newsobserver
The Carolina Hurricanes, who enjoyed a relatively injury-free run to the Stanley Cup playoffs last season, are encountering a different reality early in the new campaign. The team's injury list continues to expand, with key contributors now sidelined.
Captain Jordan Staal is out with a torn calf muscle, and veteran forward Taylor Hall was placed on injured reserve Monday due to an undisclosed upper-body injury. The latest addition is center Mark Jankowski, who missed Sunday's game against the Calgary Flames with a lower-body issue and has returned to Raleigh for further medical evaluation, according to head coach Rod Brind'Amour.
Jankowski had been on a hot streak, scoring in six consecutive games while filling in for Staal on the top line between wingers Nikolaj Ehlers and Jordan Martinook. His absence forced Martinook to shift to center as Brind'Amour juggled his lines in the 3-2 loss to Calgary.
Forward Seth Jarvis has yet to play this season, missing the first 10 games while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. Although he has practiced with the team and is accompanying them on the five-game road trip, he has not received medical clearance to return to game action.
"We've got guys playing out of position and have lost three or four penalty killers," Brind'Amour said after the Flames game. "But you've got to figure it out. This is a no-one-feels-sorry-for-you league. You just regroup."
The Hurricanes have leaned on call-ups from the AHL's Chicago Wolves, with forwards Bradly Nadeau and Felix Unger Sorum seeing action in the first two games of the trip. "Obviously it's been a lot with guys getting nicked up to start the year," Martinook said. "Forever around here, it's been the next-man-up mentality and that's not going to change anytime soon."
Jankowski's contributions have been valuable; he scored a power-play goal in the team's 3-2 win at Winnipeg to open the trip and has been a fixture on the penalty kill. "He's just a guy that can do a little bit of everything and we need that right now," Brind'Amour said after the Winnipeg victory.
Jarvis is eager to return but acknowledged that the team's injury situation won't rush his recovery. "For me, I always want to play and want to get back in the lineup," Jarvis said before the trip. "But from a team point, we've done such a good job with guys coming up and in dealing with injuries. I don't think there's any urgency from the team to rush me back."
Key Analysis
The Hurricanes' depth is being tested early, but the team's next-man-up philosophy and the performance of call-ups have helped them stay competitive. With key players like Staal, Hall, and Jankowski out, the pressure falls on the remaining roster to maintain their playoff-caliber play. The road trip continues Tuesday at Vancouver, followed by stops in Edmonton and St. Louis before returning home to face the Boston Bruins on October 29.
Originally reported by newsobserver.