Hurricanes focusing on details heading into Eastern Conference Final

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Carolina Hurricanes know their identity well.

For seven seasons, coach Rod Brind’Amour has preached a game based on details, the small events in each shift that are often overlooked but quietly produce results. Some of that approach is a practical matter.

“We don’t have those sexy players,” is how Brind’Amour put it on Saturday.

With or without game-breakers, Carolina has reached the Eastern Conference Final of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second time in three seasons. The Hurricanes will face the Florida Panthers, who defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-1 in Game 7 of their second round series on Sunday. Game 1 will take place at Lenovo Center on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; MAX, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).

The attention to detail is evident in how the Hurricanes advanced through the first two rounds. They dispatched the New Jersey Devils and Washington Capitals each in five games, the first team to win consecutive best-of-7 playoff series in five games or fewer since 2020, when the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets and Boston Bruins each in five games.

“It’s a lot of little things the normal eye wouldn’t see,” defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere said. “‘Roddy' keeps talking about the inches. It’s all over the ice. It’s that little extra effort. We have a motto, saying, 'You rest when you’re on the bench, not when you’re on the ice.' You’re always moving, you’re always putting that extra effort in. You’ll get your rest later. It’s always worth it.”

Carolina’s series win against Washington showed the Hurricanes at their best. The Capitals, who were second in the NHL with an average of 3.49 goals per game during the regular season, were outscored 15-7 in the series. The outcome left Washington coach Spencer Carbery marveling at the ways Carolina limited his team.

“They are just relentless with their pressure and their ability to break plays up with their sticks," Carbery said at the end of the series. “There is no team in the League like them. You can just tell the experience and the calmness of their group through various points in the series.”

The Hurricanes have relied on balanced scoring through two rounds. Eighteen players have at least one point through 10 games, led by Sebastian Aho (three goals, seven assists) and Seth Jarvis (four goals, six assists). Forwards Jackson Blake and Logan Stankoven are tied with Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson for the most points by a rookie, with five.

“Everyone holds each other accountable here,” Stankoven said. “Sometimes those details and a little bit of the work ethic fades. It’s hard to bring it every single night. Guys make sure in a positive way that we’re on each other and hold each other accountable, and Rod does a good job making sure we’re prepared each game.”

The emphasis on small plays and positioning is nothing new under Brind’Amour, whose teams have won a round in the playoffs in each of his seven seasons.

“You have to have a buy-in on that, and we’ve had it for years,” Brind'Amour said. “That’s pretty evident. We’ve just got to keep finding ways to win games this time of year.”

The Hurricanes did just that against Washington, starting with 2-1 win in overtime in Game 1. Carolina earned a 4-0 shutout in Game 3 and a 5-2 win in Game 4 before Andrei Svechnikov broke a 1-1 tie with 1:59 remaining in the third period of the series clincher.

“It’s extremely hard,” Brind’Amour said. “It’s a play here or there in every game. You go back to any of them that we’ve won or lost in games in the playoffs. You could almost pinpoint a play you created or let happen on you that is the difference in the game.”

That’s why the details are so important.

“[It’s] probably the biggest factor in everything that we do,” the Carolina coach said. “It doesn’t get talked about at all, which I’m fine with. But it’s all over the ice in the simplest play you could ever see.

“I think we’ve done a real good job with it. What it ends up doing, when we’re detailed, is you see a game that’s hard to play against. That’s the trick.”

Sticking with all those finer points isn’t always easy. That’s when Brind’Amour delivers a reminder.

“[He says of] a heavy shot block, 'It’s a good hurt,’” Gostisbehere said. “At the end, when you’re on your couch having a beer and a series is in your back pocket, it’s definitely a good hurt.”