Editing Carolina Hurricanes (section)

===Stanley Cup Finals and slow starts (2001–2006)===
The Hurricanes made national waves for the first time in the [[2001–02 NHL season|2002]] [[2002 Stanley Cup playoffs|playoffs]]. They survived a late charge from the [[Washington Capitals]] to win the division, but expectations were low entering the first round against the defending [[Eastern Conference (NHL)|Eastern Conference]] champion New Jersey Devils. However, [[Artūrs Irbe|Arturs Irbe]] and [[Kevin Weekes]] were solid in goal and the Hurricanes won two games in overtime as they defeated the Devils in six games. Their second-round matchup was against the [[Montreal Canadiens]], who were riding a wave of emotion after their captain [[Saku Koivu]]'s return from cancer treatment. In the third period of game four in [[Montreal]], down 2–1 in the series and 3–0 in the game, Carolina would tie the game and later win on [[Niclas Wallin]]'s overtime goal. The game became known to Hurricanes fans as the "Miracle at [[Bell Centre|Molson]]"; Carolina won the next two games by a combined 13–3 margin over a dejected Habs club to take the series.

In the conference finals, Carolina met the heavily favored [[Toronto Maple Leafs]]. In game 6 in [[Toronto]], the Maple Leafs' [[Mats Sundin]] tied the game with 22 seconds remaining to send it to overtime, where Carolina's [[Martin Gélinas|Martin Gelinas]] would score to send the franchise to their first [[Stanley Cup Finals]] appearance. During this series, several Hurricanes fan traditions drew hockey-wide media attention for the first time: fans met the team at the [[Raleigh-Durham International Airport]] on the return from every road trip and echoed [[American football|football]]-season habits honed for games [[Carter–Finley Stadium|across the parking lot]] by hosting massive [[tailgate party|tailgate parties]] before each home game, a relative novelty in the cold-weather-centric NHL. Inside the building, the [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]]'s [[Don Cherry (ice hockey)|Don Cherry]] lauded the RBC Center as "the loudest building in the NHL", praise that would be echoed in 2006.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Friedlander |first1=Brett |title=Hurricanes fans bring the noise |url=http://www.fayettevillenc.com/article?id=235349 |website=fayettevillenc.com |access-date=November 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060617095459/http://www.fayettevillenc.com/article?id=235349 |archive-date=June 17, 2006 |date=June 15, 2006}}</ref>

In the [[2002 Stanley Cup Finals|Stanley Cup Finals]], Carolina would face the [[Detroit Red Wings]], thought to be the prohibitive favorite all year. Though the Hurricanes stunned the Wings in game one when [[Ron Francis]] scored in the first minute of overtime, Detroit stormed back to win the next four games. Game three in Raleigh featured a triple-overtime thriller eventually won by Detroit's [[Igor Larionov]], the oldest player to score a last-round goal.

[[File:Eric Staal 2013-2.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Eric Staal]] was drafted by the Hurricanes in the [[2003 NHL entry draft]]. He was named team captain in 2010. He was later traded to the [[New York Rangers]].]]
The Hurricanes looked poised to pick up where they left off in the [[2002–03 NHL season|2002–03]], but never recovered from a 10-loss January and finished dead last in the league with 61 points. After a similarly slow start to the [[2003–04 NHL season|2003–04 season]], [[Paul Maurice]], who had been the team's coach since midway through their next-to-last season in Hartford, was fired and replaced with former [[New York Islanders]] bench boss [[Peter Laviolette]]. Under Laviolette, Weekes remained tough, but the offense was suspect; center [[Josef Vašíček|Josef Vasicek]] led the team with a mere 19 goals and 26 assists for 45 points. Many of the new fans attracted to the team (and to hockey itself) during the 2002 playoff run lost interest and attendance declined. One of the few positive results of these losing years was the team's drafting of [[Eric Staal]] in [[2003 NHL entry draft|2003]].

====Stanley Cup champions====
The outcome of the [[2004–05 NHL lockout]] led to the shrinking of the payroll to $26 million. The Hurricanes turned out to be one of the NHL's biggest surprises, turning in the best season in the franchise's 34-year history (including the years as the Whalers). They finished the regular season with a 52–22–8 record and 112 points, shattering the previous franchise records of 94 points (in the WHA) set by the 1972–73 Whalers and 93 points (in the NHL) set in [[1986–87 NHL season|1986–87]]. It was the first time ever that the franchise had passed the 50-win and 100-point plateaus. The 112-point figure was good for fourth overall in the league, easily their highest overall finish as an NHL team (tied with the third-overall [[Dallas Stars]] in points, but with one fewer win than the Stars) and second in the East (one point behind the [[Ottawa Senators]]). The Hurricanes also ran away with their third Southeast Division title, finishing 20 points ahead of the [[Tampa Bay Lightning]]. Attendance increased from the 2003–04 season, averaging just under 15,600 per game, and the team made a profit for the first time since the move from Hartford.<ref>{{cite web |title=NHL Attendance Report - 2005-06 |url=https://www.espn.com/nhl/attendance/_/year/2006 |website=ESPN.com |access-date=November 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170813055613/https://www.espn.com/nhl/attendance/_/year/2006 |archive-date=August 13, 2017}}</ref>

In the playoffs, after losing the first two games of the conference quarterfinals series against the [[Montreal Canadiens]], Laviolette lifted goalkeeper [[Martin Gerber]], who had been struggling to regain his form after playing through a bout of intestinal flu, in favor of rookie [[Cam Ward (ice hockey)|Cam Ward]]. This proved to be a consequential decision, as the Hurricanes went on to win both games in Montreal, tying up the playoff series and turning the momentum around, winning the series on a game six overtime goal by [[Cory Stillman]]. Carolina then faced the New Jersey Devils in the conference semifinals, which proved surprisingly one-sided, as the Hurricanes beat the Devils in five games. Stillman struck again, once again scoring the series-winning goal.

In the conference finals, the Hurricanes faced the [[Buffalo Sabres]], who had finished just one spot behind the Hurricanes in the overall standings. The contentious series saw both coaches – [[Lindy Ruff]] and Laviolette – taking public verbal shots at each other's team. In the deciding game seven, the Hurricanes rallied with three goals in the third to win by a score of 4–2. [[Rod Brind'Amour]] scored the game-winner as the Hurricanes reached the [[2006 Stanley Cup Finals|Stanley Cup Finals]] for the second time in team history.

[[File:RBC Center Stanley Cup Championship.jpg|left|thumb|The Hurricanes celebrate following their [[game seven]] victory in the [[2006 Stanley Cup Finals]].]]
The Stanley Cup Finals saw the Hurricanes facing the [[Edmonton Oilers]]. The Hurricanes rallied from a 3–0 deficit in game one to win 5–4 after Rod Brind'Amour scored with 30 seconds left. In game 2, the Hurricanes shelled the Oilers 5–0 to take a two-game lead. The Oilers won game three in [[Edmonton]], 2–1, as [[Ryan Smyth]] scored the game-winning goal with 2:47 left to play. Carolina rebounded in game four with a 2–1 victory, and came home with a chance to win the Cup on home ice. However, game five saw the Oilers come back with a stunning 4–3 overtime win on a shorthanded breakaway by [[Fernando Pisani]]. In game 6 in Edmonton, Carolina was soundly defeated 4–0; the only bright point for the Hurricanes was the return of forward [[Erik Cole]] from a broken neck that had sidelined him since March. In game 7, before the then second-largest home crowd in franchise history (18,978), the Hurricanes won 3–1, sealing the Hurricanes' first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history. Cam Ward was honored with the [[Conn Smythe Trophy]] for being the playoffs' [[most valuable player]], becoming just the fourth rookie to be honored with the award. Several Hurricanes raised the Cup for the first time in their long NHL careers; Rod Brind'Amour and [[Bret Hedican]] had both played over 15 years without winning the Cup, while [[Glen Wesley]], the last remaining member of the Hartford Whalers on the Hurricanes' roster, had waited 18 seasons. On the managerial side, general manager [[Jim Rutherford]] finally won the Cup in his twelfth year with the franchise since joining the Whalers in 1994.

The Hurricanes Stanley Cup championship marked the first professional major league sports title for a team from North Carolina. As well, they were the first NHL team to win the Stanley Cup despite losing at least nine playoff games in that year; the 2011 Boston Bruins, the 2014 [[Los Angeles Kings]], the 2017 [[Pittsburgh Penguins]], and the 2019 [[St Louis Blues]] are the only other teams to have achieved this feat.