Cavs' Friday Home Game Prompts Hockey Schedule Change, Traffic Alert

CLEVELAND, OH —The Cleveland Cavaliers' 115-108 loss to the Brooklyn Nets in Tuesday's NBA Play-In Tournament opener means the Cavs get a second shot at the NBA Playoffs proper on Friday at home.

However, the contest —scheduled for 7:30 p.m. against the winner of Wednesday night's game between the Atlanta Hawks and Charlotte Hornets —has prompted a scheduling change for the Cleveland Monsters hockey team and a downtown Cleveland traffic advisory for Friday night.

The Monsters had been scheduled to host Quebec-based Laval Rocket at 7 p.m. Friday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

But late Tuesday, the American Hockey League (AHL) announced the game would be rescheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse because of the conflict with the NBA game on Friday.

According to the league, "all tickets purchased and held for the originally scheduled Monsters game on April 15 will be honored for the rescheduled game on April 14, with seats being automatically converted to the new game date in the fans' SeatGeek account."

Fans with additional questions can call the Monsters Ticket Sales Team at 216-420-0000.

The presence of hockey fans on Friday already was expected to add to the crowd in the Gateway District because the Cleveland Guardians are scheduled to play their home opener at 7:10 p.m. that day against the San Francisco Giants at Progressive Field.

Now, with a Cavs postseason home game on tap, over 50,000 sports fans are expected in the district.

That has prompted the Cavs to post a Downtown Cleveland Traffic Advisory on their website:

"Downtown Cleveland will be buzzing with excitement this Friday, April 15th as tens of thousands of fans will descend upon the Gateway District for the Cavs game at 7:30 p.m. and the Cleveland Guardians home opener vs. the San Francisco Giants at 7:10 p.m," the team wrote. "The public is advised that heavy traffic conditions are likely and parking around the facilities will be limited. Traffic patterns around Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and Progressive Field may also be altered."

The Cavs said the gates to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse will open at 6 p.m. Friday, 90 minutes prior to tip-off. As of Wednesday morning, tickets to the Play-In Tournament game still were available online.