The NHL began the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Saturday night with the Philadelphia Flyers and Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, North Carolina. It's very weird to begin the second round with a first-round Game 7 to be played early on Sunday night between the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning.
However, the reward for finishing your series early is getting time off and getting a head start on the next series beginning. In the series between the Flyers and Hurricanes, there are a number of former Boston Bruins playing for both teams.
There have been several players who have recently played over the last few seasons in Boston that have moved in free agency or through trades by general manager Don Sweeney. One of these players was defenseman Mike Reilly. The 32-year-old left-shot came to the Black and Gold at the 2021 trade deadline from the Ottawa Senators for depth. In 95 games in Boston, he had four goals and 22 assists while struggling for a good part of his time there.
He would spend a couple of seasons in Boston before moving on to the Florida Panthers, and he was eventually placed on waivers and claimed by the New York Islanders. After last season, he signed a one-year, $1.1 million contract with the Hurricanes for this season. He has already made an impact on Rod Brind'Amour's team in the second round against Philadelphia.
Former Bruins defenseman Mike Reilly plays key roles in Hurricanes Game 1 win over Flyers
After not playing in the first round sweep of the Senators, Reilly was inserted into the lineup for Game 1 of the Flyers series. He played 11:28 in Carolina's Game 1 3-0 win, and he had a major impact. He picked up two assists, both on first-period goals by Lohan Stankoven and Jackson Blake. Both goals were scored in the first 7:30 of the game.
Reilly only played in 42 games in the regular season. He had one goal and eight assists, but he averaged 14:58 a night with an incredible plus/minus of plus-11. That's a career-high for the veteran. It just proves that in the right system and the right players around him, he is still a blueliner who can make an impact. His time in Boston was over, but his playing days are not done yet.
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