Live from Raleighwood, it’ll be Saturday Night.
Ever since Philadelphia ended their series against Pittsburgh on Wednesday, fans had been waiting for when the Flyers/Canes series would get started. Informed speculation had noted that ABC had an 8 PM slot for Saturday Night, also a traditional spot for “Hockey Night in Canada.” The thinking was that if either Minnesota/Dallas or Edmonton/Anaheim needed a Game 7 that’s when they would play, and if both series ended the league might go ahead and start the Canes versus the Flyers.
Well, Minnesota ended Dallas’ season and then Anaheim wrapped up their series against the Oilers. As the Canes and the Flyers would be the most rested—you could have started Colorado against Minnesota in Denver but that would have given the Wild just one day off—and the league decided they didn’t want to skip Saturday night, that just left for one option:
Note there’s no word on the rest of the schedule as the other half of the East still may not be determined before the end of the day Sunday with Montreal/Tampa and Boston/Buffalo set to play their own Game Six on Friday. While Colorado and Minnesota is now set, the other Western matchup is still up in the air as Anaheim now waits for the Utah/Las Vegas winner—which also may not be set until Sunday. Should the other East series not start until Tuesday—which is the earliest they could if either or both go seven—then the league will probably build in a long break between games in order to let the other series catch up. Whether that would be between games one and two, or two and three is unknown.
The night also promises to be a busy one for the city of Philadelphia, as the 76ers defeated Boston on Thursday Night to force a decisive Game Seven to be played on Saturday Night. That tip is scheduled for 7:30 in Boston, and it’s going to be the only NBA game that day that will follow the Kentucky Derby.
Philadelphia was told on Wednesday that they might play Saturday, so the team likely made plans in case that happened. The Hurricanes are set to practice at 11 AM Friday Morning at Lenovo center, and with an 8 PM puck drop both teams will likely go through a full morning skate on Saturday.
The normal tailgating scene may be a bit subdued as the weather is forecast to be grey and rainy, perhaps heavy, but there’s little doubt the start time will allow for a packed and raucous atmosphere as the Canes play for the first time in a week.