What a difference 24 hours (and change) makes.
On Wednesday morning, the Bruins were limping into their first-round playoff series against the Hurricanes. The NHL's top team for most of the regular season, the B's had lost four straight games in the Toronto bubble and hadn't led for even a second over that stretch.
But then Boston carried play for most of Game 1 and finally beat Carolina on Patrice Bergeron's goal just 73 seconds into double overtime. Now the Bruins have the opportunity to nab a 2-0 series lead and take control of the series with a victory in Game 2 Thursday night.
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The quick turnaround — especially after playing 80-plus minutes — could be a factor, though Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy appears to be sticking with Tuukka Rask, who faced just 28 shots in Game 1.
"How is Tuukka feeling coming out of the game? He felt fine. Was there a lot of wear and tear to the point where recovery would take more than 24 or 48 hours? I don’t think so," Cassidy said Thursday. "We were pretty clean in front of him without a lot of demanding stretches. Still, it was four periods of hockey and he needs to be on his toes the whole game."
The Hurricanes have their own lineup decisions to make, but Rod Brind'Amour — who was fined $25,000 for blasting the refs following a controversial goal in Game 1 — wasn't tipping his hand, saying that the team has a number of game-time decisions, including Justin Williams and Sami Vatanen, neither of whom played in Game 1.
Boston Bruins
Here's how to watch Game 2 of the Bruins vs. Hurricanes series online. Also, NBC Sports Boston will break down Game 2 immediately after the game on Postgame Live with Michael Felger, Joe Haggerty and Olympic gold medalist A.J. Mlezcko.
When: Thursday, August 13 at 8 p.m. ET
TV Channel: NBC Sports Network
Live Stream: NBC Sports