Boston Pride semifinal game 2 to be at 8pm?

As previously mentioned, the Boston Pride will be hosting their leg of the semifinals of the NWHL playoffs on March 4th, 5th, and 6th. The schedule as released is:

Game 1: Friday, March 4 - 7:00 pm ET

Game 2: Saturday, March 5 - Time TBD

Game 3 (if necessary): Sunday, March 6 - 7:00 pm ET

That game 2 "TBD" time is a little unfortunate, though. So we went to the source: the Raymond Bourque Arena schedule. The 7pm game is there, listed as such:

And then on Saturday, there are a lot of games. Valley League has games in the morning, and then in the evening is the same sort of listing as the day before:

This means that the game would be at 8pm, if it follows the convention of the previous one. However, the schedule on Saturday from 12-5:30 is a single, tentative event. As Raymond Bourque Arena in Beverly is the home rink for the Endicott Gulls,  the afternoon ice is being held for the Endicott Men's hockey team, in the event of them hosting the ECAC Northeast Championship game.

How likely is it that they would host the event? I'm so glad you asked. The Endicott Gulls are sitting in 2nd place in ECACNE right now, behind only Nichols. Nichols has 2 games remaining, Endicott has one. The ECACNE playoffs are a three-round playoff tournament. As it stands now, Endicott (9-4-1) would have to fend off the 5-9-1 Becker. In two games this season, Endicott has beaten Becker 4-2 away and 6-1 at home. They should mop them up quickly.

Then, with Becker handled, Endicott would have to face someone in the semifinals. Suffolk is the most likely choice, as the league win column really drops off after the 5th seed. This would put Suffolk at Endicott on March 2nd, as Nichols hosts the winner of a Salve Regina / Johnson and Wales quarterfinal. If SR/JaW can beat Nichols and Endicott can beat Suffolk, then Endicott would host the championship game, and the Boston Pride would definitely play game 2 at 8pm on March 5th.

If Endicott loses one of the quarterfinal or semifinal games, or Nichols manages to protect home ice, then the Championship game won't be at Raymond Bourque Arena and we're cast back into uncertainty about gametime. I personally would like some certainty in the matter, but what can you do?

We'll keep you updated on all of the news around the Boston Pride and their search for the Isobel Cup!