Brandon Bussi Expected To Start Game 5 For Carolina Hurricanes Against Vegas Golden Knights In Stanley Cup Final

Brandon Bussi was in the starter's crease at Carolina's morning skate on Thursday. Frederik Andersen, who had started every other playoff game for the Hurricanes this spring, was absent from the main group. Coach Rod Brind'Amour would not officially confirm his starter but told reporters everyone was available. The message was clear enough. Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, series tied 2-2, Lenovo Center packed to the rafters in Raleigh, belongs to the 27-year-old undrafted rookie from Sound Beach, New York who nobody saw coming.

The series itself has been extraordinary. All four games have featured multigoal comebacks, and the first four games of the final have produced more combined goals than any comparable stretch in recent memory. Carolina have come back. Vegas have come back. Game 3 saw the Hurricanes score three goals in 39 seconds to erase a four-goal deficit before eventually losing in double overtime when a Shea Theodore shot banked off the boards and deflected in off Bussi's skate. Game 4 saw Bussi start for the first time, stop 18 of 21 shots, and help Carolina win 5-3 to level the series.

What Bussi Has Done to Get Here

Bussi posted a 31-6-2 record during the regular season with a 2.47 goals-against average and a .895 save percentage. He had not played in two months when Brind'Amour pulled Andersen midway through Game 3. He entered the Stanley Cup Final with zero career playoff starts. When he won Game 4, he became only the third goalie in the expansion era to make his first career playoff start in the Stanley Cup Final and win it.

Andersen skated separately before the main group on Thursday morning, which Brind'Amour described as part of his routine. With Pyotr Kochetkov as the backup, the crease is Bussi's for Game 5.

What Is at Stake on Thursday

Carolina have home-ice advantage and a building that has been one of the loudest environments in the playoffs. Jordan Staal has scored in each of the first four games of the final, the first player to do that in 44 years. The Taylor Hall, Logan Stankoven and Jackson Blake line leads all Carolina skaters in scoring. Vegas have outscored Carolina 9-1 in second periods across the series and will come with adjustments. Game 5 is tonight. The rookie is in goal.