The Carolina Hurricanes will host the Florida Panthers on Wednesday, September 24, at Lenovo Center for their annual Community Preseason Game. The event is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m. ET and will be available to watch via a geo-restricted stream on Hurricanes.com for viewers in the Raleigh and Florida broadcast markets. Fans can also listen to the game on 99.9 The Fan or through the Hurricanes App.
In their previous preseason match, the Hurricanes lost 2-1 to Tampa Bay at Lenovo Center. Logan Stankoven scored the only goal for Carolina, while goaltender Cayden Primeau made his first appearance with the team, stopping 18 of 20 shots.
The Community Preseason Game is expected to draw a large crowd, with general admission tickets priced at $10. All proceeds from ticket sales will go directly to local nonprofits and community programs. According to the organization, “Canes Give Back donated a record $1.7 million during the 2024-25 season, the most impactful year to date.”
NHL rules require teams to dress at least eight veterans in each preseason contest. Veterans are defined as skaters who played 30 NHL games in the previous season, goalies who dressed in 50 NHL games or played in 30 NHL games last year, any player with over 100 NHL games played, or current year first-round picks. For this game, Carolina’s lineup includes nine players who appeared for the team last season and a total of thirteen who played in the NHL during the 2024-25 campaign.
Newly signed forward Nikolaj Ehlers is set to make his preseason debut with Carolina. He is one of five players making their first appearance for the team this preseason. Among them are second-round draft picks Dominik Badinka (2024) and Ivan Ryabkin (2025), both of whom participated in last week’s Prospects Showcase but have yet to play an NHL preseason game.
Goaltending duties are expected to be shared by Frederik Andersen and Amir Miftakhov. Miftakhov joined Carolina on a one-year contract after posting a .926 save percentage with Ak Bars Kazan in Russia’s KHL last season.
On the injury front, defenseman Jaccob Slavin returned to skating on September 22 after dealing with soreness but may not participate in preseason games according to head coach Rod Brind’Amour. Defenseman Jalen Chatfield missed recent practices due to a minor injury; Brind’Amour indicated he would not be concerned if Chatfield does not play before the regular season begins. Forward Juha Jaaska remains day-to-day with a minor injury sustained since September 21.
The Hurricanes will wear new white uniforms throughout all six preseason games this year.
Following Wednesday’s matchup against Florida, Carolina will resume practice on Thursday before traveling for another preseason game against Tampa Bay on Friday night at Benchmark International Arena. Their next home game is scheduled for Sunday, September 28 against Nashville.
Fans attending opening night on October 9 will receive a Strutting Stormy hat as part of a giveaway when hockey returns to Raleigh.
