While neither the Boston Bruins or Carolina Hurricanes will be that pleased by a delayed game, it will likely favor Boston.
The key difference is the age and experience of the Boston Bruins line-up; you’d think they’re far better suited to adapting on the fly.
All of the players, on both teams, are professionals of course, but you’d have to imagine younger guys struggling a little more physiologically with ramping themselves up, calming down and then doing it all over again within the space of 12 hours.
You have to imagine guys like Patrice Bergeron or Zdeno Chara can be a little more level-headed than the young twenty-somethings on the Canes roster. That difference in approach might prove key to a win.
More from Causeway Crowd
- Harrison, Toporowski shine in Prospects Challenge
- Obscure former Boston Bruins: Steven Kampfer
- Bruins release Prospects Challenge roster, schedule Tuesday
- Bruins release full “Historic 100” list ahead of season
- McAvoy, Lucic named to “Historic 100” list over the weekend
Let’s also not forget that the Bruins have had a few concerns with various players’ health in the past week or so. An extra half-day is never going to go amiss in their recoveries.
The delayed game does however highlight the one issue with hub cities and game scheduling that the NHL possibly didn’t preempt.
If indeed we see any other first games of the day going to triple, quadruple or more over-time, this is going to rear it’s ugly head once more.
The NHL need to ensure they’re building in suitable breaks to meet the needs of overtime whilst also still having puck-drops at reasonable times for players and fans alike.
Rightly or wrongly, the Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes now face-off with a strange 11AM puck-drop and the winner of the day will be the team able to adapt to the changed scenario best. There goes any advantage of three 8PM puck-drops!
As for us fans, we go from a prime-time slot to the middle of the working day. In a normal Stanley Cup Playoffs year that’d be unthinkable, but at least this is only Game 1 in the first round.
It could’ve been much worse; it could’ve been the deciding fixture that got delayed. Then it might’ve entailed a sick day as a fan!!