Jim Montgomery made it clear after Game 4: If Patrice Bergeron is cleared to play in Wednesday’s Game 5 and feels up to it, he’s playing.
“You don’t take chances in the playoffs,” Montgomery said.
What the “chance” is might depend on who you talk to. In Montgomery’s mind, the “chance” is not playing your best lineup in a playoff game, no matter how good the Bruins have looked the last two games.
In the minds of some fans and media members, the “chance” is playing Bergeron when he is still probably not 100% and could potentially re-injure himself in a game they believe the Bruins can win without him.
Making his weekly appearance on “Jones & Mego” on Tuesday, NESN analyst and WEEI Sunday Skate host Andrew Raycroft weighed in on the debate around playing Bergeron in Game 5 and sided completely with Montgomery, citing a personal experience from his playing career to back it up.
“You have to play him,” Raycroft said. “If he’s ready to go, if he’s healthy, you don’t test hockey karma. You don’t test sports karma and say, ‘Oh, we’re gonna overlook this opponent.’ Unfortunately, I was on a team with Patrice Bergeron that had a 3-1 lead coming home and we blew the series.
“I don’t regret Game 7, but I look back and regret Game 5, not winning that one. I think people understand and recognize that the last game is always the hardest to win. If Patrice is healthy, you don’t say, ‘Ah, we’ll just let him rest a little bit longer to get to the next round.’ You have to worry about winning [Game 5].”
Raycroft is referencing the 2003-04 season, his and Bergeron’s rookie year. The Bruins were the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference and went up three games to one on the seventh-seeded Montreal Canadiens with a chance to close out the series at home in Game 5. Instead, they lost that game 5-1 and then lost Games 6 and 7 as well.
This Bruins team losing three straight to this Panthers team might seem unfathomable, especially given how much better Boston has looked the last two games even without Bergeron and David Krejci in the lineup, but you just never know. Florida could squeak one out and suddenly gain some confidence and momentum. Someone else on the Bruins could get hurt.
To both Montgomery and Raycroft’s points: You don’t take chances in the playoffs. The Bruins are better with Bergeron in the lineup, and so if he’s cleared to play and feels good Wednesday night, you play him.
As for whether or not Bergeron actually will play, Montgomery said Wednesday morning that Bergeron will take warmups before Game 5 and classified him as a “game-time decision.” Montgomery said the final decision will be a group one with “everybody” having input.
“The majority of it [the decision] is going to be Patrice’s, though,” Montgomery said. “As long as he feels after warmups that he feels everything’s good, he’s gonna play.”
Game 5 is set for 7 p.m. Wednesday night at TD Garden on NESN and ESPN.
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