There is nothing much new to bring up after the morning skate except that the Bruins made it abundantly clear they plan to make Cam Ward's life a bit more difficult tonight between the pipes. While some might interpret that as meaning they intend to "block his view", others might think that it means they will be bumping him and jostling him a bit, especially with the refs swallowing their whistles for the most part this series. We will see.
Boston winger, Chuck Kobasew, who sat out yesterday's practice because of the "flu", seems okay today and will play tonight. The Boston lineup should be the same as it was on Sunday night.
While the Hurricanes will be sticking with the same roster, there is no telling what the lines might be and how long they will stay the same. Maurice was mixing and matching at will last game, and reportedly did the same at practice yesterday. There was no indication at the skate or afterwards what the lines might be. But just for the sake of argument, I'll give it a shot:
- Staal, Cole, Whitney
- Cullen, Ruutu, LaRose
- Jokinen, Walker, Samsonov
- Brind'Amour, Bayda, Eaves
- Corvo, Gleason
- Pitkanen, Seidenberg
- Babchuk, Wallin
Much has been made of Rod Brind'Amour's demotion to the fourth line, but if the captain nets a couple of goals, no doubt it will be a short-lived demotion. (He played 11 minutes last game).
For the first time in a month, Matt Cullen skated for the entire morning skate. The Canes are hoping that he can return to playing like he was at midseason. That would be a huge boost to the Hurricanes cause.
Paul Maurice was full of quips in the crowded morning press conference. When asked what he would tell his team right before the game, he replied, "that's top secret". He was asked if he had changed much as a coach over the years, and he said that he had. The coach mentioned that he enjoyed his time at each destination throughout his career, and has been learning and changing as he goes.
"I even enjoyed it at Toronto, even though at certain times, say from September on, it was tough".
Hopefully, the coach will still be in a jovial mood tonight after the game.