Rod Brind’Amour was 35 years old and late in his playing career when he won the 2006 Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes.
The look on his face that June night as he held up the Cup — after all but yanking it away from NHL commissioner Gary Bettman — was one of fulfillment and ecstasy he had long sought, but not achieved.
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There was a hunger and a driving determination to reach the Stanley Cup Final and finally win the Cup. He was the team captain. He wanted it for himself, and for everyone in the organization.
Hurricanes captain Rod Brind’Amour accept the Stanley Cup trophy after Carolina’s 3-1 win over Edmonton in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final Wednesday, June 14, 2006 at the RBC Center.
And now?
Brind’Amour is 54 years old and seven years into his job as the Hurricanes’ head coach. His teams have reached the Stanley Cup playoffs each season, but have not won the Cup.
Is the hunger to win a Cup the same now?
“It’s different coaching,” Brind’Amour said Tuesday at a news conference at Lenovo Center. “I don’t know if I’ll always be wired this way, but I still think like a player. I know I’m not out there, but it’s different this time around.
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“I genuinely want it for the guys. I’ve done it. I want them to experience that, for the organization, for the fans.”
Carolina Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour works with his players in the closing minutes of the third period against the Florida Panthers during Game 5 of their Stanley Cup series on Wednesday, May 28, 2025 at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C.
The Canes made it to the Eastern Conference Final this season for the third time under Brind’Amour. For the second time in three years, the Florida Panthers knocked out Carolina. The Panthers lost in the Stanley Cup Final that year, but won it a year ago as former Canes coach Paul Maurice finally enjoyed that winning feeling and lifted up the Cup.
The Canes’ 2024-25 season ended last week with a Game 5 loss to the Panthers at Lenovo Center. They trailed 3-1 in the series entering the game and were long shots to be able to recover from a 3-0 hole, but tied the score in the third period on a Seth Jarvis goal and had the noise level in the arena at full tilt.
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“I mean, that last game we played here might have been the loudest I’ve ever heard where I was literally screaming, probably at the ref, but I was screaming and the guy is standing right here and I couldn’t communicate,” Brind’Amour said. “We want it for all these people. At least that’s how I feel.
“If we do ever get one, does then the hunger go away? Maybe. Until then it’s definitely what keeps me fired up.”
‘Take a step back’
In looking at the season in retrospect, Brind’Amour had sizable holes to fill after such veterans as Brett Pesce, Brady Skjei and Teuvo Teravainen left in free agency after the 2023-24 season. Brind’Amour, at first, was skeptical about the Canes’ chances of continuing their playoff streak given the departures, but said he soon had a better feel for what he had.
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The Canes traded for forward Mikko Rantanen this season, securing a proven scorer and former Stanley Cup winner with Colorado, only to send him to the Dallas Stars when his demeanor and attitude were more about sulking than winning.
Once in the playoffs, the Canes had defenseman Jalen Chatfield and Sean Walker go out with injuries. At times there were four rookies in the lineup including forward Logan Stankoven, who came to Carolina in the Dallas deal but had playoff experience last season with the Stars.
Carolina head coach Rod Brind’Amour walks towards the locker room after the Florida Panthers’ 5-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
“You have to take some time, take a step back,” Brind’Amour said of assessing the season. “In the moment of it, man. When you take a step back and look at what transpired this year I’m like, ’This might be one of the best seasons we’ve had in 20 years.’
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“I look at all the uncertainty going into the year. There always seemed to be something going on with us, which was good. Obviously, with the Rantanen stuff and all that went on.”
But the Canes got through the “Rantanen stuff” and finished second in the Metropolitan Division. Once in the playoffs, they beat the New Jersey Devils and then the Washington Capitals, the Metro winners. Brind’Amour said the Canes were “hitting our stride” – winning each series in five games – before running into the Panthers.
“Overall we’ve raised the bar to a point where when you lose in the semifinals it’s disappointing,” he said. “You take a step back and it’s ‘Wait a minute, there’s four teams playing and we’re feeling like crap because we lost.’
“This is where you want to be. This is the level, the standard, you want to have as an organization. It doesn’t change our goal. We’re trying to get to be that best team.”
Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour and general manager Eric Tulsky take questions from media during a press conference on Tuesday, June 3, 2025, at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C.
Looking ahead
Looking to next season, veteran defensemen Brent Burns and Dmitry Orlov are pending unrestricted free agents and general manager Eric Tulsky said Tuesday the Canes are negotiating with both.
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Tulsky, who joined Brind’Amour at the press conference, said the offseason priorities are shoring up the defense and adding players who fit the “culture” — and oft-used word in sports these days — that Brind’Amour has built and nurtured.
“Rod is an incredible steward of the locker room,” Tulsky said. “We want to find players who can play and will fit but will fit off the ice, too..”
The NHL salary cap will be raised to $95.5 million for the 2025-26 season and Tulsky said there is a “full buy-in” to spend to the cap if there’s a way to get better. Tulsky said the Canes would continue to take “big swings” if there is an opportunity to bring in a great player to bolster the lineup.
“I a hundred percent agree with Rod on expectations,” Tulsky said Tuesday. “Over the last five years, no team has more regular season points than us. Only two teams, Florida and Edmonton, have more postseason wins than we do. We set the bar very, very high. Every year we expect to be at least competing for the Cup and our goal is to win one or more.
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“It does stink to finish and feel like you came up short. But, man, what an honor to be on a team where you get to the final four and feel like you came up short. I love where we are, and we’re going to keep pushing to get to where we want to go.”
About that handshake line …
Don’t expect Brind’Amour to be skipping any more handshake lines at the end of a playoff series. Florida’s Maurice convinced him the line should be a “players only” thing, but Brind’Amour said Tuesday he enjoyed congratulating players on the other team and sharing a moment with them – especially former Hurricanes such as Pesce of the Devils this year.
“I’ve had some impactful memories and moments as a coach going through it,” Brind’Amour said. “Moving forward, I’ll probably go back to it because it’s a sign of respect.”