The Carolina Hurricanes announced that they have given head coach Rod Brind’Amour a contract extension for multiple years. News of the deal came on Saturday night and was reported by Kevin Weekes and Darren Dreger. Terms of the deal have yet to be disclosed, but his assistant coaches were also retained.
The Hurricanes have agreed to a multi-year extension with head coach Rod Brind'Amour, per @KevinWeekes pic.twitter.com/2I5NMUYoRA
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 19, 2024
Rod Brind’Amour Signs Extension to Stay in Carolina
At the beginning of the season, it seemed almost certain that the Hurricanes would extend Rod Brind’Amour behind the bench. There have been some other factors, but the former Stanley Cup Champion with the Hurricanes as a player is one of the largest reasons that Carolina has gone from a perennial bottom 10 team to a team consistently making the playoffs. However, right before the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the New York Rangers, rumours started swirling that Brind’Amour may not be re-signed. Now those rumours have been put to rest.
As a coach, Rod Brind’Amour has gone 278-130-44 in regular season games. This includes three Division wins (two in the Metropolitan and one in the Central during COVID). He won the Jack Adams Award in 2020-21 as well. On top of this, his teams have made the playoffs each of his six years as a head coach and have never lost a first round.
Beyond the numbers, Brind’Amour has shaped the identity of the Carolina Hurricanes during his tenure. They play a game style very reminiscent of his style as a player. Hard-working, heavy forecheck, and strong defence. It’s hard to say that his coaching effect is not at least partially responsible for the emergence of various previously “journeyman” players like Stefan Noesen and Jalen Chatfield.
What This Means
Since he never left North Carolina after retirement, Brind’Amour has been a Hurricane through and through and remains in Raleigh for the next few years at least. After spending some time as an assistant, his tenure as the man in charge has been pretty impressive. There are a lot of great coaches around the NHL but most agree that Brind’Amour is up there in the top tier.
For Brind’Amour, he keeps getting to do what he loves and where he seemingly wants to be. For the Hurricanes, they get to keep building their identity under Brind’Amour’s leadership. While some faces may change, Carolina’s core of Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov will be around to keep the train rolling under Brind’Amour.
Under Brind’Amour, there are no shortcuts and there shouldn’t be any easy ways around it. The team trusts the process and play an infinite game based on long-term growth and development. While some fans may get antsy and frustrated with this approach at times, Carolina decided to stick with what they have going by giving Brind’Amour this extension.
Main Photo Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
