Cassidy: Bruins 'could rest players' during round-robin tournament

Boston Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy could use the round-robin tournament among the Eastern Conference's top four teams to ease some of his older players back into action from the lengthy layoff.

"We absolutely could rest players," Cassidy said Monday, according to NBC Sports' Joe Haggerty

"Do our veterans need all three games to get to the top of their game? Even if they do, should we play them and risk injuries? There’s a lot that goes into it. I think every team is probably going to have a little of the same approach (in the round robin) and they are going to want to be at their best and healthiest headed into the playoffs."

Entering the season, the Bruins boasted the fourth-oldest roster in the NHL with an average age of 28.5, per The Athletic's James Mirtle. Several of the Bruins' core players, including 43-year-old captain Zdeno Chara, are over the age of 31 and played more games than nearly every team in 2018-19 after reaching the Stanley Cup Final.

The Bruins, Washington Capitals, Philadelphia Flyers, and Tampa Bay Lightning are set to compete in a round-robin tournament to determine the top four seeds in the Eastern Conference. The winning team will secure "home-ice advantage" throughout the conference stage but will only benefit by having the last change, since games are set to be played at two hub cities without fans in attendance.

Cassidy says the decision regarding the players' workload during the tournament ultimately rests with them.

"Would we like to win all three games? Of course, in a perfect world, but I think with all teams there's going to be some sort of a preseason mentality worked in with how the lineups are constructed every game," Cassidy said.

"But if the (veteran players) want to play every game then I'm going to listen to them. It's their bodies and they would know best. Then in the last game in the third period, we're going to shut our eyes and hope nobody gets hurt."

The Bruins owned a league-best 44-14-12 record when play was suspended in March and had a six-point cushion on the second-place St. Louis Blues.