The hurricanes – islanders finale lands Tuesday, April 14, at 7 p. m. ET at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York. Carolina is finishing Game 82 after locking up the top spot in the Eastern Conference, while New York is ending a season in which it was eliminated from postseason contention.
The hurricanes – islanders game comes with heavy lineup turnover on both sides. Carolina is coming off a 3-2 shootout loss to the Philadelphia Flyers and did not hold a morning skate, after a Monday night game that sealed its place at the top of the East. The Islanders, meanwhile, are missing several regulars and will close out the schedule without playoff stakes.
Hurricanes – Islanders projected lineups show major rest day
Carolina’s projected forward group includes Taylor Hall, Logan Stankoven, Jackson Blake, Nikolaj Ehlers, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Bradly Nadeau, William Carrier, Mark Jankowski, Nicolas Deslauriers, Eric Robinson, Skyler Brind’Amour, and Jordan Martinook. The projected defense pairs are Alexander Nikishin with Sean Walker, Mike Reilly with Charles Alexis Legault, and Ronan Seeley with Joel Nystrom, with Pyotr Kochetkov and Frederik Andersen listed at goalie.
The Hurricanes’ scratches and injuries list is long and includes Sebastian Aho, Jordan Staal, Andrei Svechnikov, Seth Jarvis, Jaccob Slavin, Shayne Gostisbehere, Felix Unger Sorum, Pyotr Kochetkov, Brandon Bussi, Jalen Chatfield, and K’Andre Miller. The club has rotated who plays and who sits during the final stretch, and this game follows that same pattern.
Islanders enter with callups, injuries, and a changed look
New York’s projected lineup shows Simon Holmstrom, Bo Horvat, and Victor Eklund up front, followed by Calum Ritchie with Mathew Barzal and Brayden Schenn, then Anders Lee with Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Emil Heineman, and Ondrej Palat with Casey Cizikas and Liam Foudy. On defense, the expected pairs are Adam Pelech with Matthew Schaefer, Carson Soucy with Tony DeAngelo, and Isaiah George with Scott Mayfield, with David Rittich and Ilya Sorokin listed in goal.
On the Islanders side, the scratches list includes Anthony Duclair, Adam Boqvist, and Marc Gatcomb, while the injuries list includes Ryan Pulock, Maxim Shabanov, Kyle Palmieri, Alexander Romanov, Pierre Engvall, and Semyon Varlamov. Pulock did not take part in the morning skate, and Varlamov was loaned to Bridgeport on a conditioning stint.
Immediate reactions center on youth and opportunity
The game carries a developmental edge for both clubs. Victor Eklund was recalled from Bridgeport of the American Hockey League on Tuesday and is set to make his NHL debut, while Liam Foudy was also recalled from Bridgeport.
For Carolina, the late-season approach has opened the door for newer faces to get ice time in a game that matters less for standings and more for evaluation. For New York, the focus shifts to finishing cleanly while giving minutes to players who can shape the next stretch.
What’s next after Hurricanes – Islanders
The Hurricanes move out of the regular season with first place in the Eastern Conference secured and their next lineup decisions still fluid. The Islanders finish without a playoff berth for the second straight year and leave Elmont with roster questions still unresolved.
For both teams, Hurricanes – Islanders is less about urgency in the standings than about what comes after the final horn in ET. The final look at the lineup card may tell more than the score itself.
