Hurricanes assistant coach Rod Brind’Amour selected to NC Sports Hall of Fame

Peter Koutroumpis, Triangle Sports Network

RALEIGH, N.C. – The North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame announced on Tuesday that former Carolina Hurricanes player and current assistant coach Rod Brind’Amour was selected for induction as part of its 2016 class.

As only the second hockey player inducted into the Hall, after Ron Francis was selected in 2013, it’s a recognition well deserved for Brind’Amour, 45, who officially retired as a player on June 30, 2010, following a career of more than 20 National Hockey League (NHL) seasons.

The announcement also gave the Hurricanes organization its third recognition into the Hall located in downtown Raleigh, with the team’s 2006 Stanley Cup win being the first selected back in 2012 as one of the ‘Great Moments in North Carolina Sports History’.

“It’s a nice honor,” Brind’Amour said.

“Ronny (Francis) obviously set the table for hockey (in North Carolina) – he’s the first one in, so it’s nice to follow in those footsteps.”

“We were all part of that,” Brind’Amour continued when talking about helping to further evolve and develop the hockey culture in the area.

“Everyone that’s played here, and especially guys that were on that (2006) team, we definitely left a mark. The 2002 team started that, just being new here and the excitement it created in this city. In 2006, it was the same.”

Originally drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the first round, ninth overall, in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft, Brind’Amour completed his career ranked 16th in NHL history in games played (1,484), 44th in assists (732), 46th in points (1,184) and 54th in goals (452), in 21 seasons with St. Louis, Philadelphia and Carolina.

He debuted with the Blues during the 1989 Stanley Cup Playoffs after completing one season at Michigan State, and scored a goal on his first NHL shot against the Minnesota North Stars.

He was named to the NHL’s All-Rookie Team in 1990, after scoring 61 points (26g, 35a) in 79 games for St. Louis, and played in the NHL All-Star Game while a member of the Flyers in 1992.

Brind’Amour represented Canada in the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, and won back-to-back Frank J. Selke trophies as the NHL’s top defensive forward in 2005-06 and 2006-07, as a member of the Hurricanes.

Brind’Amour played in 159 career Stanley Cup Playoff games, totaling 51 goals and 60 assists (111 points).

He participated in the Stanley Cup Final three times, reaching the Final in 1997 with Philadelphia, and in 2002 and 2006 with Carolina, captaining the Hurricanes to the 2006 Stanley Cup championship.

Acquired by the Hurricanes from the Philadelphia Flyers on Jan. 23, 2000, Brind’Amour ranks second in career points for the Hurricanes since the team’s relocation to North Carolina, notching 473 points in 694 games played.

He also ranks second in assists (299), second in shorthanded goals (10), third in goals (174) and third in power-play goals (60) in the team’s North Carolina history.

Brind’Amour ranks third in franchise history (including Hartford) in assists (299), fourth in points (473) and fifth in games played (694).

Named the Hurricanes’ captain prior to the 2005-06 season, Brind’Amour netted 31 goals and earned 39 assists (70 points) that season to lead the team to a franchise-record 52 regular-season wins.

His league-leading 12 playoff goals during the team’s Stanley Cup run also set a franchise record.