record and an impressive .941 save percentage.
Andersen missed 50 games during the 2023-24 season due to a blood clotting issue. Prior to the setback, Andersen had a 13-2-0 record and a stout .932 save percentage.
Carolina have turned to Pyotr Kochetkov, who led the Hurricanes to a win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday, and Spencer Martin, who was recently called up from the AHL’s Chicago Wolves.
In 12 games this season, Kochetkov has 10 wins, a 2.30 goals-against average, 264 saves and a .907 save percentage. Starting in two of his three appearances, Martin has one win, a 2.80 GAA, 49 saves and a .891 save percentage.
Given the sample size, Kochetkov may give the Hurricanes a better shot, but Martin has been solid enough in limited starts to deserve some consideration as well.
Playing in his 12th season in the NHL, Andersen has 298 career wins, a 2.55 GAA, a .916 save percentage and 27 shutouts. Andersen’s 298 wins rank ahead of notable goaltenders Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets and Cam Talbot of the Detroit Red Wings.
While Hellebuyck has appeared in 520 games compared to 499 for Andersen, Andersen has 10 more wins than Hellebuyck despite the battle with blood clots and injury problems. As impressive as Talbot has been, he only has 250 wins in two fewer starts, which shows just how valuable Andersen has been when he is on the ice.
With their veteran out of action for a while, the 14-4 Hurricanes will need to find some solid goaltending if they want to continue their hot start to the season.
