Overview
- Puck drop is 7 p.m. ET at Lenovo Center in Raleigh in the first of three meetings between the teams this season.
- Carolina enters 9-4-0 after wins over the Rangers and Wild, with a strong five-on-five profile and a bottom-ranked power play facing Buffalo’s league-best penalty kill.
- Pyotr Kochetkov is expected to start for the Hurricanes after a 26-save shutout on Nov. 4, according to team and local reports.
- Buffalo remains without captain Rasmus Dahlin, who took a personal leave to return to Sweden, shifting more responsibility to Owen Power and Bowen Byram.
- The projected lineups note multiple Carolina updates: Jalen Chatfield was placed on injured reserve and Gavin Bayreuther was recalled, while William Carrier and Eric Robinson are expected to return; Buffalo’s crease options include Alex Lyon (.915 SV%) and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.