LAS VEGAS and RALEIGH, N.C. – As good a start as the banged-up Carolina Hurricanes have gotten off to, one of the most perplexing things is the goose eggs across the stat sheet for skilled power forward Andrei Svechnikov.
Zero goals, zero points in eight games and only 15 shots on goal — two or fewer in every game since a four-shot opening night.
On the recent 4-2 road trip, the 25-year-old, coming off an eight-goal, 12-point postseason, found himself on the fourth line. He’s now averaging 14 minutes, 43 seconds, and has just four shots on goal in 3:05 minutes of ice time a night on the Hurricanes’ 32nd-ranked power play (6.9 percent, 2-for-29).
What’s up with the 2018 No. 2 pick?
“Well, he needs to be a little more impactful, shift in, shift out,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour told The Athletic last week. “He’s certainly shown signs of it. The consistency, it’s kind of, you know, he disappears a little bit sometimes. So we’ve got to just get him on track, and we’ll get him dialed in.
“We’re gonna need him. We talked about what we’re at the end (in the playoffs). You gotta have everybody contributing, otherwise it’s not gonna work.”
With the Hurricanes suddenly dealing with injuries to Eric Robinson and William Carrier, Svechnikov was elevated at the end of the road trip. In Monday’s practice in Raleigh, he skated on the left side of Jordan Staal and Jordan Martinook in advance of a two-game homestand and Tuesday night rematch with Vegas.
Svechnikov, who has four years left on a contract that pays him an average of $7.75 million per season, said after Monday’s practice that there has been no frustration with his slow start to the season, ice time and role. In fact, he joked that he has yet to break a single stick this season.
“If you see me break a stick, then there is frustration,” he kidded. “You stay positive. If you go negative, then it’s going to get worse and worse. So I try to stay positive. It’s fine. Maybe for some it’s a bigger deal, but for me, it’s not that big of a deal. I’ve been there — maybe not in the start of the year, but I’ve been there many times, so it’s fine, totally fine. I could have scored last game. I didn’t.
“I’ve just got to find my game, that’s all. I don’t worry about the points or goals.”
Andrei Svechnikov says he’s not worried about scoring totals. (Matthew Stockman / Getty Images)
In the 2023 Eastern Conference final, we all saw how big a loss it was for the Hurricanes to have Svechnikov sidelined with a torn ACL. The year before, Svechnikov had scored a career-high 30 goals and 69 points in 78 games. Then in 2022-23, he had 23 goals and 55 points in 64 games (a 29-goal, 70-point pace). The Canes were desperate for goals in the conference final, scoring just six in the four-game series against the Panthers.
In the two years since, Svechnikov has a combined 39 goals and 100 points in 131 games.
“He wears it on his sleeve a little too much,” Brind’Amour said. “He cares too much a little bit, which I think can weigh you down a little bit because, unfortunately, everybody looks at the stats to decide whether you’re playing the game. But there are other parts of his game that he can contribute in that aren’t necessarily on the stat sheet. So we’ve got to just make sure we’re focusing on all those things.”
One area that perhaps shows Svechnikov isn’t as engaged is his hit total: five in eight games. Svechnikov is big and plays a heavy game, averaging more than two hits per game in his first seven seasons coming into this one, so this dip is as noticeable as the scoring.
Andrei Svechnikov career stats
SeasonGPGAPtsSOGHits
2018-19
82
20
17
37
189
123
2019-20
68
24
37
61
183
116
2020-21
55
15
27
42
147
114
2021-22
78
30
39
69
249
189
2022-23
64
23
32
55
205
140
2023-24
59
19
33
52
144
142
2024-25
72
20
28
48
180
148
2025-26
8
0
0
0
15
5
Maybe getting on a hard-working line with Staal and Martinook will help.
“I think in years past when Svech has come with us, he kind of picks up on how we play, and he knows, ‘OK, if we’ve got nothing, it’s (getting dumped in) or stuff like that,’” Martinook said. “And I think when you’re struggling a little bit, when you simplify everything, it tends to help you out. So if we can help him out or simplify and get him going, then obviously, we want to get him going.”
Plain and simple, Brind’Amour says the Hurricanes need more from Svechnikov. General manager Eric Tulsky is confident it will come.
“I mean, look, we have a really deep team and there are always going to be several players on the team who are capable of playing a bigger role than they are with us just because of our depth, and the lineup will change from game to game and there will always be a couple people who we look at and say, ‘Man, we’ve got to find a way to get that guy more ice time,’” Tulsky told The Athletic. “Right now, it’s Svech probably. He can be extremely effective for us. We saw that in the playoffs last year.
“I think last year during the regular season, he created just as many chances as he ever has before, but nothing went in. And that affects perception. It affects how the team feels. It affects how the media sees it. It affects how the fans see it. In the end, he’s a skilled player. I know those shots are going to go in for him eventually. They just haven’t lately. And I am not worried about his production going forward. It’s just right now he’s in the role he is in. He is a tremendous talent. He has been a difference-maker in the lineup and will be a difference-maker in the lineup again.”