Saturday night brought some big changes to the NHL playoffs. Both the Boston Bruins and Colorado Avalanche were knocked out, meaning there are now just five teams competing for the Stanley Cup.
Because Boston and Colorado were knocked out, Lightning fans will no longer get to watch two of their former forwards, Pat Maroon and Ross Colton, for the rest of the playoffs.
Maroon, 36, appeared in all 13 playoff games for the Bruins this year, posting two helpers and a minus-2 rating. While he did not produce much offensively, his physical presence and leadership made him become a key contributor to Boston's lineup.
If the Bruins do not re-sign or he decides to walk, Maroon will be an unrestricted free agent this July.
As for Colton, he appeared in 11 games for the Avalanche this postseason, recording one goal, three assists, and a plus-2 rating. In the second round against the Dallas Stars, the 27-year-old had one assist in six games.
While Colton had a fairly quiet postseason, he had the best regular season of his career thus far with the Avalanche. In 80 games, he had 17 goals to go along with a career-high 40 points.
