As the Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens prepare for a grueling Game 7, the well-rested Carolina Hurricanes are emerging as the prohibitive favorites to win the Eastern Conference and make it to the Stanley Cup final. But is this long layoff going to hurt the Canes?
On Saturday, the Buffalo Sabres forced Game 7 of their second-round Stanley Cup playoff series against the Montreal Canadiens by beating the Habs 8-3. The Canadiens don’t come out of Saturday’s game as a series winner, but neither do the Sabres.
No, the biggest winner in Saturday’s result is the team the Sabres or Canadiens will face in the Eastern Conference final – the Carolina Hurricanes.
While some might argue that Buffalo or Montreal could use the momentum they will have by winning Game 7 as something that will give them the edge on Carolina, we’re not one of these people. The Hurricanes have been off since May 9, and the Eastern Conference finals won’t start until May 21.
The truth is, the Hurricanes are going to use this rest to jump all over the Canadiens or Sabres and make relatively short work of them to win the Eastern final.
Anyone who watched the Canes maraud over the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers in the first two rounds will tell you it’s highly unlikely the Hurricanes will be flat and rusty against either the Sabres or the Habs. That’s because of a couple of key reasons.
The first reason Carolina will be in good shape is that the Canadiens and Sabres have had lengthy first- and second-round series. Montreal needed the full seven games to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning in the opening round, while the Sabres needed six games to dispose of the Boston Bruins in Round 1.
So the fact that the Canadiens and Sabres need seven games to settle their second-round series means the Hurricanes will have played the bare minimum – nearly a full series more than Buffalo and Montreal have played. That can only be a good thing for Carolina, as we all know that players on every team play injured. Having more than 10 days off to get healthy will clearly benefit the Canes.
Here’s something else that could play into Carolina’s hands: let’s say the Sabres and Canadiens need overtime to settle Game 7 on Monday. Now, let’s say Montreal and Buffalo are still tied after the first overtime period is played. Now you’re talking about nearly another full game of wear-and-tear on the Sabres and Canadiens.
Surely no one would dare to argue that it is going to be an advantage for either of those teams against the Hurricanes, right? To the contrary, the more those two teams take bites out of each other, the better off the Canes are going to fare against them in the Eastern final.
The way things have played out thus far in the 2026 post-season, Carolina is going to be a major favorite to win the Eastern final and take on either the Colorado Avalanche or Vegas Golden Knights in the Cup final. The Canadiens and Sabres are both solid squads, but at this stage, either one of them beating the Hurricanes in the first round would be considered a massive upset.
Stranger things have happened than a Montreal or Buffalo win over Carolina. But you have to give the Canes credit – they’ve been this year’s most dominant team in the playoffs.
Until the Sabres or Canadiens show otherwise, the Hurricanes deserve to be the prohibitive favorite to win the East and battle for the second Cup championship in franchise history.
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