When the Hurricanes arrived in North Carolina, many saw them as a relocation folly destined to fail. One man has helped change that narrative

Rod Brind’Amour is made for the playoffs. The Carolina Hurricanes coach made his NHL debut in the postseason in 1989, filling in for the St Louis Blues in a game against the Minnesota North Stars. He scored on his first shot. Still, it took him 17 seasons in the NHL before he hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2006 as captain of the Carolina Hurricanes, the team he has now led to another Cup win as head coach. “The fear of losing motivates you a lot of times,” he told reporters after that 2006 Cup win.

Wherever the motivation came from this year, the result is the same. The Hurricanes beat the Vegas Golden Knights 3-0 in Game 6 on Sunday to win the Stanley Cup for the second time in franchise history, exactly 20 years since they did it last.

The newly crowned Olympic champions were warmly greeted by both Republicans and Democrats. They were also used as props by the president

During Tuesday’s State of the Union, Donald Trump welcomed members of the US men’s national hockey team to the House gallery to chants of “U-S-A, U-S-A!”. Trump revealed that Team USA’s goaltender, Connor Hellebuyck, will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. “What special champions you are,” Trump told the players, who had beaten Canada on Sunday in the gold medal game of the Winter Olympics.

In Trump’s America, proximity is never neutral.