It's interesting that Peter Laviolette and Rod Brind'Amour had almost the same reaction when asked about coaching against each other in the Stanley Cup Playoffs considering each of them experienced their greatest moment in hockey at the same time in the same place.
Eighteen years ago, Laviolette and Brind'Amour were the coach and captain, respectively, of the Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes.
"There's got to be some timeframe or expiration date on what you're asking, a statute of limitations," said Laviolette, how the New York Rangers coach. "I think it's like 12 years and I'm on the flip side of that, so this is just a series."
Said Brind'Amour, the Hurricanes coach, "I don't think about it too much. It happened so long ago so for me it just tells you how fast time goes."
OK, so maybe the Eastern Conference Second Round between the Rangers and Hurricanes that starts with Game 1 at Madison Square Garden on Sunday (4 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN, TVAS) isn't special to Laviolette or Brind'Amour in that “wow remember what we did together?” all the feels way.
But it's not surprising that Laviolette and Brind'Amour had the same reaction to the question.
Brind'Amour said a lot of traits that have made him a successful coach in the NHL he learned from Laviolette all those years ago.
"I've always said that if there is one guy that you learn the most from and you kind of pattern yourself after if you're doing this it would be him," Brind'Amour said. "I owe him a lot in my career. No. 1, the Stanley Cup, which is the biggest achievement, and he was coach, and he gave me as a player the best opportunity in all the years I ever played. Now that I'm doing this, I take a lot from the way he coached too. I owe him that too."
Laviolette is 59, six years older than Brind'Amour. He has years more coaching experience in the NHL with 1,512 regular season games coached versus Brind'Amour's 452.
In many ways, though, they think alike and have the same approach to the game.
"Just personal things, the way they are as people, the way they really care about the family aspect of the team," said Rangers center Vincent Trocheck, who played under Brind'Amour in Carolina from 2020-22. "The way they approach their team, it's hard to explain, but it's just similar. Their approach to the game is similar."
Brind'Amour said as a player he was always impressed with Laviolette's demeanor around the team.
He tries to be the same way.
"His feel for the room, that's important," Brind'Amour said. "You can have a plan, but then you come in and you sense the way the group is and you've got to change it. I think that's a big deal. I think he understands it's about the players at the end of the day. You've got to put the plan in place, but you've got to let them do their thing. Those are all things he's good at and those are the things that stuck in my mind."
Brind'Amour said he learned the value of keeping everyone in the organization involved from Laviolette.
"That's the No. 1 thing," he said. "That was probably the most impactful thing that he brought to our group when we were playing, making everyone feel a part of it. It didn't matter if you were a coach or a manager or a player, it was we were all in it together and I think that's really important. That's probably the biggest thing because that is something we've preached since Day 1 here."
It's working.
The Hurricanes have won at least one playoff series in each of Brind'Amour's six seasons as their coach. They have reached the Eastern Conference Final twice and finished first in their division three times. They were second in the Metropolitan Division this season, three points behind the Rangers.
"He's clearly done a good job," Laviolette said. "I mean, he's had his team moving in the right direction year after year, one of the top teams in the league, chasing what the remaining eight teams will be chasing. Not being on the inside and actually getting to work with him, you can just tell his teams play the right way, they play hard, and he definitely has a heavy hand in it."
Laviolette said he doesn't recall thinking about Brind'Amour as a potentially successful NHL coach when they were together in Carolina from 2003-08. He said it's typically someone other than the captain of the team or the best player on the team that shows they have some coaching chops when they're a player.
"But his leadership was excellent," Laviolette said of Brind'Amour. "Especially during the year we won the Cup, you could see his leadership qualities. When he spoke, he commanded the room. His work ethic as a player I'm assuming it has translated as a coach. They play well and they're well prepared. That's a reflection on him."
Brind'Amour can say the same thing about the Laviolette, who in his first season as Rangers coach led them to the Presidents’ Trophy.
Nothing has changed in the 18 years since they celebrated together, each raising their arms and the Stanley Cup, sharing their greatest achievement in hockey.
"He's doing what he's always been doing, which is winning games, being a good coach," Brind'Amour said. "I certainly never thought this would have happened when he was coaching me, that we would be at this point [against each other], but I've got a lot of respect for him."
