Rod Brind'Amour played 20 season in the NHL and has been coaching in Carolina since 2018

Skyler Brind’Amour is used to being at the hockey rink with his father.

That’s because his dad is longtime NHL star and current Carolina Hurricanes Head Coach Rod Brind’Amour.

They have shared the ice many times over the years, but never like what they’ll experience on Wednesday night.

That’s when the Florida Panthers will travel to Raleigh for a preseason road contest against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Skyler will be wearing a Panthers sweater, but his dad will be on the opposite bench. It’s a situation they had to have envisioned before, but now it’s a reality, and it’s probably going to be a little different than the father-son moments they’ve enjoyed in the past.

“He's coached me, so I've had him behind the bench and he's given me a few death stares there,” Brind’Amour said Wednesday morning. “Hopefully I don't get any of those tonight.”

That’s a sentiment Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice said he can understand.

“Being a coach’s son is not necessarily the favorite position in the world,” Maurice said through a smirk. “I don’t know how that dynamic works; you potentially get to hear of every mistake that you possibly made on the ice.”

Maurice admitted that he wasn’t dressing Brind’Amour simply because the game was in Carolina and his father would be coaching.

“It’s not the reason he’s going in the game, it just kind of worked out right,” Maurice said. “I think if you’ve got a son that’s trying out for an NHL team, I think that’d be neat for them.”

Brind’Amour signed a two-year AHL deal with the Charlotte Checkers back in April after completing his fourth season with NCAA hockey powerhouse Quinnipiac.

Starting his professional hockey career after being around the game so much while growing up was a big step for the 24-year-old, but to be making his NHL preseason debut in a game where his dad will be on the opposite bench is another thing entirely.

“I think it’ll be a little weird at first, but honestly I’m not going to pay too much attention to him,” Brind’Amour admitted. “I’ve got to play the game, so I’ll let him do his thing and I’ll do mine.”

One thing that you can count on is a large contingent of the Brind’Amour extended family in attendance at PNC Arena.

Brind’Amour said he’s received plenty of calls and texts about the game despite admittedly not telling too many people other than close friends and family.

“They’re all going to be there and they’re excited,” he said with a smile.

Brind’Amour will likely see plenty of ice time, as Maurice and his staff are in the process of evaluating the team’s extended roster.

The Checkers’ coaching staff will be there as well, keeping a close eye on what Brind’Amour can do ahead of his first full professional season.

Maurice, in an extended comment, spoke about the kind of coach the elder Brind’Amour has become, how it’s extended to his son, and what Maurice would like to see from Skyler during Wednesday’s game.

“Rod Brind'Amour was one of the finest professionals that I ever coached – his consistently level was maybe elite to all of them – and he is, if not the best coach, very close to being the best coach in the league in my mind. In terms of the way his team plays every night in their prep, they never change. It’s the same game. That's the mark of a well-coached team. So he's also got a well-coached son, he doesn't make mistakes. What I would like to see Skyler do tonight is make three or four good ones: mistakes. Go out and play with a bit of freedom, not worry about making the right play every time. There has to be some risk built into everybody's game and there's a chance that coaches’ kids do it right all the time. Matthew Tkachuk doesn't do it right all the time, he just picks the right spots to anticipate something different.”