Bruins star Charlie McAvoy enters COVID protocol, out for Game 4

In what could ultimately decide the result of their first-round series, the Boston Bruins have announced that star defenseman Charlie McAvoy has been placed in the NHL COVID-19 protocol and will not be available for Sunday’s Game 4 matchup with the Carolina Hurricanes.

The news comes as an unforeseen, last-minute change, as head coach Bruce Cassidy told the media no more than an hour earlier that he expected no changes to the lineup in Game 4 from Friday’s Game 3. McAvoy’s absence is very much a change in the lineup and one that the Bruins may not be able to withstand. As the Bruins look to even the series at two games apiece, they are now without their entire top pairing, as McAvoy joins Hampus Lindholm on the shelf. The defense pairs will shift upward accordingly, with Matt Grzelcyk and Brandon Carlo playing on the top pair, Game 3 hero Derek Forbort and Connor Clifton playing on the second pair, and Josh Brown drawing in to the lineup alongside Mike Reilly on the third pair. It is a much different looking group without McAvoy and Lindholm, and they will have their work cut out for them against a high-energy Hurricanes team.

The Bruins have to hope that they can somehow eek out a win in Game 4 or at the very least can get McAvoy back for Game 5. Cassidy also stated that Lindholm also could return for Game 5. However, down 3-1 going back to Raleigh will not be ideal even at full strength. McAvoy averaged nearly 25 minutes of ice time per game this season and has been over 25 through three playoff games. That ice time alone will be extremely difficult to make up, but McAvoy also led all Boston defensemen in points, hits and blocked shots. His absence cannot be understated — the Bruins will need all the luck they can get on Sunday.