Rangers, Hurricanes head coaches have differing memories of their time at PNC Arena

Rod Brind’Amour had the most exciting night of his hockey career and Gerard Gallant probably his most ignominious in PNC Arena.

Brind’Amour was the Carolina Hurricanes captain in 2006 when the Canes won the Stanley Cup, ecstatically lifting it high in victory that June night as the arena rumbled. Now the Canes head coach, he’s after another one.

Gallant was coaching the Florida Panthers 10 years later when he was summarily fired after a loss against the Canes at PNC Arena. He hailed a cab and waited outside near the loading dock, a photo of Gallant and an assistant coach sliding into a Raleigh taxi circulating widely throughout the NHL.

So much has happened since that November 2016 night. Brind’Amour became the Canes’ head coach and made them a playoff-caliber team. Gallant was hired and fired by the expansion Vegas Golden Knights — taking them to the 2018 Stanley Cup finals in a glittery debut season — before being named the New York Rangers coach in June 2021.

The two faced each other during their NHL playing careers. They’ve faced each other as coaches. Now, their teams face each other with a spot in the Eastern Conference finals at stake in the second round of the playoffs, with Game 1 set for Wednesday at 7 p.m. at PNC Arena.

“I don’t know him personally but I’ve known him for a long time,” Brind’Amour said Tuesday. “I know the kind of player he was. You know, just hard-nosed. That’s kind of the way I think he coaches.

“I know his players love him. He lets his guys play, you can see that. That’s why he’s a good coach.”

Many of the same things are said about Brind’Amour: hard-nosed, players love him, lets his guys play. And comparisons are being made to the style of play the Rangers have had under Gallant — north/south, constantly attacking, staying aggressive.

Brind’Amour and Gallant are native Canadians — Brind’Amour raised in Prince Rupert and Campbell River, British Columbia, and Gallant born in Summerside, Prince Edward Island.

Gallant, 58, was a power forward, spending nine of 10 NHL seasons with the Detroit Red Wings and scoring a career-high 39 goals in 1988-89. Brind’Amour, 51, was the quintessential center in a career that took him from the St. Louis Blues to the Philadelphia Flyers and then to the Canes in January 2000.

Brind’Amour won a Cup, something missing in Gallant’s playing career. As coaches, both have been named the Jack Adams Award winner as NHL coach of the year — Gallant with Vegas in 2018 and Brind’Amour last year.

The Canes won three of the four games this season against the Rangers in beating them out for the Metropolitan Division title with 116 points, twice winning at Madison Square Garden. Neither team believes that will mean much when the puck drops Wednesday night after 7 p.m. at PNC Arena.

Antti Raanta will be the Canes’ starting goalie and Igor Shesterkin will be in net for the Rangers, both with their own challenges to face. Raanta did not have a game against the Rangers in the regular season but doesn’t need a scouting report.

“Their top two lines are really skillful and special teams are going to be a big thing again,” Raanta said Tuesday of the Rangers. “Obviously (Adam) Fox is one of the best D-men in the league. You worry about your own game more than the other team but obviously you know when those guys are on (the ice).”

Raanta, a former Rangers goalie, noted that in his two seasons in New York he would face off one on one against forward Chris Kreider after practice for about 20 minutes. The two should see more of each other in the playoff series, Kreider coming off a 52-goal regular season and sure to be camped in front of the crease, especially on New York’s power plays.

“Obviously he’s a big body in front of the net but he’s also really quick and has really good hand/eye coordination,” Raanta said. “It’s going to a battle against that guy, for sure.”

As or the player matchups, that will be up to the coaches — Brind’Amour and Gallant, going head to head again.