Bruce Cassidy Insists Extra Rest Won’t Hurt Tuukka Rask Before Stanley Cup Final

The Boston Bruins punched their ticket to their first Stanley Cup Final since 2013 after a 4-0 Game 4 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night, that much we know.

What we don’t know, however, is who the B’s will play, as the San Jose Sharks currently hold a 2-1 Western Conference Final lead over the St. Louis Blues, and when the Cup Final will begin.

Boston hasn’t had much rest throughout its playoff run and has had to quickly turn the page from one series to the next. But the tables have turned this time around, and while the extra rest will be nice for the B’s — particularly Tuukka Rask who has been a force between the pipes — some worry the extra time between series may end up doing more bad than good.

Head coach Bruce Cassidy is not one of those people.

“I don’t think the break will hurt him, other than your typical  … you lose some of your sharpness of game intensity,” Cassidy said, per The Boston Globe’s Matt Porter. “I just see Tuukka, not only as a goalie but as a person, just a really zoned-in guy right now, really even-keeled. So I don’t see why that would change in a week.”

Rask has been unbelievable all throughout the playoffs, and he has the numbers to back it up. And we’re sure he’ll work hard during the time off to remain the “really zoned-in guy” he’s been.