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The Canes now are optimistic that Rod Brind'Amour, injured in Game 7 against the Boston Bruins, will play Monday in the Eastern Conference final opener against Pittsburgh.

Brind'Amour suffered a laceration over the right eye after being hit by the puck early in overtime of the Canes' 3-2 victory in Game 7. He left the bench and did not return.

Pete Friesen, the team's head trainer, said today that Brind'Amour did not suffer a concussion and was "feeling better" today.

The Hurricanes still aren't sure about the status of center Rod Brind'Amour for the start of the Eastern Conference final against Pittsburgh.

Brind'Amour was hit with a puck early in overtime Thursday in the Canes'  3-2 win over the Boston Bruins that clinched the second-round series. General manager Jim Rutherford said today that the team captain was hit over the eye but not in the eye.

"We are concerned about it," said Rutherford, who said an update on Brind'Amour's condition would be made later today. "It's good that we have team doctors travel with us. They were able to look at him and treat him immediately."

Brind'Amour scored his first goal of the playoffs in Game 7, earning the Canes a 1-1 tie.

From Talking Points: 

Among the franchise records Ron Francis set in his two stints with the Hartford Whalers and Carolina Hurricanes are many that may never be broken.

There are a few that are ripe to fall, and Rod Brind’Amour claimed one Sunday when he played in his 63rd postseason game for the Hurricanes in a 3-0 win over the Boston Bruins to even their Eastern Conference semifinal series.

But he did it on a night when he was demoted to the fourth line with Ryan Bayda and Patrick Eaves, a strange moment in an unusual postseason for the Carolina captain.

Read more here. 

From Talking Points: 

IF it is the Flyers who the Hurricanes end up playing in the first round, here's your startling stat for the day.

After all the trades between these two teams — 12 between 1994-2006, the period when Jim Rutherford and Bobby Clarke overlapped as general managers of their respective clubs, involving 33 players and draft picks — only four players on either roster have played for both teams.

Who, you ask?

Find out here. 

From Talking Points:

Some years, when those of us at the Carolina chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association debate who to nominate for the Masterton Trophy, there is a clear favorite. This wasn't necessarily one of those years.

There were a few candidates bandied about, but we ended up settling on Rod Brind'Amour, and the more I think about it, the better I feel about that choice.

Read more here.