BRIGHTON, Mass. – It took until his third NHL season, but Bruins D-man Brandon Carlo is finally going to get to participate in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Two years ago Carlo was concussed on a savage hit from behind by Alex Ovechkin and last season the 6-foot-5 defenseman broke his leg, and in both cases he was forced to sit out for the entire postseason run for the Black and Gold. Both the Bruins and Carlo weren’t taking any chances this time around and sat out the 22-year-old defenseman in Saturday’s regular-season finale against the Tampa Bay Lightning, and now the youngster will get his first taste of the playoffs.
To say he’s thrilled, excited and perhaps even a little nervous would be quite the understatement.
“I just don’t want to overwhelm myself, you know? I think I had a pretty good year and I stayed consistent throughout and I just want to continue doing that in the playoffs, and ultimately just do my job,” said Carlo, who had two goals and 10 points along with a plus-22 in 72 games played this season. “I think I can help the team and I understand the player that I am more so now [than in the past]. So I just want to go out there and contribute.
“It’s really exciting. We’re in a good position and we gained a lot of confidence throughout the season. So overall we’re all just really excited, especially myself, to be in this position.”
As much as it’s going to be a blast for Carlo, though, it’s also going to be a big boon for the Black and Gold. Carlo brings his 6-foot-5 frame, toughness and strength to his role as a shutdown defenseman, and that’s something the Bruins will desperately need against electric offenses like Toronto and Tampa that sit in their playoff path.
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“We certainly missed Brandon in the previous two playoff years, and he took a deep breath that he got through. Butch [Cassidy] maybe sat him out for a reason, so he would be able to take a deep breath, but he’s excited,” said Bruins general manager Don Sweeney. “I talked with him yesterday. He doesn’t have anything to compare it to, but he’s excited about the opportunity, and I think our group knows that we missed, you know.
“Obviously Torey [Krug]. . . in previous years we’ve had guys leave the lineup. It has an effect on the group, and I think his enthusiasm. . . he’s had a pretty consistent year overall and I think he’ll be excited to play. We’ll benefit from that.”
Unfortunately the Bruins are still a little banged up on the back end with both Kevan Miller and John Moore injured as Boston gets ready for their playoff run. But they won’t be missing Carlo this time around and that could make a big difference with a top-4 shutdown guy that was seemingly built for the postseason with his size/strength combo ready to weigh into the battle areas.
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