The Toronto Maple Leafs aren't the only ones resting their star players for Friday's season finale. The Boston Bruins have responded in kind, with eight regulars set to watch from the press box.
Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, and David Pastrnak are among those who will sit out.
On Thursday, Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe announced that Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares, and No. 1 goaltender Jack Campbell would all skip the Boston game.
The move by both teams to give their stars the night off has created some intrigue with respect to playoff matchups.
If the visiting Bruins can defeat the Leafs and the New York Islanders beat the Tampa Bay Lightning in any fashion, or if the Bruins earn a point in Toronto and the Isles win, we’re staring at another Bruins-Leafs tilt in Round 1. Otherwise, the Leafs will play Tampa and the Bruins will face the top seed from the Metropolitan Division — the Carolina Hurricanes.
No matter who they wind up playing, the Leafs know they have locked up home-ice advantage for the first round of the playoffs.
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