Hurricanes and Bruins clash for game four in a matinee

This is a 12:30 PM puck drop, so the Hurricanes and Bruins will be going toe to toe this lunchtime at TD Garden before the series comes back to Raleigh. Carolina has the chance to push the Bruins to the brink of elimination. Boston will be looking to tie the series up and give themselves some hope. One of these two things will happen tonight as the two organizations that used to share Boston Garden will go at it once more.

For the Hurricanes, they need to start on time. They’ve been sluggish at the beginning of all three games in this series so far and they were punished for it in the last game. Start on time because it’s an early game and try putting Boston on the backfoot early in this one. From there, you can control the game as we’ve seen Carolina do once they grow into the game. This sounds easier than it is, indeed, but the playoffs aren’t easy.

Carolina will be without a great locker room presence for the foreseeable future after Jordan Martinook limped out of game three after being tangled up in the neutral zone in the second period. Carolina will be tasked with replacing both his production and off-ice attributes ahead of this one. After game three, the coaching staff confirmed there would need to be a change to the lineup.

Game four is an important game for both teams. With a win, Carolina can force Boston to the edge, requiring the original-six franchise to win all three of the remaining games in this series. With a loss, Boston could get back into this series, and take the momentum heading back to PNC Arena on Tuesday. We know that this game is going to be huge in the context of this series, so let’s hope the Canes come out on top.