Yahoo Sports reports that On the brink of their first Stanley Cup since 2006, the Carolina Hurricanes did not want to tempt fate.
The Hurricanes crushed the Montreal Canadiens to win the Eastern Conference Finals 4-1.
Afterwards, when being presented with the Prince of Wales trophy, Carolina chose to not touch the trophy — a decision that is rife with superstition.
Turns out that the choice may have come on the advice of Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour.
A former player who spent 10 seasons in Carolina, Brind’Amour was the captain of the Stanley Cup-winning Carolina squad in 2006, and notably did not touch the trophy after his team won the conference finals.
Brind’Amour addressed the issue in his post-game press conference: When asked if he had any input on the decision to not touch the trophy, he said “not really.” But he did say that he offered some players his blunt advice.