We at least know when the games will happen.
As we wake up to Game 1 of the Hurricanes/Rangers series, most of us had the same question:
When are the other games?
Finally, after Boston defeated Toronto in overtime of Game 7, the entire Eastern Conference Semifinals were set and the league felt they could announce the rest of the schedule.
Well, at least the dates.
ROUND 2 IS SET, Y’ALL ️
Details » https://t.co/tM3BBIgSTU pic.twitter.com/TWuUo7Mr0b
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) May 5, 2024
So the full schedule, plus times and TV sites when known are as follows:
Game 1-Sunday, May 5th, 4 PM, ESPN
Game 2-Tuesday, May 7th, TBD, ESPN
Game 3-Thursday, May 9th, TBD, TNT/TruTV/Max
Game 4-Saturday, May 11th, TBD, TNT/TruTV/Max
Game 5-Monday, May 13th, TBD, TBD *If Necessary
Game 6-Thursday, May 16th, TBD, TBD *If Necessary
Game 7-Saturday, May 18th, TBD, TBD *If Necessary
So why did it take until Boston finished off Toronto? Likely the cause is the NBA. Had Toronto completed the comeback the league wouldn’t have had to work around an NBA tenant for that series as well, and thus could schedule whenever they wanted. Now with the Bruins in it, they had to make sure that series wouldn’t run up against the Celtics. Frankly, the NHL isn’t going to want Boston and New York playing on the same day. As you can see the Bruins/Panthers series alternates the off days with the Canes/Rangers, even up to the point of their extra travel day is between Games 5 and 6 .
So why aren’t any other times set? Blame Dallas/Vegas. With Dallas being in the Central Time Zone and Vegas being in the Pacific, the start times could wildly vary based on the winner—not to mention the Stars are also sharing a building with an NBA team in their own playoff run. The league likely would want to try to start Dallas games closer to a 9 or 9:30 window rather than a 10 or 10:30, but games that start in Denver or Las Vegas can face off in that 10-10:30 time span. As the Vegas/Dallas series also will determine who gets home ice against the Colorado Avalanche, that’s a big factor in everything. So, once you know the final series, you can set their times and then set the Canes/Rangers around that.
Expect Tuesday’s game time to be announced almost immediately after the Vegas/Dallas game wraps up, along with Games 3 and 4. After Game 4 we of course go game by game depending on how the other series are going.
Either way, let’s drop the puck!