Brind'Amour, Seeley, Jankowski, Bussi discuss clinching the regular season and the Hurricanes' eager readiness for a deep playoff run.
The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the New York Islanders 2-1 at UBS Arena Tuesday night to cap off their 2025-26 regular season.
Nikolaj Ehlers and Mark Jankowski scored for Carolina, while Brandon Bussi made 28 saves in his second straight start.
After the game, Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour along with Ronan Seeley, Jankowski and Bussi spoke with the media in New York. Here's what they had to say:
Rod Brind'Amour
On the game: It was kind of how these last few have gone. Just kind of hung around, battled and had some good individual efforts on key plays for goals or maybe a blocked shot here or there. Just found a way to get it done.
On Brandon Bussi: He was great tonight. One of his better games. He was solid, made some huge saves at obviously critical times in the game. He was probably the difference maker.
On Felix Unger Sorum and Ronan Seeley's NHL debuts: Everyone that we've brought in here has contributed and it's been nice to see. Felix got his first point tonight and that's special and Ronan was great. Like I said, I can't say enough about all the guys that we brought up. It says a lot about the coaches down there in Chicago getting them ready. That's a big deal so they can step in and we don't have to miss a beat, especially when you put that many guys in. It's one thing to be one guy here or there, but every night we've had five or six and still we were finding ways to win. It's good on those guys.
On flipping the switch for Game 1: I think we've been eager for this for a long time once we knew it was official. I mean, we were in a pretty good spot all year, but you just have to turn the page and now it goes to being a sprint. All season it's a marathon and now you have to be ready right from the get go and put your best foot forward.
On if he was surprised by Bussi's season: We knew about him and we were obviously looking to get him into the organization a long time ago, but it just fell in our hands. We got lucky with that and how it worked out and certainly been really pleased with how he's played.
On facing the Ottawa Senators: That's a tough matchup. They all are at this time of year moving forward here, but that's one of the better teams, in my opinion, in the NHL. They had a tough start to their season and some interesting things go on, but they've got it covered top to bottom. It's gonna be a huge challenge.
On the key to getting over the hump: Well, you have to stay healthy and have everybody going. That's been really the Achilles heel for us. We've never been able to stay healthy. Key players popping off at the wrong time. When you get down, especially near the end, that's the difference. You have to stay healthy and you have to have some fortunate things go your way a little bit. That's probably it.
Ronan Seeley
On his NHL debut: It's what I've been dreaming about since I was a little kid. I mean, it's kind of everything you dream of even in Game 82. I just tried to take in everything and take in every second. I'm so happy that my family is here and the guys were so welcoming. It was just an awesome experience.
On his initial emotions taking the ice for the first time: In warmups, I couldn't see the puck, so I was struggling a little bit there, but I was nervous. Super nervous, but I was just trying to embrace it all. I was just so thankful to be out there.
On when he found out he was going to be called up: I was in my apartment last night and my dad and brother had just flown into town and my mother in law and my wife's best friend were there. So we were cooking dinner and stuff and then Spiros Anastas, our coach down in Chicago, he called me and we got it on video and stuff too. I don't even know who I called. There was a flurry of phone calls and emotions and it was just hours of planning trying to get everyone here. It was a whirlwind and I can't believe it's over already.
On playing alongside a bunch of Chicago Wolves teammates: It really quelled the nerves, for sure, getting to see [Bradly Nadeau] and getting to play with [Joel Nystrom] too. Like, I'm comfortable with those guys so that helped a lot and they were so good and so easy to play with too. I was so thankful for that.
On what he thinks he did well in Chicago to earn the opportunity: Well, I don't know. Everyone says I deserve it, but I don't know what I deserve. I mean, I just go out and work my bag off every day. That's it. I just try to give it my all, give all glory to God. I'm just thankful to be able to be here. I don't want to change who I am any. If I'm here, if I'm down, wherever I am. I just try to be positive, bring energy to everybody and be a leader down there and up here and play a role. I'm just going to keep working hard.
On the Wolves' season: It's been fun to be a part of that group. It's been fun to take on a bigger role too. We have a really good group, a young group and we're meshing well. We've had our ups and downs this year, which is good for us. We're growing and we're going through growing pains and just like the Canes, we're looking forward to the second part of the season. It's gonna be a blast.
Mark Jankowski
On the game: Overall, I thought it was a good game. It was tight, everyone who came up played great. Awesome for Seels and Felix there to get their first ones. But yeah, overall, it was just a great win and now onto the playoffs.
On his goal: It was just a great shift by everyone out there. All five guys. We were hounding pucks and got them tired and scrambling a little bit and then Nysy made a good play to me down low and the other two forwards there, Robby and Marty, kind of gave me some space, took their guys to the net and so I had some space and just was able to get it over his shoulder there.
On moving into the postseason: We have to keep our foot on the gas. Obviously playoff hockey is like nothing else. You can't really explain it. Just like the intensity, every play matters, every single little puck battle, every little hit, like everything is amplified so much more, the crowd is into it right from the get go. So we're just really excited to get going.
On the Ottawa Senators: They're a good team. They play hard. They earned their spot in the playoffs so it's gonna be a great series for us. We know what we're up against and I'm sure in the next few days, we'll look at them more in depth. Definitely a good matchup, for sure.
On Brandon Bussi: He was awesome. Anytime you have to go get into a game like that when you're not really expecting to and not really prepared for, it's gotta be tough, but he stood on his head and played a great game for us. Kept us in it all game and we were able to get a win for him in front of us family, who I'm sure was here. It's really special being able to play in your hometown. I know, for me, Toronto and even Buffalo is close for me. I have a ton of family and friends there, so I'm sure it was the same for him. It was great for him to win and play so well.
On the regular season: I think, overall, it was a great season. First in the conference, I mean, our goal is to get into the playoffs here and give ourselves a good chance. We did that and right from the get go, I felt like we had a good start and then we finished strong as well. We had a lot of guys come up and play big roles for us throughout the season and in the last couple of games here. It was great overall to end on a high note like that going into the playoffs.
Brandon Bussi
On the game: I think we just competed really hard. I think we're a team that goes into every game wanting to win no matter the circumstance and I think it just shows our depth. A lot of the guys have been working hard in Chicago this year and they deserved the opportunity and made the most of it. Really happy with our game tonight.
On his first NHL season: It was awesome, a lot of fun. Highs and lows, for sure, but overall, I think it's a lot of fun to play with this team. Obviously there were a lot of wins, but that's because the team plays so well. Happy with it, but now we're back to zero. I'm excited for the playoffs and I'm excited to see what our team does.
On what he's looking forward to most: Just going to battle with them every day. I think we have a lot of fun in the locker room, but we also know when to dial it in and when to play hockey, play our game and be serious. But it's a lot of fun to be around this group and I'd like that to be as long as possible.
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