Hurricanes’ Jesper Fast will not play Game 1 vs. Islanders, out with lower-body injury

Carolina Hurricanes’ head coach Rod Brind’Amour says that forward Jesper Fast is dealing with an upper-body injury and will not play in Game 1 of the their first-round matchup against the New York Islanders.

“Until he gets in a practice, you can pretty much rule him out,” Brind’Amour told Hurricanes’ reporter Walt Ruff.

The 32-year-old Fast had six goals and 13 assists for 19 points through 73 games this season with the Hurricanes. Through 11 NHL seasons, Fast has 91 goals and 157 assists for 248 points in 703 career games with the Hurricanes and New York Rangers.

Read Daily Faceoff’s Anthony Trudeau’s preview of the Hurricanes-Islanders series

Fast, who the Rangers took in the sixth round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, was a key contributor for the Hurricanes during their 2023 playoff run, scoring six goals and three assists for nine points in 15 games.

The Hurricanes finished 52-23-7 with 111 points, second in the Metropolitan Division and just three points behind the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers. Carolina was also tied with the Vancouver Canucks for the second-most regulation wins in the entire league with 44.

Sebastian Aho led the team in all offensive categories, with 36 goals and 53 assists for 89 points. The 22-year-old Seth Jarvis took a big step in his production, scoring 33 goals and 34 assists for 67 points. Teuvo Teravainen finished with 25 goals and 28 assists for 53 points.

Since being acquired ahead of the March 8 Trade Deadline, Jake Guentzel scored eight goals and 17 assists for 25 points in 17 games.