The Hurricanes need to take care of business in Game 6.
Have you ever seen a postseason in pro basketball or hockey so dominated by the home teams? Most teams are defending their home court or ice vigorously. Only the Celtics-Bucks NBA series has seen two games won on the road.
The Canes dispatched the Bruins in Game 5 of their first-round playoff, giving them a chance to win in Boston Thursday night and advance to the conference semifinals. And while they are flying up there both literally and figuratively, they better be wary of coming back for a Game 7 at home.
You know what they say about Game 7s, don’t you? Anything can happen and the home team’s advantage is minimized by the tremendous abandon of the opponents in a do-or-die game.
Carolina has dominated the series at PNC Arena, winning 5-1, 5-2 and 5-1 in a Game 5 that was almost over before it started. The Canes had a total team effort with every man on the ice out-skating, out-hustling and, obviously, out-scoring the older and slower Bruins.
By nature of their youth and depth and the great goaltending of veteran Antti Raanta, the Hurricanes cannot let the fate of this great season come down to a Game 7 where they would carry even more pressure than the Bruins, who have fallen behind early in all three games in Raleigh. But, as they proved at the TD Garden, their getting the lead puts the onus on the visitors, and Carolina did not recover in their first two games up there. Don’t let that happen again.
The Canes are not only the better team, they are among the favorites to raise Lord Stanley’s Cup for the second time in franchise history. Coach Rod Brind’Amour and the front office have put a solid roster together with superstars like Sebastian Aho, rookies like Seth Jarvis and the supporting cast that can go three lines deep.
That is why they have to take care of business back in Boston, so the one thing over which they don’t have an advantage has a chance to kick in.
The Bruins are almost 100 years old, one of the original NHL franchises, and own six Stanley Cups. You don’t want to tempt history and tradition in a Game 7, wherever, that could go either way.
Featured image via Associated Press/Karl B. DeBlaker
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