The long-held notion proper right here is that the Bruins’ most admirable prime quality is what makes them so onerous to predict when it comes to the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Over the earlier 50 years, native hockey followers have been dealt with to some good hockey inside the frequent season that has been spurred by a nightly work ethic that’s usually second-to-none. And the Bruins have raised exactly one Cup in these years. Groups that presumably didn’t current up for that Tuesday evening time tilt in January have been able to marshal their expertise and get that one extra goal in a playoff assortment that the B’s, attempt as they might, merely couldn’t muster.
This 12 months feels completely totally different.
This 12 months, the Bruins are as gifted as anyone, and further so than most. They’ve a goalie who have to be a slam-dunk Vezina Trophy winner. They’ve the facility to throw out a No. 1 defenseman on all three pairs or load up the very best 4. They’ve the Rocket Richard Trophy runner-up and 9 players who’ve produced 45 elements or additional.
Now they throw all that firepower in direction of a employees inside the Florida Panthers who thought they’ve been these developing one factor specific a 12 months up to now. The Panthers acquired 58 video video games ultimate 12 months, not pretty the doc breaking 65 of this 12 months’s Bruins, nonetheless nonetheless one larger than the 1970-71 Bruins. The massive commerce they made to amass MatthewTkachuk was made for the playoffs. They just about didn’t make it, nonetheless they lastly purchased in on the ultimate week of the season.
The Panthers’ reward is that they get to play the Bruins. On the one hand, they’ll take the ol’ “we’ve-got-nothing-to-lose” technique. On the alternative hand, it may very well be one different 12 months the Panthers had an amazing employees after which exited early as soon as extra.
We’re taking the latter.
Right here’s how the teams match up:
FORWARDS
Bruins
Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-Jake DeBrusk
Pavel Zacha-David Krejci-David Pastrnak
Taylor Corridor-Charlie Coyle-Tyler Bertuzzi
Nick Foligno-Tomas Nosek-Garnet Hathaway
Panthers
Carter Verhaege-Sasha Barkov-Sam Reinhart
Eetu Luostarinen-Anton Lundell-Matthew Tkachuk
Ryan Lomberg-Eric Staal—Anthony Duclair
Nick Cousins-Colin White-Givani Smith
The Skinny: Tkachuk is the maestro for the Panthers, nonetheless the agitator extraordinaire isn’t a one-man band. Barkov was the Selke Award winner two years up to now and pulling once more his attracts at 54 %. Verhaege, as quickly as a participant who bounced between the AHL and ECHL, posted a 42-goal season whereas Sam Reinhart, though a minus-12, has pumped in 31 targets. The Cats are a dangerous employees off the frenzy that accomplished sixth in scoring (3.51 targets per sport). There’s a chance they could get excessive 9 forward Sam Bennett, in the meanwhile injured, once more in the end inside the assortment.
The B’s forward group is up inside the air, because of now now we have not seen a totally healthful lineup in observe. However this our biggest guess if Bergeron is able to play. The B’s (3.67 targets per sport) are second inside the league in offense. Pastrnak had a career 12 months – to date, anyway. There’s a large drop-off after his 61 targets and 113 elements. Brad Marchand is second in scoring with 67 elements. However the depth has been spectacular. They’ve purchased seven forwards who’ve notched 45 elements or additional. The B’s centermen do a better job of controlling the puck, significantly Bergeron and Nosek. As a employees, they win 54.5 % of their faceoffs, second to solely Dallas (54.8%). Pretty much as good as Barkov is, Florida is twenty second inside the league as a employees in faceoff proportion (48.9%). Bergeron’s properly being, after he’s now missed every observe days over the weekend, is an expert concern. However taking nothing away from the captain’s significance, the B’s depth is such that they could could even miss him for a sport or two and survive, though the possession sport would take successful.
The Edge: Bruins.
DEFENSE
Bruins
Dmitry Orlov-Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm-Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort-Connor Clifton
Panthers
Gustav Forsling-Aaron Ekblad
Marc Staal-Brandon Montour
Josh Mahura-Radko Gudas
The Skinny: Montour has had a breakout season. All the time a serviceable puck-moving defenseman, Montour’s earlier career biggest was 37 elements ultimate 12 months. This season, the 29-year-old Montour is third on the Panthers with 16-57-73 totals. Ekblad, the first whole resolve in 2014, has not liked a really perfect season (minus-14) and even wanted to endure skilled golfer Brooks Koepka mocking him with a guests cone, presumably a feeling-no-pain gesture that went viral nonetheless. However he’s capable of being considerably higher. With Gudas, B’s forwards would possibly wish to protect their heads up. Defending, nonetheless, has not been a strong swimsuit for the Panthers. Their 3.32 targets in direction of frequent is twenty first inside the league and worst amongst playoff teams. It’s not all on the D, nonetheless they share in that amount.
The B’s, within the meantime, have their very personal Large Three in McAvoy, Lindholm and Orlov. They might unfold them out and have one amongst them on each pair, nonetheless it seems like they’re going to load up the very best 4, which moreover consists of Brandon Carlo, having enjoyable together with his biggest season as an expert. Whomever they decide to sit out – Forbort or Matt Grzelcyk – would undoubtedly be collaborating in for practically each different playoff employees.
The Edge: Bruins
GOALTENDING
Bruins
Linus Ullmark
Jeremy Swayman
Panthers
Alex Lyon
Sergei Bobrovsky
The Skinny: Give Alex Lyon credit score rating. The 30-year-old journeyman, who has 39 NHL video video games on his resume, carried out very properly down the stretch, posting a 2.82 GAA and .914 save proportion. He went 6-1-1 with a .943 save proportion and 1.87 GAA inside the playoff push. With out that effectivity, the Panthers won’t have made the post-season. Whether or not he’ll get it or not, he’s earned the Recreation 1 start. In the meantime, Bobrovsky may very well be very good – when he models his ideas to it. However with a .901 save proportion, he’s barely over the goalie’s Mendoza line this 12 months.
In the meantime, the B’s goalie tandem has been historically good. Ullmark’s .938 save proportion tied the ultimate Bruin goalie to spice up the Cup, Tim Thomas. And Ullmark and Swayman are the first duo to win 40 and 20 video video games, respectively.
Furthermore, those who don’t watch the Bruins generally generally tend to check out the B’s league-leading GAA of two.12 and assume its as a result of defense-first strategies made well-known beneath Claude Julien and Bruce Cassidy. However with one of the simplest ways the D-men turn into concerned now, the B’s hand over additional odd-man rushes than they used to. Each Ullmark and Swayman have been there to shut the door all season.
The Edge: Bruins.
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Skinny: The B’s have confirmed some indicators inside the ultimate two weeks that they might be breaking out of their second-half swoon on the flexibility play, nonetheless their 0-for-5 exhibiting inside the frequent season finale has kicked up some issues as soon as extra. Nonetheless, their 22.2% success charge (twelfth) isn’t far behind the Panthers’ 22.8% (ninth).
The outlet on the penalty kill is cavernous, nonetheless. The B’s have had the proper PK inside the league just about from the get-go, with a kill charge of 87.3%. Even when employees chief in PK minutes, Forbort, went out of the lineup on March 16, the B’s kill certainly not wavered. The Panthers, within the meantime, are inside the bottom third of the league at 76%.
The B’s are moreover plus-6 at 4-on-4 (10-4) whereas the Panthers are plus-1 (3-2).
The Edge: Bruins.
COACHING
Bruins
Jim Montgomery
Panthers
Paul Maurice
The 56-year-old Maurice has been at this so prolonged, he began his educating career with the Hartford Whalers. In two stops with Hartford/Carolina, a two-year stint with the Toronto Maple Leafs and eight-plus 12 months run with the Winnipeg Jets, he’s missed the playoffs 13 events. It regarded like he was headed for No. 14 until he lit into his lethargic employees all through a timeout in Toronto on March 29. The Panthers received right here once more to beat the Leafs, then acquired their subsequent 5 video video games to get into the playoffs. He has one journey to the Finals with Carolina.
Whereas Montgomery doesn’t have the extended NHL resume that Maurice possesses, the constructive vibe that he dropped on the B’s dressing room has turned an amazing employees into a really perfect one. However Montgomery has launched additional than merely pats on the once more. His aggressive system has coaxed not one nonetheless two 50-point season from defensemen (Lindholm and McAvoy).
The Edge: Bruins.
INTANGIBLES
The Panthers profit from being clear underdogs and, within the occasion that they by hook or by crook get a foothold on this assortment, you’ll be capable of wager that almost all hockey followers exterior of New England shall be pulling for them. That usually is a burden for the favorite.
The Edge: Panthers.
The Choose: Bruins in six. The primary spherical is on a regular basis the toughest.
