Carolina Hurricanes are a professional hockey team that plays in the National Hockey League (NHL) . The team competes in the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference. The Hurricanes play in the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Carolina entered the NHL for the 1997-1998 season. However, the franchise originated in 1972 in Boston as the New England Whalers. The team was a member of the World Hockey Association (WHA), a professional league in competition with the NHL. The Whalers moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1973, and then to Hartford, Connecticut, in 1974. After the WHA ceased operations following the 1978-1979 season, the Whalers joined the NHL. The team remained in Hartford until 1997, when it moved to Carolina. The team played its first two seasons in Greensboro, North Carolina, before moving to Raleigh.
The Hurricanes reached the Stanley Cup finals in 2002, losing to the Detroit Red Wings . Carolina won the Stanley Cup in 2006, defeating the Edmonton Oilers behind rookie goalie Cam Ward and center Rod Brind’Amour.
