Can new Hurricanes defenders, both NHL veterans, offset Carolina’s blue-line losses?

Sean Walker had everything to learn and accepted suggestions from everybody before moving to Raleigh to play for the Carolina Hurricanes.

Shayne Gostisbehere? He rolled back into town and it was all good.

One thing in common: The two are defensemen who signed as free agents with the Canes this year and likely will be paired this season on a team going through something of a makeover.

The two played together for the first time in a game Friday as the Hurricanes, with a mostly veteran lineup, took an 8-2 victory over the Florida Panthers in Carolina’s first home preseason exhibition at the Lenovo Center.

Winger Seth Jarvis had a pair of goals as 15 players earned points against a Panthers’ team mostly lacking veterans. Walker had a power-play goal and two assists and Gostisbehere a pair of assists for the Canes (2-0 preseason).

“We’ve just been trying to find some chemistry in all the practices together,” Gostisbehere said Thursday. “I think our games complement each other. We both like to get up in the play and both can skate pretty well, and I think the system helps us in the sense we are good skaters. I’m looking forward to playing with him.”

Gone are Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei, the twosome of D-men that Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour had in the lineup together the past few seasons.

Pesce was drafted by the Hurricanes and played more than 600 games in nine seasons with the Hurricanes. Skjei, traded to Carolina by the New York Rangers in 2020, played more than 300 games in parts of five seasons.

When Brind’Amour said this week he went through a “mourning” period after free agency began, he was thinking a lot of Pesce and Skjei. Pesce signed with New Jersey and Skjei with Nashville, and the two left a big hole in the lineup.

But the Canes believe Gostisbehere and Walker can fill it nicely and be more than mere replacements — a good righty (Walker) and lefty (Gostisbehere) D-man combination.

Gostisbehere, Canes fans know. The guy called “Ghost” was traded to Carolina during the 2022-23 season, playing 23 games and in the Stanley Cup playoffs after being obtained from Arizona before the trade deadline.

Now he’s back, agreeing to a three-year contract that pays $3.2 million a season. He and his wife live minutes from the arena; they are expecting their first child in late January, Gostisbehere said Thursday.

“To be honest, not a lot has changed here,” Gostisbehere said. “It’s a good group here. What they’ve built here is pretty special, on the ice and in the locker room, especially.

“It’s a lead-by-example culture and it starts with Roddy and the values he instills in us as players. The staple of the organization is that we have to work hard every day. When people mention ‘Carolina Hurricanes’ they always say how hard we work. That’s the big thing.”

Gostisbehere, 31, spent last season with the Detroit Red Wings. He didn’t completely reinvent himself as an offensive defenseman but did re-establish himself by putting up some impressive numbers: 10 goals and 46 assists in 81 games, averaging 19 minutes of ice time per game.

Gostisbehere, a good puck mover, had a team-high 29 power-play points for the Red Wings.

“Detroit is a first-class organization and it’s special to play for an Original Six team, and we had success and came up just short of the playoffs,” he said. “For me, it was a great experience.”

Walker, 29, was undrafted by NHL teams. Signed by the Los Angeles Kings after college hockey at Bowling Green State, he played his way onto the NHL roster and put in five seasons in L.A. before a trade to Philadelphia last year.

Walker was then a trade deadline pickup by the Colorado Avalanche last season, but was not retained or re-signed by the Avs. He signed a five-year, $18 million deal with Carolina.

Walker said he was able to first meet Gostisbehere at a mutual friend’s wedding during the summer, saying they “chatted a bunch” and then stayed in touch until the time to come to Raleigh.

Walker said players like Jordan Staal, Jordan Martinook and Jaccob Slavin — the Canes’ leadership group — quickly reached out, saying, “That made the transition super easy.”

Walker said he and his wife are living in the North Hills area, are still “exploring” Raleigh and already have adopted Brodeto, which offers Adriatic Italian-Croatian cuisine, as an early favorite restaurant.

“We’ve been in L.A., Philly, Denver and seen some great spots, but this is right up there as well,” Walker said. “It’s nice, clean. Everything’s close. It seems like no matter where you are, you’re 15 minutes from everything.”

Early in Friday’s game, Walker was given a rough ride into the end boards and “Walks” was a bit slow getting up. But he and Gostisbehere both played about 15 minutes at even strength and both got power-play time.

“I think it was good,” Walker said after the game. “As far as communication out there, I think we both have the same mindset. Want to get the puck going north and then have some fun in the O-zone, and I think we did that tonight.”

Gostisbehere and Walker are NHL veterans and now teammates. They’ve been in the playoffs. What they want is a Stanley Cup.

“It would mean everything,” Gostisbehere said. “It would mean everything to every one of us. These guys in the room have been so close and just haven’t quite gotten there yet.

“You can just see it, feel it in the room. It would be so special.”