3 Early Takeaways From Hurricanes’ Training Camp – The Hockey Writers Carolina Hurricanes Latest News, Analysis & More

After a few days of on-ice practices, things are slowly coming together for the Carolina Hurricanes ahead of their first preseason game on Monday, Sept. 22, against the Tampa Bay Lightning. While things will more than likely change between now and the season opener on Oct. 9 against the New Jersey Devils, it’s interesting to see early developments in training camp. That said, what are the three early takeaways from the Hurricanes’ training camp after three days on the ice?

1. Logan Stankoven Playing 2C

One of the big question marks coming into the 2025 training camp for the Hurricanes was the second-line center position. As camp drew near, it felt like Jesperi Kotkaniemi might get early looks at the 2C spot again, as the team tries to see if he can take that next step. However, Kotkaniemi has mainly been the 4C between Eric Robinson and Taylor Hall. That said, who has been slotted at 2C? It’s none other than Logan Stankoven. Coming into camp, head coach Rod Brind’Amour, on a podcast with Adam Gold, mentioned that they might look at Stankoven at 2C in camp, to get a feel of how it goes early on.

After the first three days, it seems that he could get a longer look there. Following the first on-ice practice, Brind’Amour stated, “You have to be willing to understand that there’s a lot of work that has to go into playing center. There are a lot of little things people don’t really understand, and you have to be willing to take the bumps a little bit. The fact that he’s done it in the past helps…We know what kind of kid he is. He’s willing to take on whatever we hand him. We’ll see. I don’t know that it will go past a couple of practices. It might, who knows, but you’ve got to try something.”

Stankoven has been the 2C through the first three practices with the C1 group (main NHL roster) between Andrei Svechnikov and Jackson Blake. He has previous experience playing center dating back to his junior hockey days with the Kamloops Blazers; however, more recently with the Dallas Stars before being traded to the Hurricanes on March 7. Stankoven is a right-shot center, which the Hurricanes have stated that they want that type of center in the lineup. This will be his first full season with the Hurricanes after tallying five goals and nine points in 19 games last season with the team.

Related: Carolina Hurricanes Announce 2025 Training Camp Roster

Stankoven will enter the final season of his entry-level contract before his eight-year, $6 million average annual value (AAV) extension kicks in for the 2026-27 season next summer. It’s unclear if he will start the season as the Hurricanes’ 2C; however, it does make for an interesting storyline as the preseason game slate starts on Monday at home at the Lenovo Center. Could he play 2C in the preseason opener, or will he be back on the wing once again? Only time will tell, but early signs do present some discussions to let Stankoven prove himself in game action. This is one storyline to keep a very close eye on as training camp and the preseason roll along.

2. Nikolaj Ehlers on First Line and First Power Play

It’s not a surprise to see the biggest free agent the Hurricanes signed this offseason on the first line and first power play unit. However, it doesn’t take away the excitement for the fanbase, who finally get to see Nikolaj Ehlers on the ice in Hurricanes colors. After the drama last season of trading Martin Necas for Mikko Rantanen, to then flip him for Stankoven, it was a relief for the team and fanbase to see an elite scoring winger sign with the team long-term. Ehlers signed a six-year, $8.5 million AAV deal back on July 3 to be in Raleigh through the 2030-31 season. After tallying 24 goals and 63 points in 69 games last season for the Winnipeg Jets, both Ehlers and the Hurricanes are hoping he brings that magic from Manitoba to North Carolina.

Ehlers averaged 15:48 of ice time last season with the Jets, mainly on the second line and second power play unit. For the last few seasons, he was trying to prove that he can be the guy to lead the charge on the top line and power play unit. However, that never came to fruition. Now, Ehlers has the chance to prove that he can be that guy with the opportunity with a team that’s been to the playoffs for the last seven consecutive seasons. Nicknamed “Fly”, Ehlers looks to bring his elite shot, speed, and hockey IQ to the Hurricanes who are always making the second round of the playoffs, and who’ve made three Eastern Conference Final appearances in the Brind’Amour era.

There’s already a ton of excitement for the newest Hurricanes winger as he joins fellow Danish countryman Frederik Andersen. Ehlers has not scored more than 30 goals or tallied 70 points in his 10-year NHL career (all with the Jets). However, with him poised to get a ton more ice time and a bigger role with the Hurricanes, there is a possibility of him achieving both benchmarks for the first time. The big question is health for Ehlers, who has only played 80 games or more one time since 2020-21. He’s battled with injuries, and the hope is that he can be on the ice more often this upcoming season for the Hurricanes. If he can play closer to 80 games, expect a huge first season in Carolina for Ehlers, as he hopes to help carry the team over the hump and make it to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since winning it back in 2006.

3. Alexander Nikishin Taking Reps with Gostisbehere

While it is early days, and not all of the defensemen are present for the Hurricanes (Jaccob Slavin is not 100% due to soreness, having missed the first few days), there is still some excitement for Alexander Nikishin in his first NHL training camp. One of the other questions entering camp was who was going to play on their off-side within the defensive group, since the Hurricanes have four left-shot and two right-shot defensemen. Some of the Hurricanes’ defense have played on their off-side before; one of the likely candidates was Shayne Gostisbehere, who has played on both sides on the blue line in his career.

Through the first few on-ice practices, Nikishin has been paired with “Ghost” as he gets used to more of the Hurricanes’ system since joining the team during the 2025 Playoffs following the conclusion of his final season in Russia. While Slavin has been out due to being sore, Gostisbehere is someone to learn the system from early on. Gostisbehere is on his second stint with the Hurricanes after signing a three-year deal last summer to rejoin the team that traded for him during the 2023-24 season. Nikishin is also learning to play on North American ice some more since most of his early career has been spent over in Russia playing in various leagues from the MHL, VHL and eventually the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).

Related: Carolina Hurricanes 2025-26 Roster Projection 2.0

It will take some time to get used to everything; however, with the defensive group the Hurricanes have with Slavin, Gostisbehere, Jalen Chatfield, and Sean Walker, Nikishin has a great group to learn from. It also helps that their defense coach is 2006 Stanley Cup champion Tim Gleason. If there is someone to learn the defensive scheme and team system from in a positional aspect, Gleason is one to learn from. Between him, Brind’Amour, and teammates, Nikishin will learn the system quickly, along with his English, which he has been working on over the summer. Either way, it’ll be exciting to see how the 23-year-old fares in his first full NHL season with the Hurricanes.

While we are still 18 days away from the start of the 2025-26 season, the excitement continues to grow for Hurricanes hockey. Fans get to see players on the ice and see what early line combinations look like. Furthermore, we aren’t too far off from preseason games being underway for the Hurricanes. Before we know it, it’ll be Oct. 9, and the season will be underway. Not too much longer until games count, and we will be talking about on-ice games and not guessing what will happen. Games will matter, and it cannot come soon enough.