Hurricanes cherish chance to advance to Cup Final on home ice

MONTREAL -- Rod Brind'Amour was a player and the Carolina Hurricanes were still a young franchise the last time they had a chance to punch their ticket into the Stanley Cup Final on home ice.

It was 20 years ago, Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final on June 1, 2006, when the Hurricanes were in their eighth season in North Carolina with a still first-generation fanbase, the team having moved there from Hartford nine years prior.

Brind'Amour, now in his eighth season as Carolina's coach, will never forget that night, the 4-2 win against the Sabres, or the next seven games the Hurricanes played against the Edmonton Oilers on their way to winning their only Stanley Cup championship, doing so in Game 7 on home ice.

Two decades later, the opportunity is there again for the Hurricanes, only this time they can become Eastern Conference champions and lock up a date with the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Final in front of a mature and battle-tested fanbase featuring second-and-third generation fans that make Lenovo Center one of the best home-ice advantages in the NHL.

The Hurricanes lead the Montreal Canadiens 3-1 in the East Final. Game 5 is in Raleigh, N.C. on Friday (8 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).

"We haven't accomplished anything, we still have a lot of work ahead of us, but the people down there, they deserve a good team and they've had it for while," Brind'Amour said. "It would mean a lot to the people that have supported this group for going through a lot of ups and downs. That's any fanbase really, but ours in particular have been there night in and night out."

They'll be there again Friday, 18,000-plus in full throat who will have a whole heck of a lot to cheer about if the home team delivers a performance like it has the past three games against the Canadiens.

The Hurricanes are one win away from deciding if they want to touch the Prince of Wales Trophy because they have been dominant since losing Game 1 against the Canadiens, 6-2. 

They have, in fact, been the better team by a landslide in the past 11 periods plus 17:35 of overtime since the first period of Game 1. 

Carolina has outshot the Canadiens 123-52 since the start of the second period of Game 1. It won Games 2 and 3 in overtime, both 3-2. Game 4 on Wednesday was about as perfect of a game as a team can play, minus a lethargic 5-on-3 power play. 

The Hurricanes won 4-0, scoring three goals in a 2:47 span late in the first period, leaving no doubt the rest of the way. They outshot the Canadiens 44-18, including 20-3 in the third period.

"I mean, last game was one of our better games I've ever seen us play," said captain Jordan Staal, who has played 972 regular season games and 101 in the playoffs with the Hurricanes since 2012-13. "Everyone was on. All four lines were going. We've called it a machine before, and we just kept it running and it didn't stop. There wasn't a whole lot for them to get and we had a lot of chances too, and Freddy (Andersen) was great. It was an exceptional game, but, man, the fourth one is always the hardest one to win. It's going to be a brand new challenge, brand new game and a whole new set of scenarios. We're going to have to bottle that up and try to do that again, and get ready for their best."

Brind'Amour said there is no concern about the Hurricanes being overconfident heading into Game 5, thinking the Canadiens can't answer them.

That's part of being battle-tested, of being in the same position as the Canadiens when they were in the Eastern Conference Final last year. 

Carolina lost three games in a row to the Florida Panthers to start the conference final last year. Backs against the wall, facing elimination (insert your cliché), the Hurricanes pulled out a win in Game 4 to extend the series a few more days.

They didn't win another game, but the Hurricanes found a modicum of success in the same situation that the Canadiens are in now.

It's a good reminder for them going into Game 5.

"I don't think we're an overconfident group, I think we're a confident group in what we do," Brind'Amour said. "We respect every minute of the playoffs, let me tell you."

But they can appreciate the opportunity that is in front of them.

It doesn't come around often. In Raleigh, it's been 20 years, enough time for the first generation of Hurricanes fans to now bring their grandkids to Game 5, enough time for the 'Caniacs' to turn Lenovo Center into one of the loudest places to play in the NHL.

Imagine the noise if the Hurricanes punch their ticket Friday night. 

"It's huge," defenseman Jaccob Slavin said of the chance to do it on home ice. "We love our fans. We love playing at Lenovo. We've got a great community there and the fans are passionate about Carolina hockey. It's an exciting opportunity, but at the end of the day, home or away, you have a job to do, you want to finish it and you want to do it well."