"Awesome thing for our team": Jon Scheyer takes Duke squad on team outing to watch Florida's conference finals vs Carolina 

Duke coach Jon Scheyer brought his basketball team to Lenovo Center on Wednesday night for Game 5 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals between the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers.

The Blue Devils came in to support their local team as the Hurricanes faced a must-win situation. Carolina was down 3-1 in the series, looking to stave off elimination on home ice.

Scheyer, who attended the game wearing a Hurricanes hoodie along with his son Jett and several of his players, sounded the team's pregame siren.

"It’s fun to do the siren at the Hurricanes game," Scheyer said via an X/Twitter post by @DukeMBB. "Really, it’s our first night out with our new group, getting to know each other as a team.

"I think just seeing this playoff environment — a do-or-die situation — it’s an awesome thing for our team. Just to feel the intensity, to feel the connectivity — you have to have an ice. I wasn't going to say the court, but it's on the ice. It's been a really fun time with the Hurricanes," he added.

The video ended with a shot of Jon Scheyer's son, who was dancing hilariously to the music played inside the arena.

Duke's Instagram account posted several snippets from the team's outing, along with a clip of Scheyer doing the pregame siren. It also posted a group photo of the Blue Devils players at the arena, which included Caleb Foster, Isaiah Evans and upcoming freshman Cayden Boozer.

Despite the Blue Devils' support, the Hurricanes ended up losing to the Panthers, 5-3, ending their season.

Analyst places Jon Scheyer's Duke at No. 9 in early preseason rankings

Duke had its best season under coach Jon Scheyer last season, finishing 35-4 overall with a Final Four appearance. However, they have lost a lot of key players, including Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel and Tyrese Proctor, to the NBA draft.

With a new-look roster heading into next season, CBS Sports analyst Gary Parish ranked the Blue Devils at No. 9 in his early preseason top-25 rankings.

"This ranking is based on the Blue Devils returning three of the top nine scorers —specifically Isaiah Evans, Caleb Foster and Patrick Ngongba — from a team that finished 35-4 and advanced to the Final Four," Parish wrote via CBSSports.com.

Scheyer brought in the nation's top-ranked recruiting class, according to 247Sports, including five-star prospects Cameron Boozer and Nikolas Khamenia. Dame Sarr, a top international prospect, is another newcomer who is expected to make an immediate impact.