Hurricanes’ Rod Brind’Amour to Rangers’ Ryan Reaves: ‘What’s he waiting for?’

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Dec 31, 2019; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour talks to Carolina Hurricanes right wing Andrei Svechnikov (37) against the Montreal Canadiens at PNC Arena. The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Montreal Canadiens 3-1. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports
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General Manager Chris Drury’s first priority following last season’s Tom Wilson incident was to make this squad tougher. The acquisition of Ryan Reaves is now front and center as things got chippy in Game 3.

As the time was ticking down on a a 3-1 Rangers victory on Sunday night, two things happened that appear to have wakened a sleeping giant.

Hurricanes forward Max Domi cross-checked Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren as the horn was sounding to end the game. A wrestling match between the two ensued with Reaves being held back by the linesman.

At the same time, Rangers head coach Gerrard Gallant was in a shouting match with former Rangers defenseman Tony DeAngelo. The two could be seen chirping back and forth as the scrum on the ice was being broken up. On several video outlets, Gallant was seen saying “shut the f–k up” to DeAngelo and showing him the chirp sign.

Gerard Gallant sends a warning

Turk, as Gallant is affectionately known, was not happy with the game-ending cheap shot and let the Hurricanes know that the Blueshirts were not afraid to engage in the same style of hockey if needed.

“I wasn’t happy with the bullshit at the end of the game they initiated,” Gallant explained. “We didn’t do that when the games were close. They want to put their guys on that’s fine. If they want to play like that we’ve got the guys that can match that.

“They’re not sending any message. We got the guy that can handle all their guys if we want to. We didn’t do it like that, but Domi took a cheap shot at our defenseman. You got a long memory in this. You think about things, like I said, it might be on the other foot someday.”

Reaves, 35, has no fear when playing the physical game, leading the team in hits with 279 during the regular season. When he was bought to New York, many saw him as just a fighter but he has proven to be a leader on the ice and in the locker room.

His game-day routine of shouting ” Shesty Release Us” has become a must-see event on social media throughout this season.

As this series starts to ramp up the feistiness, it is tailor-made for Reaves.

Rod Brind’Amour calls out Ryan Reaves

ryan reaves
Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports

On Monday, Ryan Reaves addressed what took place at the end of Game 3 with a warning to cut the bull.

“I don’t want to say anything stupid here,” Reaves laughed. “You never want to see a guy chirping your bench. I wish I would’ve seen that but I was on the ice for the Domi-Lindgren thing. I’m sure guys aren’t going to shy away from finishing checks on those guys. But there is going to be a little added nastiness when a specific player does something.”

Reaves then added that he was going to do his thing in Game 4 by running people and getting in their faces.

Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour, who claimed to not see any of these incidents that upset Gallant and the Rangers had heard enough from the mouth of Reaves.

“I don’t know what he’s waiting for then,” Brind’Amour said Monday. “Everybody’s going to do what they do this time of year. … You’ve got to do what you do this time of year, otherwise what good are you? You’ve got to contribute and do what you’re supposed to do.”

Herald Sun

Well! Talk about poking the bear.

Reaves is too smart to fall for it

Reaves is a smart player and knows he can’t go out looking for a fight early on in a crucial game with his club down 2-1 in the series. Knowing that he will need to use his size and speed to generate some big hits and let the Hurricanes know where he is on the ice at all times.

Plus, he understands that no one on the Hurricanes is going to fight him. This season, Reaves was only involved in 3 fighting majors and cited that he’s ready to go but no one wants to.

In the NHL Playoffs, a coach doesn’t need to say anything to get his point across. When Game 4 Tuesday night, all eyes will be on Mr. Reaves. The intimidation factor alone might be the difference with how the game plays out.

This should be fun.

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