The Carolina Hurricanes are one of the premier teams in the National Hockey League in 2024-25, but the goaltending luck has been just brutal. Frederik Andersen is out for 8-12 weeks after undergoing knee surgery, while Pyotr Kochetkov is in concussion protocol and out indefinitely after colliding with a teammate on Saturday night.

And with that, the Canes are looking at Spencer Martin as the starter, a netminder who has been up and down from the American Hockey League throughout his career. Unsurprisingly, general manager Eric Tulsky is looking for an upgrade at the position — at least according to NHL insider Kevin Weekes.

“Given the injury to G Kochetkov, the injury and surgery to G Andersen being out 8-12 weeks, I’m told the [Hurricanes] are exploring potential G options in the market,” Weekes reported on Monday night.

Kochetkov had been performing excellently in Andersen's absence; the Russian is 10-2-0 with a .904 save percentage and a 2.42 goals-against average in 13 starts this season, his fourth with Carolina. The 25-year-old is no stranger to manning the crease and was nearly in a timeshare with Andersen even when the Swede was healthy.

But without both Andersen and Kochetkov, it makes sense that the front office would look for at least a short-term upgrade.

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Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Spencer Martin (41) celebrates his win after the game against the Dallas Stars at Lenovo Center.
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Martin has struggled with the Hurricanes in a short sample size in 2024-25; he made 15 saves in Monday night's 6-4 win over the Dallas Stars. That was just his second victory in six appearances, and that's not going to cut it for a team that is trying to compete for the President's Trophy.

The 29-year-old is sporting a 3.40 goals-against average and .854 save percentage, which certainly leaves something to be desired. It wouldn't be surprising if Yaniv Perets — who was called up from the ECHL's Norfolk Admirals — gets a look between the pipes on Wednesday night against the New York Rangers.

The Canes trailed 3-1 against the Stars on Monday before the offense erupted in the third period, scoring five goals in the third frame. Seth Jarvis led the way in his first contest back after missing seven with an injury; he recorded a goal and two assists in the triumph.

“I felt better than I initially felt like I was going to,” Jarvis said afterwards, per NHL.com's Kurt Dusterberg. “It was honestly just getting used to the speed again. You’re not used to guys flying at you after two weeks of stickhandling through cones. It was a good game to kick it off.”

The Hurricanes are now 15-5-1 and just a point back of first place in the conference — with three games in hand on the New Jersey Devils. This is again looking like a serious contender in the East.

But down both Andersen and Kochetkov long-term, the tandem of Martin and Perets is not going to cut it for one of the league's best teams. It'll be interesting to see if Carolina ends up bringing another goaltender into the fold before the New Year.