Brind’Amour: Hurricanes Extension Won’t Be ‘An Easy Negotiation’

Since taking over as the head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes in 2018, Rod Brind’Amour has done nothing short of succeed, while also building a potential Stanley Cup favorite.

Carolina has reached the postseason in all five seasons, earning three consecutive Division titles and two Eastern Conference Finals appearances in that span.

With that success, much like with any player, comes the inevitable extension and contract discussion.

Brind’Amour received a three-year extension following the 2020-2021 campaign, raising his salary from an NHL-low $600,000 to $1.8 million.

Now, with one year left on his contract, the former Hurricane forward knows it won’t be an easy negotiation when he sits down at the table with the Carolina brass.

“I know it’s not going to be an easy negotiation,” said Brind’Amour on The David Glenn Show. “I can tell you that.”

Brind’Amour recently appeared on the North Carolina Sports Network to also discuss his future with Carolina and how, despite the importance of salary, there are many other factors for wanting to stay in Raleigh.

“I think at the end of the day, your salary is one area, but there’s a ton of other areas,” said Brind’Amour. “There’s my relationship with my team and my owner and how we get to decide on who stays. I don’t know that any coach, in any sport, has what I have [with the Hurricanes], so that’s maybe priceless in some regard.”

According to CapFriendly, the 52-year old still ranks in the bottom ten in head coach salary, meaning a big payday could be on the horizon.

Los Angeles Kings’ head coach Todd McLellan pulls in an NHL-best $5 million salary with newly minted New York Rangers coach Peter Laviolette a close second at $4.9 million.

Bruce Cassidy, who recently won the Stanley Cup in his first season with Vegas, sits third at $4.5 million.

Brind’Amour’s salary is just 36 percent of McLellan’s salary and still only 60 percent of Montreal’s Martin St. Louis, who sits at No. 10 with a salary of $3 million.

The question that remains is what exactly is that number going to look like for Brind’Amour?

There is no magic formula or ironclad answer, but, even with a potential hometown discount on the table, he deserves to and should be paid like a top-ten coach.

Three million should certainly be the floor for the 2006 Stanley Cup winner, especially considering four of the top 10 highest-paid coaches failed to make the playoffs this past season.

However, with his sixth year at the helm just over a month away, he knows that he wants to stay in Carolina and believes that they will “work [it] out at some point.”

“I’ve made no bones about it, this is my team, this is my home,” said Brind’Amour. “How many guys get to coach where they live and coach the team that they played on?”