2019 First Round Series vs Flyers

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 three seasons and becoming 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 rematch of the 1973 Avco Cup Final. 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 Final twice in 2006 and in 2026. They are the only professional team from North Carolina to have won a major sports championship.

In Their Own Story

The air in the Wells Fargo Center was thick with humidity and tension as the clock ticked down in the third period of Game 7. The Flyers had pressed hard, their sticks checking low, trying to disrupt the Hurricanes' rhythm. But then came the breakaway. Andrei Svechnikov, skating with a hunger that seemed to echo every young fan in Raleigh, deked past a defender and buried the puck top shelf. The arena roared, but for the Hurricanes players, it was a moment of pure release—a vindication after six grueling days of war.

Reader's Guide

The Hurricanes play home games at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. The team's history includes a move from Hartford, Connecticut, in 1997, after playing as the New England/Hartford Whalers from 1971 to 1997. The franchise won the Avco World Trophy in 1973 and the Stanley Cup in 2006 and 2026.

Did You Know?

• The Hurricanes were originally the New England Whalers, founded in 1971 in the WHA.
• The team won the Avco World Trophy in 1973 as the New England Whalers.
• The franchise relocated from Hartford to North Carolina in 1997.
• The Hurricanes have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 2006 and 2026.