Brunette, a forward from Sudbury, Ontario, played junior hockey for Owen Sound of the Ontario Hockey League, where his teammates included future NHL forwards Kirk Maltby and Scott Walker, and goalies Kevin Weekes and Jamie Storr. He had a breakout season in 1992-93, scoring 62 goals and 162 points, and the Washington Capitals selected the 20-year-old in the seventh round (No. 174) of the 1993 NHL Draft.

He played most of the next three seasons in the minors before earning his first NHL callup midway through 1995-96. Brunette made his NHL debut against the Chicago Blackhawks on Jan. 17, 1996 and scored his first goal against the Florida Panthers on Feb. 29, 1996.

Brunette played for the Capitals and Portland, their American Hockey League affiliate, throughout the 1997-98 season before being claimed by the Nashville Predators in the 1998 NHL Expansion Draft. He played his first full NHL season with the Predators in 1998-99, was traded to another expansion team, the Atlanta Thrashers, on June 21, 1999, and scored 50 and 59 points in two seasons before becoming an unrestricted free agent and signing with the Minnesota Wild on July 1, 2008.

The move to Minnesota worked out for both sides. Brunette was a reliable middle-six forward who averaged 18 goals in three seasons with the Wild. He also scored one of the biggest goals in Wild history, in overtime to win Game 7 of the 2003 Western Conference Quarterfinals, giving Minnesota its first playoff series victory and sending future Hall of Fame goalie Patrick Roy into retirement.

The Avalanche signed Brunette on Aug. 6, 2005, and he had his best offensive stretch with Colorado, including NHL career highs in goals (27) and points (83) in 2006-07. He returned to the Wild on July 1, 2008, averaged almost 22 goals and 50 points during the next three seasons, then played one more season for Chicago before retiring.

Brunette finished his NHL career with 733 points (268 goals, 465 assists) in 1,110 games, and 35 points (17 goals, 18 assists) in 49 playoff games.

After retiring, Brunette returned to the Wild and was an assistant coach and assistant general manager. He was hired by the Florida Panthers as an assistant to coach Joel Quenneville on June 4, 2019, and took over as coach following Quenneville's resignation Oct. 28, 2021. The Panthers went 51-18-6 in their final 75 games, leading to Brunette becoming a finalist for the Jack Adams Award given to the NHL coach of the year. He left Florida to join New Jersey Devils coach Lindy Ruff's staff as an associate for the 2022-23 season.

The Predators named Brunette coach May 31, 2023.