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Carolina Hurricanes: Bill Burniston is their Secret Weapon

By Omar Abdelgawad

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 26: Cleaning and maintenance is carried out at ClimbFit on March 26, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. ClimbFit gym is one of many indoor fitness facilities forced to close following the government's ban on indoor gatherings and non-essential services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With Australia's number of confirmed cases approaching 3000 and the national COVID-19 death toll now at 12, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced further measures to try and minimise the spread of coronavirus, requiring all libraries, museums, galleries, beauty salons, tattoo parlours, shopping centre food courts, auctions, open houses, amusement parks, arcades, indoor and outdoor play centres, swimming pools an indoor exercise venues to close on Wednesday. The closure of ClimbFit's two venues in Sydney has meant managing director Robbie Josephsen has had to lay off 50 casual staff members for the foreseeable future. The family-run business has been in operation for 25 years, but with no clear idea of when gyms will be able to reopen, the owners are unsure if they can continue to pay the rent on their two locations. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 26: Cleaning and maintenance is carried out at ClimbFit on March 26, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. ClimbFit gym is one of many indoor fitness facilities forced to close following the government's ban on indoor gatherings and non-essential services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With Australia's number of confirmed cases approaching 3000 and the national COVID-19 death toll now at 12, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced further measures to try and minimise the spread of coronavirus, requiring all libraries, museums, galleries, beauty salons, tattoo parlours, shopping centre food courts, auctions, open houses, amusement parks, arcades, indoor and outdoor play centres, swimming pools an indoor exercise venues to close on Wednesday. The closure of ClimbFit's two venues in Sydney has meant managing director Robbie Josephsen has had to lay off 50 casual staff members for the foreseeable future. The family-run business has been in operation for 25 years, but with no clear idea of when gyms will be able to reopen, the owners are unsure if they can continue to pay the rent on their two locations. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images) /
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We all know that Rod Brind’amour is the fittest coach in the league, but even he relies on Bill Burniston to keep the Carolina Hurricanes in top shape.

“You’ve got Billy!” Bellows Rod Brind’amour, Head Coach of the Carolina Hurricanes. The short statement is met with sarcastic groans from a Hockey Team that just blew out an opponent and protected their house in an excellent home win. They did another Storm Surge and are ready to go home but not before meeting with Billy.

Who is Billy? Well, Bill Burniston, the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Carolina Hurricanes and the right-hand man of coach nicknamed Rod the Bod for his physical prowess and strength.

Although technically part of the medical staff on the team, Billy can be attributed to a lot fo the success of the team. His strength and conditioning programs are the biggest reason behind the team’s ability to play at 100% and stay healthy for most of the season. Last year saw them break an NHL record with ten players playing a full 82 games. That is on Billy.

This year, even though, there have been multiple injuries resulting from vicious hits, as well as several trades, there are still nine players who have played every game of the season so far. Billy is the Carolina Hurricanes’ secret weapon.

His workouts are no joke either. Just take a look at what a simple active warmup for the team looks like:

Billy has been with the Carolina Hurricanes since 2013 and in the last seven years moved his way up from a part-time position to the head strength and conditioning coach. He has both a Bachelors and Masters degree in sports medicine as well as several certifications that have him as the most certified person on the staff to do what he does, if not the NHL.

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Before working for the Carolina Hurricanes he was the strength and conditioning coach for the USA Baseball’s collegiate national team. Strength and conditioning aren’t reserved for any single sport folks and Billy is proof of that. He has a total of 25 years worth of experience that Rod Brind’amour and the Hurricanes are getting the most out of.

So next time you hear Rod yell out “You’ve got Billy” after a game, know that the players are about to get the work-out of their lives and get just that much stronger and better. Every time you see Sebastian Aho lay someone out unsuspectingly or Andrei Svechnikov muscle the puck away from a player twice his size, know that Billy is the reason they are so strong.

What I want to know is, how much do I need to pay to get someone like Billy to right me up a workout program?

Question for CC Readers: Which players do you think get the most of having Billy on the staff?

Next. Three Players That Can Find Redemption When Season Returns. dark

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