The Carolina Hurricanes were on the ice Wednesday morning, working through a physical practice while they waited to learn who they will face next in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. With the first-round series between the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins still unresolved, coach Rod Brind'Amour said the team was trying to strike the right balance between staying sharp and staying rested.
“It's a little bit of a guessing game on what's the best way to approach things,” Brind'Amour said. “You back off all the way and get you know really feeling really great, or do you worry about the edge coming off? So I guess you kind of try to play somewhere in the middle.”
The workout had the feel of a team trying not to drift while the bracket sorts itself out. Seth Jarvis said the drills mattered for more than fitness. “It's nice to go out there and compete,” he said. “We had a lot of battle drills, so it was good to kind of get that aspect. We sit for a few days, maybe you lose that.”
The hold-up comes from the series on the other side of the bracket. Philadelphia carried a 3-2 advantage into Wednesday night’s game at home against Pittsburgh, and a Penguins win would push that matchup to seven games. That would likely delay the Hurricanes’ next series, since they are set to play the winner between the Flyers and Penguins.
For Carolina, the more immediate concern was Alexander Nikishin, who returned to the ice in a yellow, no-contact jersey. Brind'Amour had told reporters the day before that he was hopeful the rookie defenseman would be ready for the second-round game, and on Wednesday he sounded encouraged by the way the process was going. Nikishin suffered a concussion on Saturday after a hit in Game 4 against Ottawa and skated alongside Shayne Gostisbehere during drills.
“I think he's feeling good,” Brind'Amour said. “Whatever he's got to do to get tested, it's all going along in the right direction.” Taylor Hall, who has been through the comeback process himself, said the path back from a head injury rarely moves in a straight line. “Concussions are never a straight line to coming back,” Hall said. “There are good days and bad days, and as you progress and go harder and harder, you might feel differently.”
If Nikishin cannot play, the Hurricanes have Mike Reilly ready to go, with Charles Alexis LeGault recalled from the Chicago Wolves earlier this week. Reilly is Carolina's seventh defenseman at full health, giving Brind'Amour an emergency option while he waits to see whether the bracket and the injury timeline line up. The Hurricanes were not scheduled to have a morning practice Thursday, leaving the rest of the day to the Flyers, the Penguins and the calendar that will decide when Carolina resumes its playoff run.
