Skjei entering Qualifiers for Hurricanes with 'a ton of motivation'

Brady Skjei said he has extra incentive to start strong for the Carolina Hurricanes in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers.

The defenseman can help eliminate the New York Rangers, who traded him to the Hurricanes for a first-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft on Feb. 24.
"I've got a ton of motivation," Skjei said after practice Thursday. "I really enjoyed my time in New York, loved every part of it, but now I've got a ton of motivation and a chip on my shoulder going into this series. I'm going to do everything possible, everything I can to come out of this series victorious."
Skjei played seven games for the Hurricanes before the season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. He had one assist, a minus-4 rating and 15 shots on goal.
The No. 28 pick in the 2012 NHL Draft, Skjei played 307 games for the Rangers from 2015-20. He scored 112 points (25 goals, 87 assists), including 23 (eight goals, 15 assists) in 60 games this season, the second in a six-year contract he agreed to July 28, 2018.
Carolina (38-25-5, .596 points percentage) will enter the Qualifiers as the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference and play the Rangers (37-28-5, .564), the No. 11 seed, in a best-of-5 series at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, the hub city for the 12 East teams. Game 1 is Aug. 1 (12 p.m. ET). The winner will advance to the Stanley Cup Playoffs and the loser will have a chance at the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft in the Second Phase of the NHL Draft Lottery, which will be held Aug. 10.
"I probably know each guy's game [on the Rangers] a little better [than his Hurricanes teammates] and I'll definitely give some inside scoops to try to give us the best chance to win," Skjei said.

To that end, Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said Skjei will an invaluable resource to help the coaches and his teammates prepare for and play against New York. Brind'Amour said he has already spoken to Skjei about the Rangers and plans to do more in the coming days.
"We'll definitely use him as a resource here when we start dialing up more talking about our opponent," Brind'Amour said. "We're still just in the phase of getting our game to do what we need to do but starting next week we'll definitely pick his brain because he was just there, and he's been in their system for a long time. It's in the works."
Skjei helped the Rangers defeat the Hurricanes three times this season, scoring the game-winning goal in a 5-2 win at PNC Arena on Feb. 21. He didn't play in a 4-2 win at Carolina on Nov. 7.
The Rangers were 11-4-0 against the Hurricanes with Skjei in the lineup the past four seasons.
Skjei, though, has turned diplomatic about New York's success with him against Carolina because he's now on the other side.
"When I was playing with the Rangers this was never an easy team to play against," Skjei said. "You were always in for a tough game and they'd be all over us. I don't think the record exactly shows how the games went, but I think we have a good chance here going forward."