Hurricanes’ Frederik Andersen leaves Game 4, replaced by Pyotr Kochetkov
The goaltending situation for the Carolina Hurricanes is in flux.
Midway through the second period of Game 4 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the New Jersey Devils, Hurricanes netminder Frederik Andersen was forced to leave the game, replaced by Pyotr Kochetkov after sustaining an apparent injury.
Anderson, 35, went down in the crease quickly after a collision with Devils forward Timo Meir, who appeared to be tied up with Carolina’s Andrei Svechnikov near the top of the crease, before barreling into the goaltender.
After an initially five-minute penalty was called, a review on the play saw it waved off, before head coach Rod Brind’amour sent in Kochetkov in relief, giving the 25-year-old backup his sixth career playoff appearance with the Hurricanes leading 3-1.
Freddie Andersen has left the game and been replaced by Pyotr Kochetkov
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Anderson had enjoyed a stellar start to the postseason for the Hurricanes, posting a .943 save percentage through the first three games of the series. In Sunday’s Game 4, he turned aside six of the seven shots he faced before the collision.
While there was no immediate update on his status, Anderson was limited to just 22 games in the 2024-25 regular season due to a knee injury. It meant Kochetkov took on the starting goalie duties, where he posted a .897 save percentage in 47 games.
Performing well under playoff pressure is no new task for Kochetkov, however. In the AHL, he helped the Chicago Wolves to the 2021-22 Calder Cup title, playing six games in the postseason, after making his NHL debut earlier that year.
At the end of the second period in Game 4, the Hurricanes held a 3-2 lead over the Devils with goals from defenseman Jacob Slavin and two from Svechnikov, in addition to Kochetkov making nine saves on the first ten shots he faced.
The series continues on April 29, heading back to Raleigh for Game 5.