Hurricanes Lose Captain Staal to Calf Injury in Raleigh

The Carolina Hurricanes will be without captain Jordan Staal for at least a month after a calf strain sidelined the 38-year-old center, coach Rod Brind’Amour announced Tuesday, October 13, 2026, in Raleigh before the team hosted Washington at Lenovo Center.

According to WRAL, Staal suffered the injury during pregame warmups before Carolina’s 4-1 win over Philadelphia on Sunday. The team said the captain is expected to miss 1-2 months because of the calf tear.

"Unfortunately, he’s got a little tear in his calf so that’s going to be a long-term injury. Anywhere from a month to two months, so not good news there. We’ve had a lot of injuries over the years and just going to have to keep figuring it out." said Rod Brind’Amour, Hurricanes coach.

Staal has played at least 75 regular-season games in each of the last five seasons and has been with Carolina since 2012. According to sports.yahoo.com, he was named Conn Smythe Trophy winner after the Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup last season.

"Not good news there, but we've had a lot of injuries over the years, and we'll have to keep figuring it out." said Rod Brind’Amour, Hurricanes coach.

The Hurricanes are also waiting for forward Seth Jarvis to return from offseason shoulder surgery. According to WRAL, Jarvis has not played this season and could return by the end of the month.

"We're all going to have to step up a little more with those two guys out." said Rod Brind’Amour, Hurricanes coach.

Staal remains a key defensive player for Carolina, handling difficult matchups, penalty-killing duties and important faceoffs. He recorded eight goals and four assists during the team’s 19-game playoff run last season, according to sports.yahoo.com.

"He gets the tough matchups every night, and it frees up other guys to get a little bit less of that." said Rod Brind’Amour, Hurricanes coach.

Carolina is expected to call up a forward from the Chicago Wolves of the AHL, while Mark Jankowski is projected to move up a line and take on additional center responsibilities.