The Carolina Hurricanes are bringing Seth Jarvis back into the mix.
The team activated the forward on Thursday, and he is expected to make his season debut that night in Edmonton after sitting out the first 11 games while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. Coach Rod Brind’Amour stopped short of saying Jarvis is definitely in the lineup, calling him a game-time decision.
“I’m hopeful that he’ll get in,” Brind’Amour said. “I don’t know how much to expect.
He obviously hasn’t played a game in a long, long time. Just having him getting closer to being available is huge for us.”
Jarvis’ return comes with Carolina already rolling through the opening month. The Hurricanes are 8-2-1, own an NHL-high 17 points and have kept winning despite a rash of injuries. They’re still without captain Jordan Staal, who is dealing with a calf injury, along with forwards Taylor Hall and Mark Jankowski.
Jarvis, though, made clear he’s eager to get back into the middle of it.
“It made me realize how much I love hockey when it gets taken away from you for a little bit,” Jarvis said Thursday after an optional skate.
He’s coming off a big year in 2025-26, when he posted 32 goals and 34 assists in 71 regular-season games. Since arriving in 2021, Jarvis has played 375 career games for Carolina and become one of the backbone pieces in the Hurricanes’ sustained success.
Jarvis didn’t try to overstate his own role, either.
“To see them playing as well as they have it’s amazing,” Jarvis said. “My only job here is to elevate that.”
Carolina also made a roster move Thursday by recalling forward Skyler Brind’Amour from Chicago and assigning forward Bradly Nadeau to Chicago. Skyler Brind’Amour, the son of coach Rod Brind’Amour, has appeared in six games for the Hurricanes across the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons. He is not expected to play against Edmonton, but injuries at center and to key penalty killers created the opening for the call-up.
Edmonton, meanwhile, brings its own heavy artillery. The Oilers are 7-1-1 and have 15 points, powered by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
McDavid, a three-time NHL MVP, has six goals and 20 assists in nine games this season. Draisaitl, who won the MVP in 2020, has eight goals and eight assists in nine games.
“Whenever they’re on the ice, it’s a challenge,” Rod Brind’Amour said.
Carolina finishes its five-game road trip Saturday in St. Louis, with the final stop coming during the State Fair.
In Other News...
Kochetkovs Hot Start Raises A Bigger Hurricanes Question
Pyotr Kochetkovs start has given the Hurricanes a steady presence in net, with the goalie opening the season 6-0-0 even though the raw save percentage has left some room for debate. On the surface, .899 does not leap off the page, but Carolinas strong defensive structure and heavy puck possession make his job a little different than it is for many starters around the league.
The bigger question is how to weigh those results in a system that suppresses volume but can still ask a goalie to be sharp on the chances that do get through. Kochetkov is seeing a unique workload, one that tests focus as much as technique, and the early read is that the Hurricanes may care more about the wins than the aesthetics for now. [Read more 🡒]
Hurricanes Just Drew A Line In Connor Hellebuyck Talks
The talk around Connor Hellebuyck has shifted again, and this time Carolina appears to be drawing a harder line. According to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, the Hurricanes have revised their trade offer for the Winnipeg goaltender by taking prospect Alexander Nikishin out of the package, a notable move for a team that has built a reputation around firm negotiation tactics and careful asset management.
The revised offer has not been accepted, and the waiting game now stretches beyond Raleigh. Buffalo and Utah are still in the mix and watching to see whether Winnipeg responds, with the next decision carrying weight well beyond this one deal because the outcome could help set the tone for the broader goaltending market. [Read more 🡒]
Canucks Just Added More Fuel To The Elias Pettersson Debate
Even after the Mikko Rantanen blockbuster, the trade deadline picture around Carolina has another wrinkle. According to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, the Hurricanes were in the mix for Elias Pettersson on that same night, with general manager Eric Tulsky asking both Vancouver and Colorado for their best offers before making a call on which path to follow.
The result says plenty about how Carolina is operating under Tulsky, who appears willing to push hard on big-name targets while still keeping the bar high on value. Vancouver was part of the conversation deep into the process, but the Hurricanes ultimately went the other direction, a decision that could linger in future negotiations if the Canucks and others remember how close this one came to turning. [Read more 🡒]