South Raleigh News

The Carolina Hurricanes are set to face the Pittsburgh Penguins in a divisional matchup at home on Sunday, January 5. The game will commence at 6:00 p.m. ET and can be watched on FanDuel Sports Network South or through their app. Fans can also listen via 99.9 The Fan or the Hurricanes App.

Currently, the Hurricanes hold a record of 23-14-2, placing them third in the Metropolitan Division with 48 points. Their last game resulted in a 4-0 loss to the Minnesota Wild. In contrast, the Penguins have a record of 17-17-6, tying them for fourth place in the same division with 40 points. They recently lost to the Florida Panthers in a shootout.

Carolina has previously faced Pittsburgh this season, winning both encounters with scores of 4-1 and 5-1 respectively. Head coach Rod Brind'Amour has emphasized consistency as an ongoing challenge for his team, noting recent struggles despite earlier strong performances.

In goalkeeping news, Pyotr Kochetkov made his return after hand surgery but Dustin Tokarski is expected to start against his former team tonight. Tokarski has performed well against Pittsburgh historically.

The Penguins arrive in Raleigh struggling defensively but have seen offensive success from Sidney Crosby and Rikard Rakell lately. Their power play performance has significantly improved compared to last season.

Injury updates include Tyson Jost's long-term lower-body injury and Shayne Gostisbehere's upper-body injury that will sideline him for weeks. Frederik Andersen remains out following knee surgery while Jesper Fast is unavailable for the entire season.

The Hurricanes will don their black uniforms for this match-up before heading to Tampa Bay for their next game against the Lightning on Tuesday night.