The Big Moments & Highlights From 2025

RALEIGH, N.C. - With the calendar year coming to a close, there's no better time to reflect on what was.

2025 was another good year for the Carolina Hurricanes. While the ultimate goal remains, the team went 49-29-6 in 84 regular-season games and picked up two series wins in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, giving many more occasions to celebrate than sulk.

Here are some of our favorite moments from the last 365 days, listed chronologically (for the most part)...

#12 To The Rafters...

Just days into the new year, the Canes hosted their annual Hall of Fame weekend, inducting one of the greatest performers in team history, Eric Staal.

Including an emotional ceremony on Jan. 12 before taking on the Anaheim Ducks, the eldest Staal brother reflected on his time in Raleigh, the 2006 Stanley Cup, and more.

With his family and significant teammates on hand, it was a great way to begin 2025.

The Trade(s)...

Since Eric Tulsky became general manager of the Canes in June of 2024, the motto has been, "Until we have the 20 best players in the league, there’s still room to get better."

On a cold January Friday night, he took the home run swing and landed one of the 20 best players in hockey. Moving drafted and developed star Martin Necas in return, the team landed Mikko Rantanen and Taylor Hall in a three-team trade with the Colorado Avalanche and Chicago Blackhawks.

While the Rantanen portion of the deal didn't work out as the team had initially hoped, they were able to salvage the attempt by landing Logan Stankoven, now a huge part of the team's future, and some high-end draft capital in return.

Hall, who had been struggling to find a permanent role in Chicago, has seemingly experienced a career revitalization in Raleigh, becoming a key contributor and landing himself a three-year deal after just three months with the group.

The shock value of the initial trade was massive, and although it took a second effort to show success, Tulsky and the front office proved that not only do they talk the talk, they walk the walk when it comes to trying to improve the team.

Nikishin's Arrival...

While the team's major moves made in January and March would've been enough to spotlight in a season, the Canes also got a long-awaited addition in mid-April.

Nearly five years after selecting him in the third round of the 2020 NHL Draft, defenseman Alexander Nikishin finally, officially, became a Carolina Hurricane. As fans watched and salivated from afar as his career trajectory skyrocketed year after year in Russia, his contract with SKA St. Petersburg reached an end in the spring, and thanks to some help from various parties, the exciting young defender made it to Raleigh just in time for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Making his debut in the second round in Washington, he dressed in four postseason affairs before becoming a full-time member of the lineup in the fall.

Already offering a showcase of big hits and scoring his first NHL goal in Anaheim in just his fourth regular-season game, he's been just about everything the team has hoped so far, and he's only getting better.

Seven Consecutive Trips To The Dance...

2009-2018 was a postseason drought in Raleigh, leaving fans thirsty for another attempt at recreating the 2006 magic.

Nine seasons without much hope felt like an eternity, but now, things have taken a 180-degree turn for almost an equal amount of time.

The Canes made it to the postseason for the seventh consecutive year in the spring, bringing thrilling series defeats of both the New Jersey Devils and Washington Capitals. Although the ultimate goal remains dangling just in front of them, a third Eastern Conference Final appearance since 2019 is nothing to sneeze at, and it builds the hunger that much more.

With the Canes well on their way to an eighth consecutive appearance, the Lenovo Center is likely to be roaring again come spring.

Super Summer...

As the team flipped the page forward to the 2025-26 campaign, Tulsky and staff got to work on constructing an improved roster.

With Brent Burns and Dmitry Orlov going out the door, the team had room for a major player on the blue line, and a major player they landed in a creative way. Sending prospect defenseman Scott Morrow to the division rival New York Rangers, K'Andre Miller was brought aboard in exchange.

Two days later, the team landed the most coveted free agent of the offseason, bringing Nikolaj Ehlers to Raleigh on a six-year deal.

Couple those transactions with eight-year contract extensions for both Jackson Blake and Logan Stankoven, and it was easy to see why the organization was in all of the conversations for the biggest winners of the summer.

The Magic School Bussi...

While there's been a lot to the good amid Carolina's 24-12-3 start to the 2025-26 regular season, there's been no story quite like Brandon Bussi.

The Canes were set to go into the season with Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov once again, with Cayden Primeau's positive preseason cementing him as the third option. The problem was, Primeau's preseason was almost too good, and when the team tried to fit him through waivers in early October, the Toronto Maple Leafs said, "Not so fast."

The good news was that Carolina's front office was prepared for that potential outcome.

That same day that Primeau was placed on waivers, Tulsky and staff claimed Bussi off waivers from the Florida Panthers. Mid-drive from Sunrise to Charlotte as he was preparing to join the Cats' American Hockey League affiliate, the 27-year-old stayed on I-95 and swung onto the opening night roster.

With Kochetkov unavailable for all of October, Bussi got his opportunity and hasn't looked back.

Making NHL history and setting franchise records since, he's gone 13-1-1 in his 15 appearances, including a nine-game win streak from Oct. 30 to Dec. 14.

Celebrating '06...

Twenty years after the group brought the organization its first Stanley Cup, members from the 2005-06 team came back to town to celebrate the 20th Anniversary on Dec. 7-9.

It was a blast from start to finish, with players taking their turns on the siren, being interviewed on the broadcasts, chatting at the Red Carpet Reception, skating in the Alumni Game, and more.

"It's a special group. You can't accomplish (winning a Stanley Cup) without having a special group. That's the first thing," Rod Brind'Amour said. "It was a special time for everyone that was a part of it, families, friends, staff, whatever, because we all know how hard it was to achieve. It takes everything to make that work. We had it for that year. It's something that doesn't get taken away from you. You've got that memory, and when we get together as a group, which doesn't happen very often, all of that comes back to your memory, and it's all good vibes... They're your brothers, and they always will be."

Packed To The Brim...

In total, the Canes took the ice at 1400 Edwards Mill Road 51 times in 2025, going 35-14-2.

Each night, they had a maximum amount of support behind their sails, registering a sold-out house in each 51.

Finishing ninth among all NHL teams in attendance during the 2024-25 season, and sitting in ninth again for the 2025-26 campaign, the average of over 18,000 signals that fan support is as strong as ever.

Voted the toughest place to play in the league by players at the NHL/NHLPA North American Player Media Tour in September, the sellout streak, which dates back to February 24, 2023, is now up to 135 games.