Seven Stanley Cup playoff matchups look thrilling; one, however, may fall flat.

That matchup? The New Jersey Devils versus the Carolina Hurricanes, two Metropolitan Division teams lacking excitement on paper.

Could it surprise us? Absolutely. Stranger things have happened. But right now, anticipation is low.
For starters, the Devils enter without their top talent, Jack Hughes. Hughes, who scored 27 goals and 70 points in 62 games, suffered an injury in early March. He’s sidelined until next season, a massive blow for New Jersey.

Adding to the lack of intrigue, these teams don’t share much history or rivalry. Yes, they met in the playoffs recently in 2023, but the Hurricanes easily won that series in five games.

Before that? You’d need to look back to 2009, when Carolina again defeated New Jersey in a first-round matchup. No player from that series remains in today’s NHL. In fact, the Hurricanes have dominated playoff meetings between the two, winning series in 2002 and 2006, with the Devils’ only series win coming back in 2001.

Both teams also limp into these playoffs. The Devils went just 1-4-0 in their final five regular-season games. The Hurricanes fared even worse, stumbling to a 1-6-1 record since April 4.

Ahead of the 2025 trade deadline, the Devils tried to bolster their roster by adding Shane LaChance, Brian Dumoulin, Marc McLaughlin, Dennis Cholowski, Daniel Sprong, Cody Glass, and Jonathan Gruden.
Solid players, but none capable of replacing Hughes’ production.

Carolina took a different approach. On January 24, they swung a massive deal, trading Martin Nečas, Jack Drury, and picks for Mikko Rantanen, Taylor Hall, and Nils Juntorp. The Rantanen experiment lasted just 13 games before flipping him to Dallas for Logan Stankoven, two first-round picks, and two third-round picks. They also added forward Mark Jankowski, who’s contributed eight goals in 19 games since joining.

On paper, this series appears the least exciting of the eight matchups. But playoff hockey can surprise anyone.

Maybe the Hurricanes shed their recent passive style. Maybe the Devils embrace the underdog role and shock everyone. We’ll find out soon enough. Game 1 drops the puck Sunday at 1:00 PM MT.