Carolina Hurricanes

Lore & Background

The franchise was formed in 1971 as the New England Whalers of the World Hockey Association (WHA). The Whalers saw success immediately, winning the Eastern Division in the WHA's first season (1972–73) and again in 1974–75, but not in 1973–74. They became the inaugural Avco World Trophy champions at the end of the 1972–73 season. The Whalers again competed for the World Trophy in 1978, this time falling short to the Winnipeg Jets in a later meeting between the two teams. The franchise joined the NHL in 1979 as part of the NHL–WHA merger, renaming themselves the Hartford Whalers. The team relocated to North Carolina in 1997, rebranding themselves as the Hurricanes. The Hurricanes have won the Stanley Cup once, in 2006.

Reader's Guide

The Hurricanes play home games at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. The team's colors are black and red, matching the colors of the North Carolina State University Wolfpack. The old goal horn from the Hartford Civic Center remains in use at Lenovo Center.

Did You Know?

• The franchise originally played as the New England Whalers in Boston before moving to Hartford in 1974.
• The team played its first two seasons in North Carolina at the Greensboro Coliseum while waiting for the Entertainment and Sports Arena to be completed.
• Broadcasters Chuck Kaiton and John Forslund both made the move from Hartford to Carolina with the team; Tripp Tracy joined the Hurricanes broadcast team in 1999, after the relocation.