Mark Jankowski out as Hurricanes chase 8 straight in Calgary

Jankowski's absence forced Rod Brind'Amour to rework his middle 6, and the lines he drew up show how thin the forward group has gotten.

Walt Ruff

@WaltRuff

The #Canes will try for an eighth win in a row tonight. They’ll be doing so without Mark Jankowski (lower-body injury), who had scored in six straight games. Jordan Martinook appears to be moving to the middle to fill the hole tonight. Carrier - Aho - Svechnikov Nadeau - Stankoven - Blake Ehlers - Martinook - Unger Sorum Robinson - Kotkaniemi - Deslauriers Slavin - Chatfield Miller - Walker Gostisbehere - Reilly Valimaki Bussi

Jordan Martinook slides to center between Ehlers and Unger Sorum, with Kotkaniemi centering the 4th line. Brandon Bussi gets the net after winning his last 2 starts against Montreal and Chicago with 40 combined saves. On paper it still works. It just looks a lot less fun than the lineup Carolina had 2 weeks ago.

The timing is brutal, because Jankowski had been the hottest player on the team. His 6-game goal streak led the league and tied the longest in franchise history. Through 9 games he has 6 goals, more than he has ever had points over that stretch of a season. This is a 32-year-old depth center who came over from Nashville at the 2025 deadline and then won a Cup with Carolina in 2026. Now he's tied for the team lead in goals.

There's a little extra sting in where this happened, too. Calgary took Jankowski 21st overall in 2012, the highest a Canadian high schooler has ever been drafted, and he spent roughly 4 seasons in the organization before the Flames let him walk in 2020. A revenge game in his old building would have been a pretty good story. Instead he's in the press box.

Walt Ruff

@WaltRuff

Man, when it rains, it pours for the #Canes. With the team's co-leader in goals on the shelf, the defending Stanley Cup Champs are now down Taylor Hall, Mark Jankowski, Seth Jarvis, and Jordan Staal. Next man up.

Hurricanes PR@CanesPR

Hurricanes forward Mark Jankowski (lower body) will miss tonight’s game against Calgary.

That's the real problem. Taylor Hall is out week-to-week with an upper-body injury. Jordan Staal tore his calf and is looking at a month or 2. Seth Jarvis is skating after shoulder surgery and travelling with the team but still isn't playing. Add Jankowski and that's 4 forwards out, 3 of them guys you'd want on the ice in a big spot. It's a lot to ask of the defending champs this early.

Brind'Amour floated a possible game-time call, and for a minute it looked like Carolina might go 11 forwards and 7 defensemen, with Juuso Valimaki taking warmups. The roster report settled it.

Walt Ruff

@WaltRuff

Per the NHL's roster report, Nic Deslauriers is in, so the #Canes will stick with the standard 12-6. Juuso Valimaki's team debut will wait.

Walt Ruff@WaltRuff

The #Canes will try for an eighth win in a row tonight. They’ll be doing so without Mark Jankowski (lower-body injury), who had scored in six straight games. Jordan Martinook appears to be moving to the middle to fill the hole tonight. Carrier - Aho - Svechnikov Nadeau - Stankoven - Blake Ehlers - Martinook - Unger Sorum Robinson - Kotkaniemi - Deslauriers Slavin - Chatfield Miller - Walker Gostisbehere - Reilly Valimaki Bussi

Nic Deslauriers dresses, the Canes go with the usual 12 and 6, and Valimaki's debut in Carolina waits. If any team is the right one to face this shorthanded, it's the Flames. Carolina came in at 7-1-1, first in the Metro, and had outscored opponents 32-15 during the streak. Calgary was 1-6-0 and had been outscored 35-14. Next up is Vancouver on Tuesday, and Jankowski is questionable for that one. If he's out longer, the depth that won a Cup is about to get tested again.