For only the second time since they won the Stanley Cup in 2006, the Carolina Hurricanes are going to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The 'Canes clinched a spot with a 3-1 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night, marking a ten-year span of when they last played hockey into late April.
As you could imagine, the fans, players and coaches were absolutely fired up the moment it was known the 'Canes were in.
In his first season as an NHL head coach after serving as the team's assistant for seven seasons, Rod Brind'Amour showed a great deal of emotion the second he found out.
Justin Faulk, the longest-serving Hurricane who had suited up in 558 career games, commented post-game on finally getting the opportunity to play post-season hockey.
"It’s exciting, everyone can see all the emotion out of the group and in here right now, there’s still a bit of a vibe," said Faulk, with teammates whooping and clapping in the background.
"It’s great, and we’re not happy yet, right?" he added. "We’re excited, we’re obviously happy, but we’re not done and that’s not enough just to get into the playoffs, and we know that, and that’s been our mindset the whole year."
The Hurricanes were 15-17-5 prior to December 30th, but were one of the best second-half teams, sporting a 31-12-2 since the new year.
