You probably know a few things about the Carolina Hurricanes' franchise by now.
You know how all through the '80s and much of the '90s the team played in the belly of a mall in Hartford, Conn., missing the playoffs year after year.
You know that they went down to North Carolina and blundered through a bad start in Greensboro, missing the postseason their first year and barely registering as a blip on the sports screens of the NASCAR and college basketball lovers around them.
You may know that today the Hurricanes are now in Raleigh, and that this team, which just a month a go couldn't sell out a playoff game, is drawing standing room only crowds and is, suddenly and improbably, the toast of Tobacco Road.
If you know that much, you're already ahead of the curve. Chances are you know a thing or two about Ron Francis, the 'Canes' 39-year-old, gray-at-the temples captain who was drafted (No. 4 overall) by those Hartford Whalers in 1981. Between then and now Francis has racked up more assists than anyone in hockey history, save Wayne Gretzky himself, and this Stanley Cup finals is as much about crowning Francis' fabulous career (he still brings it every night) as anything.
After Francis, you can be forgiven if you spend a lot of time during these finals scratching your skull and asking, Who are these guys? Here's a primer on 10 more Hurricanes you need to know.
Paul Maurice Head coach Born: Jan. 30, 1967 (Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario)
This perpetual boy wonder is younger than Francis, yet is the NHL's longest-tenured coach aside from Scotty Bowman. Still, for much of his seven-year run Maurice has had little to show for his efforts: Before this year he had missed the playoffs four times and was bounced in the first round twice. But he's a good man and an honest coach who took the losing hard. He's patient and kind, and thus won the loyalty of Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford and the rest of the higher-ups. Maurice is good to his players, and they are good to him.
Rod Brind'Amour Center, 6-1, 200 Born: Aug. 9, 1970 (Ottawa, Ontario)
The former Flyer was miserable when he came to Carolina in a trade for Keith Primeau during the 1999-2000 season. Brind'Amour was battling a fractured foot at the time and felt lost in the South ("It's sad, he's really unhappy these days," Rutherford told me that year.) Since then he's settled in and has become a highly reliable and effective centerman in back of Francis. At 31, he doesn't score the way he did in his younger days (he had a solid 23 goals this year) but he's superb on faceoffs, kills penalties and plays with all of the heart that, in a 1998 players poll conducted by SI, led him to be named the NHL's most underrated player.
Martin Gelinas Wing, 5-11, 195 Born: June 5, 1970 (Shawinigan, Quebec)
Twelve years ago this guy was traded for Wayne Gretzky and won a Cup in Edmonton. Now he anchors a line alongside sprightly 21-year-old kiddies Jaroslav Svoboda and Josef Vasicek. Gelinas, who'll turn 32 the day after the finals begin, has been waived twice in his career -- most recently
last December -- so it's all gravy. Some of that gravy includes the OT game-winner he scored to beat the Maple Leafs in the Conference finals. That atoned for the infamous flub in the '99 playoffs when he missed an open net against the Bruins that might have cost the Hurricanes the series.
Jeff O'Neill Center, 6-1, 195 Born: Feb. 23, 1976 (Richmond Hill, Ontario)
We always thought he could score -- he tore it up in the OHL -- but it was in the 2000-01 season that O'Neill really busted out, netting 41 goals. Now 26, O'Neill is at the core of the Hurricanes' young nucleus. He's still prone to the occasional defensive miscue, but his offensive game more than makes up for that. Expect him to pepper the net throughout the finals. And expect him to be tough. O'Neill took a puck to his right eye during the Toronto series and stayed in the game while his eye was bandaged and then swelled up like Rocky Balboa's. At Carolina's next home many fans came out wearing shiners in tribute.
Sami Kapanen Wing, 5-10, 180 Born: June 14, 1973 (Vantae, Finland)
He's small and swift and the perfect complement to play left wing on a line with O'Neill and Francis. Not coincidentally, all three played for the Whalers. A solid scorer (he's good for about 25 goals a year) he struggled terribly this postseason and had no goals before roofing a shot that helped Carolina beat Toronto in Game 4. If he isn't scoring, he still dizzies opponents: At the NHL All-Star Weekend in February, Kapanen won the fastest skater competition for the second time in three years.
You may remember Ward from his years in Detroit, where he feuded with Bowman; Scotty never trusted Ward on the ice in big spots. In his first year with the Hurricanes the rosy-cheeked Ward was dependable blueliner. He has a huge shot that looks great in practice but on which he's rarely able to connect during games.
Carolina surrendered three first-round picks to get Wesley from the Bruins in 1994, and though he's never emerged as the All-Star defenseman many projected him to be, Wesley is the anchor of the defense. He plays physically when he needs to, and is as reliable as anyone in the game. Plus, he has great red hair.
They call him Archie, of course. He's a delightful little Latvian who was famously bit by his dog some years back. He carries a sewing kit with him to mend tears in his uniform. In 1994, Irbe stoned the Red Wings as the eighth-seeded Sharks shocked top-ranked Detroit in the playoffs. He faltered early in this season's playoffs and was briefly replaced by Kevin Weekes, but Irbe is a workhorse and the clear No. 1 netminder. Since that benching in the first round against the Devils, he has been superb and is a clear Conn Smythe candidate.
Erik Cole Wing, 6-0, 185 Born: Nov. 6, 1978 (Oswego, New York)
Is this cat really a rookie? He sure hasn't looked that way while undressing defenseman -- notably Toronto's Tomas Kaberle -- this postseason. Unheralded coming out of Clarkson in 2000 -- he'd been taken 71st overall in the '98 draft -- Cole might have had a shot at the Calder Trophy this year if it hadn't been Ilya Kovalchuk's coming out party. His 40-point season was no fluke; he has a team-best six goals in the playoffs and was arguably Carolina's best forward in the second round against the Canadiens.
Battaglia is scrappy and tough at 6-2 and 205 pounds, and his game has steadily improved in four years in the NHL. That's partly because he's worked himself into much better shape and has developed into an excellent crease crasher. He's Carolina's top scorer in the playoffs with 14 points.
Sports Illustrated senior writer Kostya Kennedy covers the NHL beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.
Photographs by Al Bello/Allsport, Lou Capozzola (9),
