Stadium Series perfect storm for Hurricanes, Carolina community

RALEIGH, N.C. -- James Caddell stepped into the student section on the field at Carter-Finley Stadium late in the second period Saturday night when he saw a blur out of the corner of his eye.

"Puck!" his buddy Eli Self yelled.
A puck had flown over the glass in the north end zone as the Carolina Hurricanes played the Washington Capitals in the 2023 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series.
It landed near the back wall. The first to get it would take it home.
Caddell, an 18-year-old freshman at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, considers himself a huge Caniac. He wore a Stadium Series hat and a Stadium Series hoodie, and he had a Stadium Series blanket draped around his neck.

He had to have that puck, so he dove in desperation as if he were an NHL goalie and the puck were loose in the crease.
Inches ahead of others, he grabbed it.
"A few minutes afterward, someone comes up to him and says, 'How much are you willing to take for that puck?'" said Self, an 18-year-old freshman at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, wearing a red Jaccob Slavin Hurricanes jersey. "And he says, 'It's priceless.'"
Caddell said he would give the puck to his 11-year-old brother, Caleb.
"I'm so happy," Caddell said. "I'm so blessed that the Carolina Hurricanes have hosted this. I just want to give a huge shout out to Raleigh and the hockey culture that's here."
Yep, priceless.
This was the 37th outdoor game the NHL has staged since 2003. But it was the first involving the Hurricanes and the first in North Carolina, something to remember, to cherish, to share for so many reasons.
The tailgate parties. The fan fest. The North Carolina State University mascots, cheerleaders and marching band. Ripken The Bat Dog. Country artist Jake Owen and the alternative rock group lovelytheband. The sellout crowd of 56,961, the largest in Hurricanes history.
And, of course, the 4-1 Carolina win.
It showcased how much the Hurricanes have grown hockey here, and it should help them grow it even more.
"I mean, I just am overwhelmed in the best way with this atmosphere," Self said. "It's a really great encapsulation of the whole fan base and the hockey culture in Raleigh. It's loud, crazy. Rowdy, I think, would be the word."
"Rowdy," Caddell said. "Rowdy's a good word, yes."
"But just, like, controlled chaos in the best way," Self said. "In the absolute best way."
* * * * *
It felt like a football Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium, normally the home of the NC State Wolfpack. The weather was beautiful: sunny and in the low 50s Fahrenheit.
The fans started lining up to tailgate hours before the parking lots opened at 2 p.m. ET. Driving down Trinity Road toward the stadium about 3:30 p.m. ET, you couldn't miss a homemade sign hanging from the balcony of a student townhouse.
"LET'S GO CANES," it said in black and red on a white background.
Abby Krough, Julia Oakley and Kerry Quinn -- each a 20-year-old junior at NC State -- make a new banner before each football game. This time, they made one for a hockey game.

Krough grew up a Hurricanes fan in Wake Forest, North Carolina, and goes to games often. Her dad, Chad Krough, became a hockey fan after the Hartford Whalers moved to North Carolina and changed their name in 1997.
"This is like the Super Bowl," he said as he hung out on the front lawn with his fiancée, Andrea O'Rourke. "As soon as I heard it was coming to Raleigh, it was like, 'Oh, my god, I'm going to do whatever it takes to get tickets.'"
There were tailgate parties everywhere around the stadium throughout the afternoon. You could smell the grills, listen to the music and watch people play football, cornhole and street hockey.
Matt Hill and Erik Weekman tossed a football, Hill in a Hurricanes jersey, Weekman in a Carolina Panthers jersey with a Hurricanes shirt underneath. The 28-year-olds graduated from NC State in 2016.
"You're getting the best of both worlds," Weekman said. "Tailgating here in general … I mean, we're the best at it."

Nick Larson, a 27-year-old from Raleigh, grew up going to Hurricanes games with his dad, Mark. They tailgated before the Hurricanes played the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final here June 19, 2006, when he was so small that he had to stand on a seat to see, his dad's arm around him. After the Hurricanes hoisted the Cup, they went back and resumed tailgating.
They weren't going to miss this.
"Coming from a small market, we feel like we deserve a chance to show up and show everybody what we're about," Larson said. "And this is it."
People packed the Truly Hard Seltzer PreGame, a fan festival in the parking lot, and lined barricades to see the teams arrive.
At about 5:15 p.m. ET, the NC State cheerleaders and marching band led the Hurricanes from PNC Arena, their usual home, to the stadium. The players dressed in matching old-time golf outfits in a nod to golf heritage of North Carolina.
Soon afterward, the Capitals pulled up in yellow school buses, carrying footballs and dressed in matching hats, sunglasses and jackets.
The players smiled almost too much.
"My cheeks hurt already," Hurricanes forward Jordan Martinook said.
* * * * *
The Hurricanes hardly could have asked for a better night. It was dry and 44 degrees Fahrenheit for face-off about 8 p.m. ET, cool enough to play hockey but comfortable enough to sit outside in a hoodie and hockey jersey.
"The growth of the game has been amazing certainly in this market," said Capitals coach Peter Laviolette, who coached the Hurricanes when they won the Cup in 2006. "To have an event like this in a setting like this -- the weather is perfect out there -- seems perfect."
When the Hurricanes walked onto the field, the NC State marching band, known as the Power Sound of the South, played the Scorpions staple "Rock You Like A Hurricane."
Jets flew over at the end of the national anthem. Ripken The Bat Dog, famous for appearances at NC State football and Durham Bulls minor league baseball games, dropped the puck.

Kids from schools around the Triangle stood in the student section on the field. It was hard to see the game, but it hardly mattered. They had the best view of Owen in the first intermission and lovelytheband in the second, and they stood behind Chris Chelios, Mark Messier and P.K. Subban on the ESPN set holding signs as if on "College GameDay."
Noah Williams, a 21-year-old junior at NC State, said he'd been to lots of Hurricanes and NC State football games, but he'd never seen anything like a Hurricanes game at NC State's football stadium.
"This is amazing," Williams said. "This is on a different level."
Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said he didn't know how it could have been much better.
"It blew me away," he said. "… It's special. I've been saying this for a long time. It's a special community and a special relationship between the players and the people that support this team, and hopefully other people got to see that tonight."