The Carolina Hurricanes lost to the Montreal Canadiens 7-5 on Thursday to start 2026. Despite sitting atop the Metropolitan Division, Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour has some concerns about his team.
“We were turning pucks over at just an unbelievably high rate, for no reason.. We have deficiencies, and they're starting to show. We've held on for a long, long time, but it's obvious,” Brind'Amour said, per Walt Ruff of Hurricanes.com.
The Hurricanes are 2-4-1 in their last seven games, but no one is banging down the door in the Metro. Carolina's goaltending has been boosted this season by emerging star Brandon Bussi, but he was in the net for the brutal loss on Thursday. Their scoring was not the problem, but leaving Bussi out to dry was a significant issue.
That is not usually how things go for the Hurricanes under Brind'Amour. A center famous for his defensive prowess, Brind'Amour has brought that mentality to the head coaching role in his eight seasons behind the bench. They have finished in the top ten in goals against in each season under Brind'Amour, but currently sit 14th.
The Hurricanes have a three-point lead on the New York Islanders for the top spot in the Metropolitan Division. They are building a solid offensive core after a long stretch of struggling on offense. Seth Jarvis, Sebastian Aho, and Jackson Blake have been scoring, but the defense has not followed.
The Hurricanes play four of their next five games at home, starting with a Saturday matchup with the Colorado Avalanche. Carolina has had incredible success under Brind'Amour without a Stanley Cup Final appearance. Beating the top team in the league would bury the bad start to 2026 and put Carolina right in the Stanley Cup race.
The Hurricanes and the Avalanche face off on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. in Raleigh.
