Brendan Lemieux of the Carolina Hurricanes was happy Wednesday to see Canes fans filling the Lenovo Center, both to watch a preseason hockey game and to help others in need.

The Canes had announced that $10 tickets would be sold for the preseason exhibition against the Nashville Predators. After Helene hit the western counties of North Carolina last weekend, causing so much destruction and loss of life, Wednesday’s game took on a different meaning.

The Hurricanes said all ticket sales and donations would go to hurricane relief funds. Late in the game, it was announced that nearly $280,000 had been raised, and team president Doug Warf said after the game – a 6-4 loss to the Preds – that he expected the total to be closer to $300,000.

Warf said some auction items will be offered on the Canes’ website (nhl.com/hurricanes/) over the next few weeks to continue fundraising.

Lemieux, who scored a goal in Wednesday’s game, called the overflow crowd of 18,700 and the game’s financial support “unbelievable.”

“My mom is from Vilas, just outside of Boone,” the forward said. “Our family comes from there. My grandfather and grandmother are buried there. We feel for everyone in Vilas and the surrounding area.

“Western North Carolina has been hit so hard, and honestly I don’t think it’s been given enough attention. It’s sad because I was talking to a friend on the phone today and he said there are still people missing, there are still hundreds of missing people presumed dead.

“It is overwhelming to me that something like this can happen in our country. Obviously I understand how remote and difficult it is to access and help people. But it is scary and it is something where we can all come together, no matter what side of the aisle you are on, and stand behind and support these people who desperately need help.”

Lemieux, the son of former NHL forward Claude Lemieux, said his parents’ neighbor’s house was swept away by the flooding. He said he hopes to find some time to go up and provide assistance.

Some former Hurricanes players, including defenseman Aaron Ward and goalie Cam Ward, joined the relief effort and gathered to collect donations, food and other essentials. The group, Carolina NHL Hockey Alum, said Wednesday it would deliver supplies by truck to Hendersonville.

“I prayed for these people,” Lemieux said. “My family is very lucky to be safe. But the videos we shot from our own porch are frightening.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before. I have never experienced a hurricane of this magnitude or such flooding. It’s very scary.”

Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour also tried to put things in perspective after the game. Carolina, with a young roster, played against a Preds team full of veterans, and it showed in the game on the ice and in the final result. But Brind’Amour, like Lemieux, praised the participation and the financial support that came with it.

“That’s obviously the most important thing coming out tonight,” Brind’Amour said. “Everyone comes together and anything can help,” Brind’Amour said. “What’s going on down there? That is fun. It’s about real things. Anything we can do to help is great.”