Bussi has won his two starts and has a 2.18 GAA and .908 save percentage in three games. He made 23 saves in Game 5, a 4-2 win at Lenovo Center on Thursday. Prior to Game 3, he had not played since Carolina\u2019s regular-season finale on April 14, when he made 29 saves in a 2-1 win against the New York Islanders.<\/p>\n
Brind\u2019Amour believes Bussi was well-prepared despite the long layoff.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt might be easier for a goalie sometimes,\u201d Brind\u2019Amour said. \u201cFor a (skater), the timing and getting up and down the ice, there\u2019s a million things going on, but a goalie has just got to stop the puck.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you put in the work like he has — he\u2019s been keeping himself ready — it might not be that big of an adjustment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bussi, who turns 28 on June 25, hadn’t played in the NHL before this season; he played three full seasons in the American Hockey League with Providence and had a four-game stint in the ECHL with Maine in 2022-23, after signing with the Boston Bruins as an undrafted free agent in 2022. He signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Florida Panthers as an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2025, but was claimed off waivers by the Hurricanes on Oct. 5 when the Panthers tried to send him to Charlotte of the AHL.<\/p>\n
In 39 games with Carolina, he went 31-6-2 with a 2.47 GAA and an .895 save percentage.<\/p>\n