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WARNING H U R R I C A N E By HARRY THOMPSON N.C. Hockey Community Hopes A Second Stanley Cup Victory Will Spur Continued Growth Of The Game In The Tar Heel State PHOTOS BY Getty Images; Carolina Hurricanes; USA Hockey Archive 42 // OCTOBER 2026 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM URING THE CAROLINA HURRICANES RUN TO THEIR FIRST STANLEY C U P T I T L E I N 2 0 0 6 , R i c k D a n i e l took his son, Eric, to Game 7 against the E d m o n t o n O i l e r s. T h e a t m o s p h e r e inside the RBC Center was beyond elec- tric as the capacity crowd of close to 19,000 spent the entire game on their feet and cheering their Canes to victory. Only 8 years old at the time, Eric stood on his chair to get a clear view of the ice. After the game, he turned to his dad, a Chicago transplant without much experience with hockey and said he wanted to become a goalie like then Canes goalie Cam Ward. That began a lifetime in hockey for the entire Daniel family. "He became a goalie, played high-level hockey and went on to play some college hockey. And of course, our youngest one fol- lowed that path, too. All as the result of that game and watching that excitement in the community," said Daniel, who is entering his third year serving as the affiliate president of the Carolina Amateur Hockey Association after serving on the board for another 10 years.