Carolina Hurricanes: Hockey now a family affair for the Brind’Amours

By AIDAN JENSEN

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Rod Brind’Amour has easily been one of the NHL’s most successful head coaches, turning the Carolina Hurricanes from a yearly disappointment into an Eastern Conference contender.

The Canes have made the playoffs every year since Brind’Amour took over before the 2018-2019 campaign, winning a series in every postseason, including trips to the Eastern Conference Finals last year and in Brind’Amour’s first year. They don’t carry a roster full of A-list stars, like the PIttsburgh Penguins or Vegas Golden Knights, but instead a group of players who’ve come up through the farm system.

What Canes fans might not know, however, is that Rod isn’t the only Brind’Amour in the NHL.

His oldest son, Skylar, is a member of the Florida Panthers. Skylar and his Panther teammates faced off against the Canes on Wednesday, Sept. 27, with Carolina taking the contest in a 4-1 victory.

What’s it like facing off against your kid? Awkward? Fun?

Rod was excited about the win, but he was equally as proud of his oldest.

​​“It was just a great moment for him, for all of us,” Rod told CT Insider’s Christine Butterfield. “He’s skated on this ice probably more than anybody since he was a little kid. It’s special. Now we’ve got something to talk about forever.”

Skylar was like a kid in a candy store. The man who he grew up learning hockey from, he was playing against him for the first time.

“It was pretty cool,” Skyler told the News & Observer. “It’s just a dream come true to be able to play in this building. Obviously, I wish there was a little better outcome for the fellows, but it was an awesome experience.”

Rod and Skyler will be facing off again on Friday, Sept. 29, as half of the Canes head to Miami for a 6 p.m. faceoff with the Panthers. The other half of Carolina’s roster will be on the Gulf Coast of Florida, playing the Tampa Bay Lightning at 7 p.m.

Will there be any epic regular-season matchups between Rod and Skylar? We’ll have to wait and see. Will Skyler be a future Cane? It’s up to Carolina GM Don Waddell.

Regardless of how the Rod-Skyler Brind’Amour relationship blossoms in the NHL, it’s got to be a dream come true for both.