Hurricanes’ Rod Brind’Amour becomes fastest NHL coach to win 300 games
One of the best coaches in the game has made history.
On Saturday night, the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the New Jersey Devils 5-2, giving head coach Rod Brind’Amour the 300th win of his NHL coaching career. The former Hurricanes captain achieved the milestone in his 488th game behind the bench, making him the fastest coach in league history to win 300 games.
With the win tonight, Rod Brind'Amour becomes the fastest coach in NHL history to reach 300 wins.
He needed just 488 games (300-143-45) to get there. pic.twitter.com/qBp7gjk4ud
Brind’Amour beat the record previously held by Bruce Boudreau, who picked up his 300th win in Feb. 2014 while as the head coach of the Anaheim Ducks. The former coach hit the mark in his 496th game.
Brind’Amour’s success as a bench boss in the NHL has been nothing short of impressive. Since taking the job in 2018, he has helped turn the struggling franchise into an immediate contender. With his excellent defensive structure and ability to get his players to buy in, Carolina has been one of the best teams in the league for the past half-decade.
During Brind’Amour’s tenure, the Hurricanes have made it to the playoffs every season, advancing as far as the Eastern Conference Final in 2019 and 2023. Carolina has only been knocked out in the first round once in the last six seasons, that coming during the 2020 bubble playoffs.
The Canes have also been crowned division champions three times with Brind’Amour at the helm, winning the restructured Central in 2021 before winning back-to-back Metropolitan titles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. The Ottawa native was given the Jack Adams Award as the league’s best coach in 2021.
With Saturday’s win, the 54-year-old has a career record of 300-143-45.
Brind’Amour is Carolina through and through. Despite starting his career with the St. Louis Blues and spending almost a decade with the Philadelphia Flyers, he has been a huge part of the franchise in Raleigh since being traded to the Canes in 2000. Along with a successful playing career, which saw him captain the team to its first and so far only Stanley Cup in 2006, Brind’Amour was the assistant coach for the Hurricanes from 2011 to 2018.
The Hurricanes (22-13-1) are third in the Metro, six points behind the first-place Devils.