The Carolina Hurricanes carried a three-game winning streak into Thursday night’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks (Jan. 22). It was a tight back-and-forth contest between both teams, as the Hurricanes were able to tie the game on three separate occasions. However, in the end, they lost 4-3 in a shootout. What stood out in the game for the Hurricanes that saw them get at least a point?
Takeaway #1: Down, But Never Out
Despite losing the game in a shootout, the Hurricanes are on a four-game point streak and are 31-15-5 on the season. They managed to tie the game in all three periods, with every goal coming within five minutes of a Blackhawks score. The Hurricanes were controlling most of the play, outshooting the Blackhawks 13-4 and 12-8 through the first two periods, and overall, they outshot them 31-22. Plus, the Hurricanes were in control of the faceoffs all night, winning 39 of 60 to go 65% at the dot.
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While they never had a lead in the game, the Hurricanes were rolled over against the Blackhawks, who are now on a two-game winning streak. It was a valiant effort that saw Frederik Andersen make huge saves all night to keep the Hurricanes in the game. Andersen saved 19 of 22 shots for an .864 save percentage, and went four for six in the shootout.
Takeaway #2: Jackson Blake Won’t Be Stopped
In his sophomore season, Jackson Blake is exceeding all expectations and looks to blow past his 17 goals and 34 points that he had in his rookie 2024-25 season. Blake scored the third Hurricanes goal to force overtime and claim at least a point for the Hurricanes. It was his 16th of the season, and the third goal in the last six games. Blake also has five points in the last six games, as he moves to 30 on the season.
It won’t take long for Blake to surpass his 17-17-34 from last season, especially when he sits at 16-14-30 already just 51 games into the season. He had 34 points in 80 games, while bouncing around the lineup for Rod Brind’Amour. He only averaged 13:51 of ice time last season. In 2025-26, he has been averaging 16:39 between the second line and both power-play units.
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It’s no surprise how good Blake has been this season, as he made it a case before the preseason began to just be a better version of himself from the previous season. Safe to say that he has done that and more. He could be in store for a 20-25 goal and 45 or 50 point season in his second year in the NHL.
Takeaway #3: Congrats Joel Nyström
Oh, how Swede it was to see Swedish defenseman Joel Nyström score his first NHL goal in his 36th career game. In a season where he got his first NHL point and a four-year contract extension, Nyström picked up his first NHL goal after a brilliant pass from Jesperi Kotkaniemi to find him in the left faceoff circle. He loaded up a shot and sniped it past Spencer Knight to tie the game 1-1 in the first period.
After finishing his Swedish career last season with Färjestad BK, he played four games with the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League (AHL). He was given an opportunity in 2025-26 with the Hurricanes after all of the injuries on the blue line to begin the season. Between the four games last season and six games this season, Nyström has played 36 NHL games compared to the 10 AHL games since coming over from Sweden. Not bad for the 23-year-old to make his presence felt in his first full season in North America.
Despite the loss, there were some big moments from the Hurricanes as they claimed at least a point. Their next game is on Saturday, Jan. 24 against the Ottawa Senators as they look to get back in the win column. They will also look to push their point streak to five games before they have a few days off after that. It’ll be interesting to see how they react after a shootout loss on Thursday night, especially when having to tie the game three times to force overtime.
