Alexander Nikishin Fantasy Stats

Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Alexander Nikishin (ankle) missed the final few minutes of Tuesday's 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers, Cory Lavalette of The North State Journal reports. The Russian blue-liner exited with 3:46 remaining in regulation and was spotted icing his right ankle after the game. Carolina's defense has taken several injury hits throughout the campaign and just lost Jaccob Slavin (upper body) for the second time this season. Nikishin is having a fine debut campaign, logging 13 points (four goals, nine assists), 60 shots, 46 blocks, and 69 hits with a team-best plus-13 rating in 35 outings.

Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Alexander Nikishin had a big role in Monday's 3-0 win over the Florida Panthers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Nikishin's nifty pass helped Logan Stankoven to record the game-winning goal midway through the second period, and the Russian rearguard racked up five hits and one block in 18:53 of ice time. This marked a significant turnaround for Nikishin, who ended Game 3 with a minus-four rating. The 23-year-old collected his first career points in Monday's game. Additionally, he has recorded three shots and 12 hits with four penalty minutes in his first three appearances with the Hurricanes.