📍 Raleigh, North Carolina
🏒 Home of the Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes have a unique yet complicated history, spinning a tale that tells of a club overcoming adversity and succeeding despite the many challenges it faced. Over the years, the ‘Canes have helped transform the hockey landscape of the entire Southeast, starting with their home in west Raleigh. Now, the Lenovo Center is an NHL stronghold with some of the most boisterous fans, putting the rest of the league on notice.

The franchise known today as the Hurricanes has its roots in the hockey-rich Northeast. Originally playing out of Boston as the New England Whalers of the World Hockey Association, the team was moved to Hartford in 1974. Five years later, the WHA club was scooped up by the NHL in a league merger and rechristened the Hartford Whalers. Despite their amazing logo and passionate fanbase, the franchise was regrettably plagued by attendance issues, poor success on the ice and troubled ownership. Subsequently, in 1997, the Whalers were pulled out of the city and moved to the Tar Heel State.

Once down south, the rebranded Carolina Hurricanes encountered difficulties of their own, getting off to a rough start in their home. Due to the extended construction of what would become the Lenovo Center in Raleigh – a venue they would share with NC State Wolfpack men’s basketball from the jump – the Canes were forced to play two seasons at the Greensboro Coliseum. This move greatly disturbed Raleigh fans who didn’t want to make the 90-minute trek down I-40 and Triad-area fans who felt affronted by the displacement of their beloved minor-league Greensboro Monarchs. Eventually, after finally moving in to their permanent palace on Wade Avenue, the ‘Canes began to claw back and win their way into the hearts of Carolinians, clinching the coveted Stanley Cup in 2006. Although the club has experienced ups and downs in the years since, the ‘Canes experienced resurgence in 2018 and now have one of the most dedicated and energetic fanbases in the league.

During the 2019 playoff push, Hurricanes players began doing on-ice “Storm Surge” celebrations after every home win, a move that prompted commentator Don Cherry to label the team a “bunch of jerks.” The team took this jab and turned it into a rallying cry, a term that’s been used in ‘Canes marketing and in gameday presentations ever since. Other sights and sounds have grown to include a storm siren, the playing of Rock You Like a Hurricane and the appearance of barbecue-inspired Stormy the Pig. 😳

Lenovo Center – formerly known as RBC Center and PNC Arena – can comfortably seat 18,700 but has crammed in a few thousand more for marquee playoff games on several occasions. Throughout the season, however, crowds are just as thick, with so-called “Caniacs” packing the arena to the rafters in an effort to create the “Loudest House in the NHL.”

A perennial contender as of late, the Hurricanes know how to put on a show. They’ve become the biggest spectacle in “Raleighwood” and have helped draw interest to the game both through their on-ice success and in-arena production. The team surely intends on continuing to grow the sport of hockey for many years to come, issuing a hurricane warning that can be heard all across the Carolinas.