Shayne Gostisbehere Out 'More Than Day-To-Day'

RALEIGH, N.C. - The Carolina Hurricanes will be without Shayne Gostisbehere (upper-body injury) for a period of time, Rod Brind'Amour revealed on Monday.

The defenseman did not play in the final nine minutes of Friday's loss in New Jersey and then was not available for the second half of the back-to-back in Raleigh.

"I'm not sure of the length of (the injury), but it'll be more than day-to-day. That's all I can tell you right now," Brind'Amour said following Monday's practice at Lenovo Center, which Gostisbehere did not take part in.

With Gostisbehere on the shelf, the window of opportunity opens for Ty Smith.

Not only did Smith skate with Gostisbehere's usual defensive partner Sean Walker at even strength on Saturday, but he also stepped immediately into the role of quarterbacking the first power play unit.

"He's an offensive defenseman and he's a similar kind of player to Ghost. Ghost is obviously a big part of (the power play), but I think we'll give Smitty the first crack and see if he can do really what he's done his whole life," Brind'Amour explained on Monday.

Smith played 16:23 in his team debut and received a heap of praise from both Brind'Amour and Walker following the win.

"I love Smitty. We've practiced together a bunch when he's been around. He's great. He stepped in and it was pretty seamless," Walker said. "He's kind of that skilled defenseman [like Gostisbehere] as well. He communicated well the whole night and I think we played a pretty good game."

The 24-year-old Smith has been shuttled back and forth between Chicago and Raleigh all season long, but when he's been in the Wolves' lineup, he's totaled 10 points in 13 games.

"We've kind of had him bouncing around and he's had a great attitude," Brind'Amour added on Saturday night. "I think that's part of it, guys really root for him because he's been a real positive around here."

A first-round selection of the New Jersey Devils in 2018, Smith has had success leading a man advantage before, notably registering six power-play goals in 39 games with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins during the 2022-23 season.

Smith's first game as a Hurricane on Saturday was the 124th of his young NHL career, previously playing two full seasons with the Devils (2020-22).