After eight consecutive playoff appearances, including three losses in the Eastern Conference Finals, Rod Brind’Amour and the Hurricanes have finally broken through to the Stanley Cup Final.
But the longtime Hurricanes coach showed little emotion on Monday at Stanley Cup Final media day, and was instead focused on finishing the task at hand.
“It was weird, after the game, you wanted to be happy and excited for the guys, and yet it was kind of, not quite that exciting,” Brind’Amour said. “And I mean that in the fact that this is where we thought we should be for a long time, and it’s just been a long road. I’m just thrilled for the guys to have this opportunity now.
“It feels like for eight years we’ve been talking about getting this chance. So, we’re finally here, and obviously we want to make the most of it.”
And when it comes to the Hurricanes breaking through, Brind’Amour wasn’t hearing it. The team has been in the competitive mix for so long that anything short of the ultimate prize is a let down.
“I don’t think we have broken through,” Brind’Amour said. “You gotta win.
“Nobody’s going to remember who came second,” Brind’Amour added. “If you’re going to lose, you might as well have lost in the first round. Doesn’t make a difference. To me, it’s all about winning.”
Throughout their arduous journey to hockey’s grandest stage, Carolina has seen many different roster iterations, the most recent brought on by a quick pivot off Mikko Rantanen by general manager Eric Tulsky.
“Fundamentally, we want to be aggressive,” Hurricanes GM Eric Tulsky said. “Rod has the team playing very aggressive on the ice and we want to be aggressive off the ice too.
“When you have the chance to add a really high-end player, we never want to miss out on it. We never want to worry about the ‘what ifs.’ … It’s one of the strengths of or organization is we’re not afraid to take those swings.”
After both losing and winning in the Cup Final during his playing career, Brind’Amour is acutely aware of how it feels both to follow through under the brightest lights, and come up short.
“We’ve already created a bunch of memories, and that’s great, but they’re going to be stamped if we can get this next step,” Brind’Amour said.
“I remember a lot of years, but I really remember the year we won,” he added. “I’ve been to the finals a couple times, but I don’t really remember much about it. You’ve got to stamp it home, and then it stays with you for life.”