Pittsburgh Penguins at Carolina Hurricanes: game preview
PittsburghPenguins2026-27: 2-1-0 · 4 pts · 2025-26: 41-25-16 · 98 pts · 10that
CarolinaHurricanes2026-27: 2-1-1 · 5 pts · 2025-26: 53-22-7 · 113 pts · 2ndFifteen points apart last season
Pittsburgh finished last season 10th in the league on 98 points. Carolina finished 2nd on 113, and the 2025-26 season series went CAR 3-1-0.
Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.
Meeting number 114
Across 113 completed games, Pittsburgh lead the head-to-head 58-40-15.
Last 5 meetings
See all: Last 5 meetings →The table on each 2025-26 meeting night
League rank after that night's games; a longer bar is a higher place. On 30 Dec 2025, Pittsburgh were 16th in the league and Carolina 4th. By 22 Mar 2026 it was 9th and 3rd.
Carolina out-attempted Pittsburgh 298 to 229
Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina have created the better chances, last 10 games
Shot quality both ways: expected goals weigh every unblocked attempt by its chance of scoring. Finishing above zero means more goals than the chances.
This season: 3 games for Pittsburgh, 4 for Carolina. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.
Last 10 games: 10 games for Pittsburgh, 10 for Carolina.
2025-26: 82 games for Pittsburgh, 86 for Carolina.
Power play and penalty kill, season and series
This season's rates first, then 2025-26 and the last meetings between the two. Power-play chances are counted from the penalty log with coincidental minors cancelled; faceoffs are each club's wins over draws taken.
All bars share one scale · 0–100%SeasonLast meetings
Pittsburgh
Small sampleCarolina
Small sampleSkaters to watch
Each club's top three forwards and defencemen by points this season, with 2025-26 one tap away.
Who has stopped this matchup
Save percentage in the last meetings by goalie. Starters are confirmed on game day.
Expected starter after their game on 22 Dec: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.
Expected starter after their game on 21 Dec: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.
Pittsburgh crease
PIT · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 23 Dec
No appearances against Carolina in the last meetings.
Carolina crease
CAR · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 23 Dec
No appearances against Pittsburgh in the last meetings.
Scoring rates point to about 6.7 goals
No total is posted yet: it arrives with the game-day prices. Until then, the scoring rates and the recent meetings set the range.
Goals in the last 5 meetings
Bar length is total goals, coloured by the winner.
Scoring rates
Pittsburgh5.002.673.573.27
Carolina2.753.003.612.93Goals for and against per game. The estimate averages each team’s scoring with the other’s goals allowed, and leans on 2025-26 until a team has played 20 games.
5 on the injury lists
Pittsburgh · injuries
Carolina · injuries
Latest moves
See all: Latest moves →Activated C/RW Benjamin Kindel from injured reserve. Placed C/LW David Gustafsson on waivers.
Assigned F Rutger McGroarty to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL).
Reinstated C Blake Lizotte from injured reserve.
Placed G Cayden Primeau on waivers.
Placed C Seth Jarvis on the injured non-roster list. Placed LD Juuso Valimaki on waivers.
Placed C Seth Jarvis on the injured non-roster list. Placed D Juuso Valimaki on waivers.
Pittsburgh · 2026 draft
See all: Pittsburgh · 2026 draft →Carolina · 2026 draft
See all: Carolina · 2026 draft →Saturday 26 December · the full slate
See all: Saturday 26 December · the full slate →
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