How the 2026 Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes were built
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Carolina won the 2026 Stanley Cup after making only one in-season trade.
- GM Tulsky’s summer 2024–2025 moves added key veterans and signings.
- Andersen and Bussi split starting duties and propelled Carolina in the playoffs.
The Carolina Hurricanes of 2026 — the Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes of 2026 — were an aberration of sorts among NHL teams this past season.
While most teams expecting to contend for the championship shopped for pending free agents, disgruntled stars, or role players via the trade market, the Carolina Hurricanes barely budged.
The Canes’ lone move was acquiring Nicolas Deslauriers from Philadelphia. The hefty winger has a particular skill set in the NHL that is rarely needed in the playoffs, but added some beef to the team’s lineup down the stretch.
To paraphrase an old saying, the Hurricanes danced with the players that brought them. They remained loyal to the core players who’ve been with the team for nearly a decade, and did all of their moving and shaking in the summers of 2024 and 2025, adding to that core with the proper pieces that fit the Canes’ puzzle.
“You have the guys who have been drafted here and the guys who have been here for a long time,” Taylor Hall said Sunday before Game 6. “But there’s a few of us who played for multiple teams. We’ve come in and played a lot better, had big roles than we had other places. We take pride in that.”
Here is look at the Hurricanes’ Stanley Cup-winning roster, and background on how the team’s roster was built, in order of jersey number.
No. 4 Shayne Gostisbehere, 32, Defense
Gostisbehere is the one player on this roster who has the distinction of having been a Hurricane twice. Originally drafted by San Jose, the Union College product first played in the NHL for the Flyers, spending seven seasons in Philadelphia. He was traded to Arizona, where he played for nearly two seasons before the Hurricanes traded for him in March 2023. After signing that summer with Detroit on a one-year deal, the canes brought the shifty puck-moving defender back as a free agent in July 2024. In 125 regular-season games with Carolina over his two most recent seasons, Gostisbehere had 20 goals and 75 assists, including 45 power-play points and was a plus-12.
No. 5 Jalen Chatfield, 29, Defense
After breaking into the NHL in 2020-21 at age 24 the Hurricanes signed Chatfield to a two-year, two-way contract in 2021. He played just 16 games for the Canes that season, but slowly worked his way into being a regular on the blue line, and into a bigger contract. Never flashy on the scoresheet, Chatfield is one of those players GM Eric Tulsky loves for his defensive zone ability, his knack for being on the plus-side of the scoresheet, and his work ethic.
No. 6 Mike Reilly, 32, Defense
A prototypical veteran depth defender, Reilly played in 42 regular-season games for the Hurricanes in 2025-26. The Canes brought him in as a free agent signing in summer 2025 after he’d played two seasons with the Islanders. Carolina is his seventh NHL team, but he played like he fit in from the beginning, helping the Canes through a tough stretch of injuries to a spate of defenders early in the season, and providing depth even in the Stanley Cup Playoffs after Alexander Nikishin was hurt early.
No. 11 Jordan Staal, 37, Forward
Staal, the captain, is the second in his family to wear the “C” for the Hurricanes, after his brother, Eric. He arrived in Carolina via summer trade in 2012, and now has 14 seasons under his belt with the Canes after playing six in Pittsburgh. He is by far the longest-tenured Hurricanes player, and has often been described as its “heart and soul.”
No. 19 K’Andre Miller, 26, Defense
One of a pair of “big fish” Tulsky landed in the summer of 2025, K’Andre Miller agreed to a sign-and-trade from the New York Rangers to Carolina. Tulsky locked up Miller for eight years at $7.5 million per season in the deal, using draft capital the Canes had acquired in a prior deal with Dallas in the trade. Miller immediately became one of the Canes’ top defenders, and was arguably their best defender in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
No. 20 Sebastian Aho, 28, Forward
The Hurricanes drafted Aho in the second round, 35th overall, in 2015, and he made his NHL debut in 2016, at 19 years old. He has had at least 65 points in every completed regular-season except for his first. In his past four regular seasons, Aho has averaged 77.5 points per season while playing an average of 77.5 games per season – a point per game. His prowess on both the penalty kill and power play make him perhaps the Canes’ most versatile forward, and is among the “core” that was here when Rod Brind’Amour arrived as head coach in 2018.
No. 21 Alexander Nikishin, 24, Defense
Nikishin’s arrival in Raleigh was its own minor spectacle, with the team flying him from Europe to be with the Canes in the 2025 playoffs after Nikishin’s Russian team granted his release. He was originally a third-round draft pick by Carolina in 2020, but chose to stay and play in Russia’s top league first. He was thrust into action in the 2025 playoffs, but looked every bit as green as this all makes him sound. This season, he was named to the NHL All-Rookie team, had 33 points, including 11 goals, and has become an integral part of the power play units.
No. 22 Logan Stankoven, 22, Forward
Dallas drafted Stankoven in the second round in 2021. They had big plans for him, and he played well for the Stars. In his first full season in Dallas, Stankoven had 29 points in 59 games – before the trade.
Stankoven was the key player the Hurricanes received in return from Dallas when they shipped disgruntled forward Mikko Rantanen to the Stars after an ill-fated few weeks in Raleigh, this another of Tulsky’s big swings that yielded great results. Slankoven buoyed the Canes in the early rounds of the 2026 playoffs on the scoresheet, and over the season adapted well into his role as a two-way center.
No. 24 Seth Jarvis, 23, Forward
It’s hard to believe Jarvis is just 23 years old, because it feels as though he’s been on the Hurricanes’ roster forever. The reality: The Canes drafted Jarvis in the first round of the 2020 NHL Draft. He nearly made the team that year out of training camp, went back to the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL, and then really did make the team out of training camp the following year, giving Hurricanes’ staff no choice with his strong play. That early signing, though, started the clock on his contract. He has since re-upped with Carolina for eight years through 2032, at an average of $7.42 million per season.
No. 26 Sean Walker, 31, Defense
Walker was another of those sneaky, under-the-radar signings from Tulsky back in 2024. His signing was low-risk, high-reward, and has proven the latter. Signed for five years at an average of $3.62 million per season, Walker has solidified the blue line with steady play. Never flashy, Walker played in 81 of 82 regular-season games, after playing in all 82 a year ago.
No. 27 Nikolaj Ehlers, 29, Forward
After Miller, the other of the “big fish” Tulsky landed in the summer of 2025. Nikolaj Ehlers was a proven point-producer for Winnipeg, but as his contract expired, he chose to test the free agent market. Perhaps swayed by his countryman, goalie Frederik Andersen, and by $8.5 million per season he’s getting paid, Ehlers chose Carolina over all suitors in free agency. The Canes had the money for this in the first place after the combination of the Rantanen deal and an offer sheet to another player that never came to fruition.
No. 28 William Carrier, 31, Forward
Other than Staal, Carrier was the only player on the Canes’ roster to have won a Stanley Cup – with Vegas in 2023. His signing in 2024 was a six-year roll of the dice that his sandpaper grit and tenacity would lend itself to the Hurricanes’ style of play, and perhaps add something the team had been missing in previous playoff pushes. Tulsky was right. Again. Carrier’s numbers are not gaudy, but at $2 million per season, he has added value far beyond numbers to this roster.
No. 31 Frederik Andersen, 36, Goalie
Andersen initially signed with Carolina in 2021 for $4.5 million per year over two years. He re-upped in 2023 for another two seasons, and then again last summer for a single year at $2.75 million. Andersen has had a solid career, but it has been pockmarked by injuries and the appearance of troubles under pressure. But, his value was undeniable. The Canes this past season finished with three NHL goalies under contract for just over $5 million, an outright bargain in today’s NHL goalie market. Then, Andersen went on a tear through the first three rounds of the playoffs, going 12-1 and leading the Canes into the Stanley Cup Final.
No. 32 Brandon Bussi, 27, Goalie
Perhaps Tulsky’s slickest pickup, Bussi was a waiver-wire find late in the preseason, as teams were setting their final opening-day rosters. The Hurricanes had waived Cayden Primeau, and expected to lose him, so they in turn put in a claim for Bussi, who was on his way to Charlotte, in Florida’s farm system. Bussi famously diverted his drive to Raleigh and, with injuries early to Anderson and Pyotr Kochetkov, saw game action early in the season. He then proceeded not to lose, eventually winning 31 games while Andersen worked through his issues, and Kochetkov had surgery. Bussi then sat for two months while Andersen went on his postseason tear, only to retake the reins in the Stanley Cup Final, his first NHL playoff action.
No. 37 Andrei Svechnikov, 25, Forward
Svechnikov was the first draft pick of the “modern” Hurricanes era, taken second overall in 2018. He played immediately, and contributed immediately, burning through his rookie deal as quickly as a player can. Svechnikov cashed in with an eight-year, $7.75 million per season contract in 2021, and has two years remaining on that deal. Svechnikov is another of that “Brind’Amour core” from Day 1, and while an enigma at times, has been a solid point producer throughout his career.
No. 44 Nicolas Deslauriers, 34, Forward
Deslauriers was the Hurricanes’ lone trade acquisition during the 2025-26 season, brought in to shore up the team’s toughness, particularly down the stretch of the regular season as the team tried to stay healthy heading into the playoffs.
No. 48 Jordan Martinook, 33, Forward
It’s hard to imagine the Hurricanes as they are currently constructed without Martinook, but that possibility was very real. In 2024, Martinook nearly chose an offer from another team before Tulsky came back in the final minutes and inked the veteran to a three-year deal worth $3.08 per season. His presence in the Canes’ lineup has been instrumental to the team’s success.
No. 50 Eric Robinson, 30, Forward
Signed later in free agency in the summer of 2025, Robinson was a depth addition with a big body, who can crash and bang but also add offensive flair when called upon. Also a bargain signing, Robinson is another of those players Yulsky loves because he adds value to the roster at a value cost, and he’s a player who can play against any line an opponent can throw at you without being a defensive liability.
No. 52 Pyotr Kochetkov, 26, Goalie
Selected in the second round of the 2019 NHL Draft, Kochetkov was a late bloomer, like many goalies. He signed a two-year entry-level deal in 2021, and then a four-year extension in 2023 at $2 million per season, which expires after next season. Kochetkov has also battled injuries, but has shown flashes of brilliance at times, as well. He also appeared in the Stanley Cup Final as a backup to Bussi when Andersen had to bow out for a few games.
No. 53 Jackson Blake, 22, Forward
A fourth-round draft pick by the Canes in 2021, Blake made the team as a surprise out of training camp in 2023, much like Jarvis did, out of the University of North Dakota. The Canes loved what they saw early, and extended Blake to an eight-year deal, which kicks in next year at about $5.1 million per season.
No. 71 Taylor Hall, 34, Forward
Perhaps at the time the most underrated of Tulsky’s moves, just because of the circumstances. All of the talk of that 2025 trade was Martin Necas and Jack Drury headed to Colorado, with Mikko Rantanen coming to Carolina in return. Hall was part of that midseason deal, too, and has served as a tremendous mentor to Stankoven and Blake, among others.
No. 74 Jaccob Slavin, 31, Defense
The second-longest tenured player on the Carolina Hurricanes is Slavin, who has developed from a fourth-round pick in the 2012 draft into one of the top defensive defensemen in the NHL, and in the world, often representing the United States on the International stage. Slavin made his debut for the Canes in 2015, and has played in 784 regular-season games. He was injured for much of this past season, playing through most of it after the Olympic break, but maintained his position on the team’s top defensive pairing throughout the Stanley Cup run.
No. 77 Mark Jankowski, 31, Forward
The Hurricanes traded for Jankowski in March 2025, sending a fifth-round pick to Nashville. He made an immediate impact last season, anchored the Canes’ fourth line this past season, and earned a two-year extension from Tulsky during this current playoff run. He is signed through 2028.
No. 82 Jesperi Kotkaniemi, 25, Forward
A first-round pick by Montreal in 2018 and a former Finnish national teammate of Aho, the Canes acquired Kotkeniemi via offer sheet to Montreal in 2021, signing the centerman to a $6.1 million, one-year deal. Don Waddell extended Kotkaniemi with an eight-year, $4.82 million deal in 2022. While Kotkaniemi’s production hasn’t matched the contract, he has contributed to the team’s success the past several seasons, though did not skate in this year’s playoffs.
This story was originally published June 14, 2026 at 11:36 PM with the headline "How the 2026 Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes were built."
