Panthers vs. Hurricanes: Reinhart, Svechnikov lead our opening-night goal model

Sam Reinhart is the most likely goal scorer in Panthers vs. Hurricanes, the NHL's 2026-27 season opener. Our model gives the Florida winger a 34.6% chance to score anytime at Lenovo Center on Tuesday, Sept. 29 (5 p.m. ET, ESPN). Andrei Svechnikov is close behind at 33.2% for Carolina, followed by teammate Sebastian Aho at 32.8%. 

The Hurricanes will raise their Stanley Cup banner before facing the Panthers, and the matchup involves the champions of the past three seasons, with Florida winning in 2024 and 2025.

Carolina plays without Seth Jarvis, who had shoulder surgery in late June and led the team with 32 goals last season. Florida is without Brad Marchand (lower body) but has Brady Tkachuk, acquired from Ottawa in June. 

Carolina is a -125 moneyline favorite at DraftKings, and our model makes the Hurricanes 58% to win.

Sam Reinhart tops the Panthers' anytime goal list

Reinhart's 34.6% is the highest anytime goal probability on either roster in our NHL player props for tonight. He led the Panthers with a team-high 29 goals and 61 points last season, doing it in 64 games.

Reinhart's consensus price to score is +200, an implied probability of 33.3%. Our number sits slightly above that price.

Brady Tkachuk is second among Florida skaters at 28.2%. The Senators traded their captain to Florida for a package of draft picks, pairing him with his brother Matthew (NHL.com has the full trade details).

He was recently listed day-to-day but is expected to be ready for the opener, per WagerTalk. His sportsbook price to score is +175, which implies 36.4%. That is well above our 28.2%, so the market likes Tkachuk's opening night more than our model does.

The rest of Florida's top five are close together:

Andrei Svechnikov leads Carolina with Jarvis sidelined

With Jarvis out, Svechnikov is the Hurricanes' likeliest scorer at 33.2%. He scored 31 goals in 79 games last season, and his price to score is +180. That price implies 35.7%, a little above our probability.

Aho is almost level at 32.8%. He had 27 goals in 79 games, and at a consensus of around +200 his implied probability (33.3%) is close to our number. Nikolaj Ehlers follows at 30.5%.

Panthers vs. Hurricanes odds and our prediction

The Hurricanes are favored at -1.5 on the puck line (+194 at FanDuel), with a total of 6 goals (over -120 at Fanatics, under +100 at BetMGM). On the moneyline, Carolina is -125 at DraftKings and Florida is +110 at bet365.

Our full Panthers vs. Hurricanes prediction gives Carolina a 58% win probability and Florida 42%. Carolina's -125 price implies 55.6%, so we are slightly higher on the Hurricanes than that price. Florida's +110 implies 47.6%, above our 42%. The gap is modest, and a single opening-night game has plenty of variance.

Prices differ between books. The odds above are the best we found for each side, which is why the two moneyline prices come from different sportsbooks, so it helps to compare the line you are getting before placing any bet.

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The banner ceremony takes place at Lenovo Center before the 5 p.m. ET start on ESPN.