Born in Ottawa but raised in Campbell River, British Columbia, Brind'Amour was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft, First Round, Ninth Overall. He began his career with the Blues, then was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers with Dan Quinn for Murray Baron and Ron Sutter following the 1990-91 season. Following his return from a foot injury during the 1999-2000 season, he was dealt to the Carolina Hurricanes along with Jean-Marc Pelletier in exchange for Keith Primeau.

Rod was one of Philadelphia's most popular players, and garnered the nickname 'Rod the Bod' for his devotion to physical fitness. He spent his years in Philadelphia as an Alternate Captain to Kevin Dineen and then Eric Lindros, even filling in as Captain for part of the 1996-97 season with Lindros out for 23 games. During his stint with Philadelphia he was considered one of the league's 'ironmen', with a consecutive games streak of 484 played, a Flyers franchise record. Additionally, he was one-third of the "BBC Line" featuring Bates Battaglia and Erik Cole during the Carolina Hurricanes’ Stanley Cup run in 2002. Brind'Amour was named Captain of the Hurricanes following the 2004-05 season.