One way or another, Tuesday, May 8, 2018 will go down as an important one in the history of the Carolina Hurricanes. Owner Tom Dundon announced that interim GM Don Waddell would assume that role permanently, and former team captain and assistant coach Rod Brind’Amour would be promoted to head coach.
The pair was introduced in their now positions at a news conference at PNC Arena Wednesday. For Brind’Amour, who led the Hurricanes to the franchise’s only Stanley Cup championship in 2006, this is the latest challenge in his decorated hockey career.
“I have to start by thanking the Carolina Hurricanes,” Brind’Amour said. “And obviously Tom and Don for trusting me with this huge responsibility, and one that I’m obviously up for. Responsibility to, in my opinion, take their vision and their plan and push it forward. I know it’s an opportunity, a huge challenge, but one that I feel real confident that I can do.”
After former head coach Bill Peters resigned his position to move on to the Calgary Flames, Dundon immediately started looking at a host of candidates to fill the spot.
He didn’t have to look far to find the one that impressed him the most, and had been doing so since he bought the team in January.
“As we’ve gone through this process, everything I think the world should be,” Dundon said. “Everything I think about the way people should act, the way people should treat other people and the way they should lead, this man does it. We’ve talked to other people, and it would be hard for me to interview somebody who I hadn’t been around and hadn’t met people that they’ve spent a lot of time with and had a chance to be with everyday.
“It was going to be difficult for anyone to impress me the way [Brind’Amour] has. I haven’t been this impressed by many people in my life. I think we’re really, really lucky, very fortunate and I’m extremely excited. I think some of the issues that we’ve had that we wanted to fix, that I thought were going to take some time, it got a lot faster today for sure.”
Dundon had also been searching for a new general manager since Ron Francis was reassigned in March (his contract was recently terminated by the team). As it turns out, he had his ideal candidate for that position in house as well.
“I met Don through the sale process,” Dundon said. “We’ve probably talked everyday. We worked on the business initially; it wasn’t on the hockey side. As I met people in the industry I’ve found that he’s got deep relationships, knowledge and experience. He has a temperament to sort of slow me down. He has the ability to get us information as I want lots of input. Don’s been a great facilitator for us, and I feel very fortunate he was here and that he’s going to be a huge help in helping us accomplish some of the things that we’ve talked about that we need to do.”
Waddell, who last served as an NHL general manager for the Atlanta Thrashers from 1998-2010, was attracted to the same position with the Hurricanes because of his respect for the owner he’ll be working with.
“[Dundon]’s got a real passion for it,” Waddell said. “That’s what really interests me in being here and being in this role to help this franchise going forward. When you have ownership that’s involved as Tom is … It’s a privilege to work with Tom and I’m really looking forward to continue this franchise moving forward with Rod at the helm.”
When Brind’Amour first hung up his skates after his 21-year playing career, he wasn’t sure coaching was something he wanted to get involved in. However, it wasn’t long until perhaps the best captain in the team’s history was drawn to a new kind of leadership role.
“When I get down there, it’s the closest thing to playing,” Brind’Amour said. “You’re not on the ice; sometimes I wish I could still get out there. But you’re in the fight. You’re in the fight with the guys. I felt like it’s something I have a passion for. The more I got into it and the more I did this, and got on the sidelines I felt like I wanted to take a chance on taking charge and doing it the way it should be done. When the opportunity came up, I stuck my neck out and here we are.”
Another thing that makes Brind’Amour feel so ready for this new opportunity? The fact that he’s experienced what the Hurricanes’ success can bring to the Raleigh community before, and the desire to bring that back.
“It’s not a knock against anyone that came in here and coached before,” Brind’Amour said. “There’s a coaching profession and that’s their job. This is obviously a job but it means more to me. This is my town; I live here. I feel like I’m a connection to this community.”
After all, Brind’Amour has done this before as a player, guiding a struggling franchise to the height of success. Now, with a team mired in a nine-year playoff drought, it’s his responsibility to guide a group of players to do the same thing.
“When I got here, the Hurricanes weren’t at the top of the mountain; let’s put it that way,” Brind’Amour said. “And I kind of saw us build and grow and do it the way the Hurricanes did it. Which was accountability and dependability and bringing in good people. … For whatever reason, things have gone the other way. I don’t know if there’s a secret recipe. It’s not secret. I know that there’s a right way to do it. … For whatever reason, our expectations have lowered a bit here. We need to raise those.”
Former Carolina Hurricanes team captain Rod Brind'Amour. Brind'Amour was named the Canes' head coach Tuesday April 8.
