Hurricanes finally know first-round Stanley Cup Playoffs opponent: Boston Bruins
Rod Brind’Amour never expected to spend his 50th birthday in a Toronto hotel, days before the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs, watching a Caps-Bruins game during a global pandemic.
Or talking to the family back home about an earthquake, in North Carolina.
But the year of the coronavirus, 2020, has brought about a number of unexpected twists and turns, head-shaking and now earth-shaking events. The Carolina Hurricanes spent Sunday in Toronto with eyes trained on the Washington Capitals-Boston Bruins game, ready to match up against the loser in the official opening round of the playoffs.
The Canes, seeded fifth in the Eastern Conference, will face the fourth-seeded Bruins, who were beaten 2-1 by the Caps. Game 1 of the best-of-seven series will be Tuesday at 8 p.m., setting up a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference finals, when the Bruins swept the Canes in four.
As Brind’Amour said Sunday, the Canes are ready to “ramp back up.” After a three-game sweep of the New York Rangers in their best-of-five qualifying round, the Canes had a week to kill in the NHL “bubble,” mixing in practice time with some fun time.
“The concern coming into this type of format was down time,”Brind’Amour said in his Sunday media call. “When you’re playing games there’s that routine. I think for the guys that feels normal. And this staying in the hotel, not knowing when you’re going to play I think has been a challenge. Our guys are doing the best they can and today we’ll get back at it again with a little more intense practices.”
While injured defenseman Dougie Hamilton has been able to return to practice, Brind’Amour said he still is not sure if the 2020 All-Star selection would be ready and fit for the first-round series, which reverts back to the traditional best-of-seven format during the playoffs.
“There’s still that question lingering out there,” Brind’Amour said. “In the next couple of days we’ll know more. Obviously if he’s ready to go he’s going to go. He’s one of our top players. And then we’ll address the who-comes-out question.”
Interesting question, too. The Canes’ defensemen were a solid group against the Rangers, who scored four goals in the series, and Brind’Amour made Trevor van Reimsdyk a healthy scratch all three games. If Hamilton is good to go, Brind’Amour will have to make another adjustment.
“It’s not going to be an easy decision,” he said.
Another lingering question is the status of defenseman Brett Pesce, who had shoulder surgery in early March after being injured in the Feb. 22 game at Toronto. While much was made of goalies James Reimer and Petr Mrazek being hurt in that game, and emergency goalie David Ayres coming in, Pesce’s injury cast a pall over that emotional victory.
Pesce was not at the Canes’ postseason training camp in Raleigh but was placed on the Phase 4 player roster for Toronto. General manager Don Waddell said before camp began that Pesce might not be cleared for contact until late August and Brind’Amour indicated the same Sunday.
‘He’s still a ways away,” Brind’Amour said. “When and if he gets into the bubble, then we’ll know he’s getting closer. Until that time, he’ still a ways away.
“Probably doubtful that we’ll see him in this series. The plan all along (was) we didn’t expect him to be able to go this early in August. If we’re still playing after this series I think we can start answering those questions.”
The question about a first-round opponent was answered Sunday when the Bruins lost their final postseason game in the round-robin tournament involving the top four Eastern teams. The Canes moved up to the fifth seed when the Pittsburgh Penguins were knocked out by the 12th-seeded Montreal Canadiens in their qualifier.
The Canes and Bruins played just once in the 2019-20 season, the Bruins winning 2-0 in Boston on Dec. 3. Two games that were scheduled late in the regular season were canceled, including the finale in Boston.
The Bruins led the NHL with 100 points in 70 games when the season was paused March 12. But they’ll go into the first round of the playoffs having lost all three round-robin games in Toronto without leading in any of the three.
“I think for our group, since we’re pretty young, last year was a huge step for us having experienced the playoffs,” said Canes forward Warren Foegele, a rookie last season. “I think having that experience and everyone just growing their game will be a lot better for our group.”
The Canes have spent the past week, as defenseman Jaccob Slavin joked, trying to “stay sane in the bubble.” There have been a bunch of team activities, including one gathering when they watched a video of messages from family and loved ones. A few tears then.
“There’s lots of bonding,” Foegele said Sunday. “Guys playing ping-pong, cards, board games. Yesterday we had a really fun day outside. The group is trying to stay light but not too light, and back to work today.”
CAROLINA HURRICANES VS BOSTON BRUINS
First round, Stanley Cup playoffs
Game 1: Tuesday, Aug. 11, 8 p.m.
Game 2: Thursday, Aug. 13, 8 p.m.
Game 3: Saturday, Aug. 15 , noon.
Game 4: Monday, Aug. 17, 8 p.m.
*Game 5: Wednesday, Aug. 19
*Game 6: Thursday, Aug. 20
*Game 7: Sunday, Aug. 23
*-- If necessary
All games televised by Fox Sports Carolinas
This story was originally published August 9, 2020 at 2:45 PM.
