Patrice Bergeron, Joe Pavelski listed as game-time decisions for upcoming playoff games
A pair of respected veteran centers may be on the verge of returning to the ice for their respective teams in the upcoming days of Stanley Cup Playoff action.
With the Boston Bruins slated to play Game 5 of their series against the Florida Panthers on Wednesday evening, team captain Patrice Bergeron is officially considered a game-time decision.
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery confirmed Bergeron’s status in his media availability on Wednesday morning. The Bruins currently lead the Panthers three games to one in the series and can advance with a win in Game 5.
Bergeron, whose age (37) matches his uniform number, has been out with an upper-body injury since the Bruins’ regular-season finale against the Montreal Canadiens on Apr. 13.
🎥 Coach Montgomery on Patrice Bergeron's status for Game 5: "He’ll take warmups and we’ll make a game-time decision…as long as he feels after warmups that he feels everything’s good, he’s gonna play." pic.twitter.com/6dnnI8bF9G
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) April 26, 2023Shifting over to the Western Conference: Joe Pavelski is expected to fly to Minnesota for Game 6 of the Dallas Stars’ quarterfinal playoff series against the Wild.
Like the Bruins, the Stars are one win away from advancing to the second round, although they’ve lost an additional game along the way. Dallas has found success in the playoffs despite losing Pavelski to an upper-body injury back in Game 1.
Pavelski appeared in all 82 of the Stars’ regular-season games, collecting 28 goals and 77 points. Tyler Seguin has thrived in an increased role for Dallas in Pavelski’s absence, torching the Wild for four goals and five points in five playoff contests.
Stars head coach Peter DeBoer said Pavelski will skate on Thursday and will be a game-time decision. The Stars and Wild are set to do battle at Xcel Energy Center at an undisclosed time on Thursday.
Only two playoff games are on tap for Wednesday evening. First, Boston will host Florida at TD Garden at 7:00 p.m. ET; two-and-a-half hours later, the Seattle Kraken will visit the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena in Denver.