Every hockey fan's worst nightmare happened at the Olympics, with some key players going down with injuries that will keep them out of their NHL team's roster for at least a few weeks. Los Angeles Kings forward Kevin Fiala will be out for the rest of the season, while Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen and Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby will miss multiple weeks.
It looks like Rantanen could be back before Crosby, as the Finnish star is looking at a 1-2 week timeline. The Penguins aren't going to be as lucky with their captain's recovery, as he will be out for at least four weeks, and it could be even longer as they try to ensure it isn't a long-term problem.
The Penguins don't have a major bearing on the Boston Bruins' postseason outlook. They are currently second in the Metropolitan Division, and the team ahead of the Bruins in the wild card is an Atlantic Division counterpart.
However, with the Columbus Blue Jackets and Washington Capitals catching up to Boston in the wild card race, a Penguins freefall could help those teams go into the Metropolitan race and stay out of the Bruins' way.
Bruins' upcoming games against the Penguins
While beating teams at their best is the more admirable thing to do, the Bruins aren't going to apologize for taking advantage of teams who are missing players with Olympic injuries. The Bruins could've easily been in that position, but it looks like they've escaped relatively unscathed apart from some lingering headaches for Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman from post-gold medal celebrations.
The Bruins have a big game against the Blue Jackets to start the post-Olympic schedule, and then have two games against the Penguins at the beginning of March, with a matchup against the Capitals in between. If the Bruins win the majority of their games over the next two weeks, the playoffs feel like a foregone conclusion.
The Bruins will benefit from two games against Pittsburgh without Crosby. The 38-year-old is still the key cog in the Penguins' organization, and they could be going through some struggles with him out of the lineup. It's incredibly fortunate scheduling for the Bruins.