Tom Dundon, Don Waddell, and Rod Brind’Amour are the off-ice faces of the Carolina Hurricanes‘ revitalization. When the trio got to work at the start of the 2018-19 season things looked bleak in Raleigh. Carolina had endured almost a full decade without making a run for the NHL’s most coveted prize, Lord Stanley’s Cup.
In the beginning, it was easier to find someone poking holes in their vision than to find someone who believed they could make a difference. Tom Dundon, is a billionaire from Dallas who’d never owned a major league team. Don Waddell was greeted with snickers by people who only saw him as the former general manager of the Atlanta Thrashers. Some doubted Brind’Amour could turn the team around. After all, he had been a member of the coaching staff for almost the same amount of time as the playoff drought.
That first season wasn’t easy. By January 1st, 2019 the team was ranked 6th in the Metro Division. – Brind’Amour didn’t give up on his team. “We just have to play our game,” was his normal response when addressing the media after a Canes loss. Carolina started 2019 with a five-game winning streak and finished the month of January 8-3-1. By the end of February, they were only 2 points away from a playoff berth.
“We’re in! We’re in!” shouted Petr Mrazek. After the team’s penultimate game of the season, Carolina secured a playoff spot with a 3-1 win over the New Jersey Devils.
Fast forward four years and the Carolina Hurricanes are on track to win their division for the third consecutive year.
Tonight’s win against the Columbus Blue Jackets, marks the 200th of Rod Brind’Amour’s coaching career. An achievement that can be appreciated even more as the Hurricanes snap a four game losing streak in the process.
Adam Gold, a long-time sports radio host for Raleigh’s 99.9 FM The Fan likes to say that Rod Brid’Amour didn’t want to be an NHL head coach. He wanted to be Carolina’s head coach.
Brind’Amour isn’t a hired gun. He wasn’t given a shot after a successful run as an assistant coach in another market. Brind’Amour has been a member of the Hurricanes organization since being traded here in January 2000. He was an alternate captain when Carolina went to the 2002 Stanley Cup finals. When Ron Francis got traded to Toronto for his last shot at the Cup in 2004 Brind’Amour traded the ‘A’ on his chest for a ‘C’.
While captain he created the most iconic moment in franchise history.
I still get goosebumps watching him kick his feet as he lifts the Stanley Cup into the air.
After retiring in 2010 he accepted a coaching position under Paul Maurice. He stayed in that position until then-new team owner Tom Dundon tapped him to be the team’s new head coach.
“Everything I think the world should be. Everything I think about the way people should act, the way people should treat other people, and the way I feel they should lead this man does it.” Tom Dundon was introducing the assembled media to a familiar face in a new role. “I haven’t been this impressed by many people in my life. I think we’re very lucky.”
Dundon mentioned in the same press conference that meeting with people who interact with Brind’Amour on a day-to-day basis opened his eyes to Brind’Amour’s ability.
“It’s impossible to quantify the impact Rod Brind’Amour has had in turning the Hurricanes into one of the NHL’s best teams in his five seasons as head coach in just numbers.” Said Carolina Hurricanes play-by-play man Mike Maniscalco. “But 200 wins in less than five seasons behind the bench comes close.”
“He repeatedly says it is all about the players,” Maniscalco added, “but players have to have a coach who puts them in the right position to win on and off the ice. That’s what Rod Brind’Amour does on a daily basis. It isn’t just about victories and losses but about doing things the right way every day and taking care of the people on and around the team. This has led him to this accomplishment. As good of a coach as he is, he is an even better person and the definition of what a leader should be.”
Brind’Amour used the leverage of being a Jack Adams finalist to get raises for his assistants and support staff. His holdout left some media members from outside of Carolina’s market to speculate that Brind’Amour was looking for a fresh start outside of the old north state.
Brind’Amour signed his extension the same day the NHL awarded him the trophy for coach of the year. “We have a special group down here,” Brind’Amour said at the time. “For me to do this job to the best of my ability, it’s important to have the right people around me.”
Back-to-back division championships, four consecutive post-season appearances, franchise record-breaking winning and point streaks, and Brind’Amour’s .665 points-percentage ranks first among active NHL head coaches who have been behind the bench for at least 300 games.
Now a smidgen less than halfway through his fifth season as head coach Brind’Amour collects his 200th win. He became the 83rd NHL coach to achieve the milestone. “I just want to say thank you,” Brind’Amour said at his introductory press conference back in 2018. “I’m looking forward to this challenge. It’s an honor. I think we’re going to do great things.”
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