- Brandon Bussi enters 2026-27 as Carolina’s starter after his Cup-clinching shutout
- Frederik Andersen left for Edmonton, leaving Pyotr Kochetkov as the only other option
- Read below for what the numbers say about the Hurricanes goalie plan
Carolina won a Stanley Cup with a goalie who had four career playoff appearances. That goalie now has the crease to himself.
Brandon Bussi is the Hurricanes starter heading into 2026-27. Frederik Andersen signed a one-year deal with the Oilers on July 1, which leaves Pyotr Kochetkov as the only other goalie on the roster with meaningful NHL time.
The case for Bussi is not complicated. He went 31-6-2 with a 2.47 goals-against average across 39 regular season games, replaced Andersen in the middle of Game 3 of the Final, and started the last three. His 22-save shutout in Game 6 ended Vegas.
Watch the night he closed out the championship:
What Bussi has not done yet is the part Carolina has to live with. Last season was his first in the NHL, and he has never carried a starter’s workload over 82 games. Three huge wins in June settled plenty. They did not settle that.
Kochetkov is a thin safety net behind him. A lower-body injury held him to nine appearances last season, and while he went 6-2-0 with a 2.33 goals-against average, his .899 save percentage was ordinary. He finished at .898 over 47 games the year before that.
Andersen was the release valve on all of this. His .874 save percentage in 35 regular season games was ugly, then he went 13-2 with a 1.89 goals-against average and three shutouts in the playoffs before hurting his knee. Edmonton got him for $2.8 million.
Zach Sawchenko arrived on a two-way deal in July, but he has seven career NHL games and reads as AHL insurance rather than a third option Rod Brind’Amour would lean on in November.
Free agency still has veterans sitting around unsigned, and Carolina would not have to pay much for one who can take 20 starts. The defending champions are otherwise close to airtight. Their two goalies combined for 48 NHL games last season.
