Thus Concludes Boston's Disappointing Stay In The Toronto Bubble As TB Beats Them In 5 Games

 

    You'd be hard-pressed to find a more bizarre stay in the NHL postseason than the one just completed by the Bruins in the Toronto bubble. They weren't ready to go and went 0-3 in round-robin play before beating the Hurricanes in five games then falling in five games to the Lightning (the same story from 2 years ago!) in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Fittingly, the series-clinching victory for Tampa Bay was extra painful for Boston as the Lightning battled them for nearly two full overtime sessions before Victor Hedman sent the B's home to their families and friends with a shot through a Pat Maroon screen at 14:10 in double overtime. The Lightning won 3-2 as they kept their perfect overtime record (5-0) going this postseason while the Bruins (1-2) dropped their second overtime contest of the series (they also lost 4-3 in Game 2). 

    Any season-ending loss is going to hurt for awhile but Boston will be kicking themselves since you could argue that Game 5 was their best performance overall against Tampa Bay. They outshot the Lightning 47-35 and Jaroslav Halak (32 saves) deserved a better fate since he saved his best outing of the playoffs for this bitter defeat. The Black and Gold never led in Game 5 and they needed a clutch goal from David Krejci with 2:33 left in regulation just to send it to overtime in the first place. After scoring six goals in the first two games of the series, Boston's offense mostly disappeared to the tune of four total goals in their last three games. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay scored 19 goals in five games (obviously with a big boost from their 7 in Game 3). 

    After missing Games 2-4 with an injury, the Lightning's second best defenseman Ryan McDonagh returned to action and played 31:50 with six hits and three blocked shots. As it turned out, Tampa didn't even need its great captain Steven Stamkos (out with a core muscle injury all postseason) to get past Boston. Nikita Kucherov also got banged up tonight and only played 9:09 but it still didn't really matter since the Lightning outworked, outsmarted, outhustled and simply outplayed the Bruins for much of Games 2-5. 

    Ondrej Palat scored a goal for a fourth straight game which tied a Lightning franchise record in the playoffs. He tipped in a shot by BU's Kevin Shattenkirk at 4:21 of the second period for a 1-0 Tampa lead. Blake Coleman added the second assist on Palat's fifth goal of the postseason/series. David Pastrnak tied it with a sweet one-timer at 12:38 of the second period. His third goal of the postseason was thanks to a great feed from Krejci with the second helper going to Patrice Bergeron as Andrei Vasilevskiy (45 saves) had no chance to stop the laser that actually hit the camera mounted in the back of his net. 

    Another fortuitous deflection for Tampa-this time from Anthony Cirelli-gave the Lightning a 2-1 advantage at 12:03 of the third period. Hedman had the initial shot and Brayden Point (6-game point streak) notched the second assist on Cirelli's third goal of the postseason. Boston finally got some puck luck of their own to get the tying tally. Zdeno Chara's shot was tipped by a Lightning player right to Krejci who was parked out front for an easy goal. Connor Clifton added the other assist on Krejci's fourth goal of the postseason (and 40th all-time which tied John Bucyk for fifth-most in franchise playoff history). Boston came out on fire in the first overtime (outshooting Tampa Bay 11-7 in the first 20 minutes) but they started to lose steam when Krejci was correctly whistled for tripping halfway through it. They survived that but never really could recover as the Lightning outshot them 7-1 in double overtime before Hedman-who played a game-high 38:25-put the B's out of their misery with more assists for Shattenkirk and Point.

    I'm sure that many lazy Bruins fans and/or media members will put much of the blame for losing this series on Tuukka Rask's slender shoulders. While they certainly would have had a better chance to beat Tampa with him, the Lightning were truthfully the superior club in almost every possible way. As I said before, Boston's offense evaporated as the series went along and every time their defense made a mistake, it felt like Tampa Bay was right there to make them pay. There is no shame to losing to the Lightning-one of the best teams in the NHL by any measure-but this was a rather depressing way to see a Presidents' Trophy winner go out so easily. The B's had such an outstanding regular season and then for whatever reason, the time off really hurt them since they could never find that extra gear when they needed it most. 

    We have no idea when the next Bruins season will begin and likewise, there are many unsettled issues surrounding the team now that they are officially done for 2019-20. Do they re-sign their unrestricted free agents in Torey Krug, Chara or Joakim Nordstrom? What about their young restricted free agents Jake DeBrusk (23) and Matt Grzelcyk (26)? Losing in five games to the Lightning in the second round shows that Boston has to find a way to get younger. Drafting well and developing their own prospects would definitely help in that regard. Oh and it also shines a light on the fact that last season's Stanley Cup Final loss to St. Louis in Game 7 will probably represent the last true run with this same core group of players. That was their golden opportunity to win another Stanley Cup and it only gets harder as the years pass by, they all get older and more worn down from the grind of long NHL careers. 

    

    

    

The Lightning Push The Bruins To The Brink Of Elimination With A Frustrating 3-1 Loss In Game 4

 

    Let's just get this out of the way first: yes Tuukka Rask not being here for his team is a major factor but even with him on the ice, the Lightning would most likely still be in control of this series. After an unexpected day off (thanks to the NHL temporarily pausing the postseason to focus on racial injustice), Tampa Bay resumed its beating of Boston with a 3-1 win in Game 4 to take a 3-1 series lead. How dire are things for the Bruins after they lost their third straight game? Well, they have never rallied to win a series when they are down 1-3. In that dire situation, they are 0-23 in best-of-7 series. Conversely, the Lightning are perfect at closing things out when they are up 3-1 in a series since they are 5-0 in that favorable spot. Woof. Game 5 is on Monday night (7, NBCSN). 

    Boston's margin for error is so small when they matchup with Tampa right now so needless to say, allowing the first goal and finding themselves down 3-0 in the second period is basically a guaranteed loss before its even over. It's easy to rip Nick Ritchie (12 penalty minutes including a 5-minute major for a boarding penalty that led to the 3rd goal) and Jaroslav Halak (23 saves but his customary whiff on a routine glove save) since they both had outings that they surely would like to forget but I think that overlooks a sputtering Bruins offense that has managed to score two goals total in Games 3 and 4 combined. Is that bad? Their lone goal today came with 12:56 left in regulation as Jake DeBrusk used his sneaky fast release to throw a wrist shot through Andrei Vasilevskiy's (29 saves, 9th win of the postseason) five-hole.

    Too often, Boston's power play (1-for-4) or 5-on-5 for that matter was overpassing or simply not hitting the net when they had some great scoring chances. Brandon Carlo actually ventured forward for a pair of opportunities that were predictably stuffed by Vasilevskiy-one of the NHL's best goaltenders. Meanwhile, David Pastrnak had a game-high six shots on goal but none of them found the back of the net which is not good enough from one of the NHL's top goal-scorers this season-no matter what injury he might have. Nikita Kucherov (2 assists) is having a nice series which is totally on brand but Tampa has to be thrilled with its secret offensive weapon: Ondrej Palat who has two goals today & four already in the series including his current three-game goal-streak. Also, Victor Hedman (game-high 27:09)-who is no doubt on the short list of best defensemen in the league-has four points (3 goals, assist) in these four games including another tally this afternoon.

    It's hard to pinpoint one main reason for Boston's struggles on defense in this latest setback because all three goals came in separate and annoying ways: awful coverage in front of the net, an easy stop that Halak has to make every time and a crazy deflection that ended up behind him. Ugh. Brayden Point's filthy stickhandling made Torey Krug look like a fool but truthfully, all five Bruins on the ice (plus Halak) were too slow to react as he hit Palat with a one-timer that he put in the upper corner of the net. 1-0 Lightning at 8:59 of the first period. Things only got worse from there for the B's as Palat's second goal came at 12:29 of the second period. It was another one-timer, this time from Anthony Cirelli and Tyler Johnson with Halak's invisible glove hand the real hero on the shot that was from distance. Boston had nearly killed all of Ritchie's five-minute major but Hedman's harmless shot from the point deflected off Par Lindholm's skate and floated over Halak but under the crossbar. 3-0 Tampa at 18:04 of the second period. Goodnight everybody! Tyler Johnson and Kucherov had the helpers on the goal that likely ended the Bruins' life in the Toronto bubble for all intents and purposes. 

       DeBrusk's fourth goal of the postseason came at 7:04 of the third period to cut it to 3-1 Lightning but it was far too late to have any real effect on the final outcome. Boston's two BU alums that grew up in Masschusetts (Charlie Coyle and Matt Grzelcyk) had the assists on DeBrusk's smooth finish. The Bruins actually outshot the Lightning 11-6 in the third but that's a tad misleading since Tampa was just trying to escape with their collective health intact. These B's have more than enough pride and professionalism to show up on Monday and put forth another solid effort but frankly, they are cooked. With no Rask, this isn't exactly a fair fight and you can sense the Lightning get more confident with each goal that they score.

    No matter if this series ends in five games, six games or seven, it feels like we're nearing the end of an era for the B's. I'm not really sure how Rask ever shows his face in Boston again let alone plays another game for the Bruins while 43-year-old captain Zdeno Chara seems on the verge of retirement. Last season was awesome up until Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final and then this one was great pre-pandemic as they captured the cursed Presidents' Trophy. Since that time, they went 0-3 in the round-robin (after not taking it seriously enough) which pissed away their top seed, they rolled in five games over the still inept Hurricanes and now they are 1-3 vs. Tampa Bay. Which part of that equation looks like an aberration? There are many valuable pieces left on the team but GM Don Sweeney will have some serious alterations to do during the bizarre offseason (Krug will get a serious pay raise either here or elsewhere). Those are all issues for another day though as Tampa Bay (5-0 in Game 5s in a best-of-7 series when leading the series 3-1) gets their first chance to eliminate Boston (7-16 in Game 5s in a best-of-7 series when trailing in the series 1-3) in two nights.

B's Cap Off Shameful Day In The NHL By No-Showing In Gross 7-1 Blowout Gm 3 Loss Vs. TB

 

    At a time like this when our country literally seems to be falling apart more and more everyday due to many factors (the Covid-19 pandemic, racial unrest, senseless killings by police, a disgrace of a President, apocalyptic wildfires and hurricanes bearing down on California and the Gulf Coast respectively, etc.), it's hard to get too worked up about a sporting event. On the same day when the NBA rightfully paused its playoff action in their Orlando bubble, MLS, WNBA and MLB also chose to postpone some of their games but the lillywhite NHL carried on like nothing was happening around them. The easy move was to not play any of their playoff games this evening after what unfolded around them but nope, the Bruins and Lightning played in Toronto while the Avalanche and Stars took the ice later in Edmonton.

    The B's looked like a team that didn't want to be there either as they were embarrassed from start to finish in a humbling 7-1 loss in Game 3, their largest margin of defeat in the postseason since April 29, 1992 (9-3 loss at Buffalo in Game 6 of Division semifinal). The Lightning won their second game in roughly 24 hours to take a 2-1 series lead and totally flip the momentum. Jaroslav Halak got the start but he only lasted basically half the game (31:18) as he allowed four goals on 16 shots. Rookie goaltender Dan Vladar was put in the impossible position to make his NHL debut in relief of him and he predictably allowed three goals on 15 shots. 

    Tampa Bay's power play had been a disaster (2-for-20 in the bubble) but they turned that around in a major way going 3-for-6 this evening. Nikita Kucherov (goal, 3 assists) set a playoff career-high with four points while Harvard's Alex Killorn (2 goals, assist) tied his playoff career-high with three points. Everybody on the Lightning put up numbers as Mikhail Sergachev (goal, 2 assists) had his first multi-point playoff performance, Brayden Point (goal, 2 assists) added three points of his own while even nobodies like Ondrej Palat and Yanni Gourde each had a goal and an assist. Apparently Andrei Vasilevskiy (23 saves) was in attendance but you could have put a traffic cone in Tampa's net and it probably would make around the same amount of stops. 

    Boston was down 2-0 in the first period as Tampa Bay set a franchise record by scoring its pair of goals (Palat on the power play then Gourde) only 15 seconds apart. Both of those were frustrating too since Palat's shot deflected off Zdeno Chara then Gourde's came from a breakaway when a referee literally ran into Bruins rookie defenseman Jeremy Lauzon. The wheels started to come off for the B's in the second period as Sergachev scored on the man-advantage before Brad Marchand notched a power-play goal (his team-leading seventh goal of the playoffs) that was very similar to last night's skate/stick re-direct. That didn't slow down Tampa as Killorn bagged a power play goal of his own-causing Halak to mercifully get the rest of the night off-then Point had a breakaway vs. Vladar which surprise ended in a goal then Killorn tallied another goal as the Bruins defense was in shambles. 

    Kucherov got the last goal in garbage time, I mean early in the third period. If you were looking for positive signs of life from anybody in a B's jersey, Charlie McAvoy, Torey Krug and David Krejci all showed plenty of understandable frustration as they tried to take it out by roughing up the Lightning when the outcome had long been decided. Every game in this series has been chippy and that will no doubt continue for as long as these pseudo-rivals line up against each other. 

    So where do we all go from here? Well besides hopefully waking up tomorrow and realizing that this has all been an extended national nightmare, we are then only left to assume that the prideful Bruins will show up on Friday night for Game 4 (7:30, USA Network) and at least submit a more satisfactory effort. Tampa is very good but they aren't unbeatable like it felt tonight while Boston is much better than this sorry effort would lead you to believe. I will call it a must-win for the Black and Gold too since they are not realistically going to win three straight games against the Lightning. Bigger picture for the club, it could be a defining moment for beloved players like Chara, Marchand, David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron, etc. who are likely making their last playoff run all together. No pressure or anything but yeah, Friday is a very important chapter in modern Bruins history. 

     

     

    

Lightning Respond With A 4-3 Overtime Victory In Game 2 To Even The Series 1-1 With The Bruins

 

    You are truly insane if you thought that Boston's Game 1 win on Sunday night meant that this second round series vs. Tampa Bay would be over fast let alone easy in any shape or form. Nope, these are two of the best teams in the NHL so naturally after losing the opener, the Lightning bounced back with a 4-3 overtime thriller. The extra session lasted less than five minutes (4:40 to be exact) as Ondrej Palat put in a loose puck (from Yanni Gourde and Pat Maroon) after his club dominated-outshooting the Bruins 9-1-in overtime and improved to 4-0 this postseason when the game goes beyond regulation. Thanks to the NHL's baffling schedule, these teams will be right back at it in less than 24 hours as Game 3 is tomorrow night (NBC Sports, 8). Don't bother wasting your breath because Jaroslav Halak (36 saves) will be Boston's starting goaltender for the rest of the series barring injury or a lopsided score.

    The B's were outshot 40-25 for the entire contest so that makes it feel like they should have lost by more than a goal. However, when you look at some other stats, you realize that it wasn't a complete fluke that they forced overtime in the first place. Boston won 52% of the face-offs, went 1-for-3 on the power play and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill, had four more hits (47-43), blocked nine more shots (27-18) and coughed up the puck five less times (15-10). The Bruins actually scored first courtesy of a very unlikely source-Nick "Don't Call Me Brett" Ritchie-and they also led 2-1 in the second period for a brief moment but they needed some clutch heroics from Brad Marchand late in the third period to tie it at three. 

    With one of Tampa's best players-defenseman Ryan McDonagh-sidelined with an unknown injury this evening, this was a wasted opportunity by the Black and Gold to take a commanding 2-0 series lead. Early on it seemed like things would go their way though as Ritchie stuffed in a loose puck just 3:14 into the first period. Ritchie's first point of the postseason was also assisted by Anders Bjork (another guy that has been mostly useless in the playoffs) who also notched his first point. Shortly after that, Tampa Bay appeared to tie it on Barclay Goodrow's tip-in but it was overturned since Brayden Point took his sweet time getting off the ice for a line change thus being offside and negating the goal. It didn't take the Lightning that long to recover from that disappointment as Blake Coleman scored on a diving one-timer from Zach Bogosian. Goodrow had the second assist on Coleman's second goal of the postseason at 12:42 that knotted it at 1-1. 

    Boston's power play has become the most dangerous one in the playoffs and true to form, they tallied another big goal. David Pastrnak whipped a crisp low pass to Marchand who was next to Andrei Vasilevskiy (22 saves) and put his skates into a V formation with his stick in the middle to knock it in. Brad's fifth goal of the postseason came at 14:33 of the second period from Pasta and Torey Krug. The B's could barely protect that lead before poof, it was gone. Nikita Kucherov deflected in a shot by BU's Kevin Shattenkirk (4-game point streak) at 15:28. Point added the second assist on Kucherov's third goal of the playoffs. 

    Tampa carried that momentum into the third period as Coleman scored his second goal of the night, this time on a breakaway. The incredible Victor Hedman (who played a game-high 28:37) found him with a step behind everyone on Boston and while he didn't have the cleanest shot, the changeup worked effectively enough to fool Halak and go through his five-hole at 10:40. I'm sure that was deflating to the Bruins but they turned the page quickly as one killer shift resulted in the tying goal by Marchand at 16:02. Pastrnak and Sean Kuraly worked hard to keep the puck in Tampa Bay's defensive zone and Brad was right on the doorstep to pop it in. It was an awesome moment for the B's and many other opponents would have been shook, but sadly not the Lightning.

    There are different theories about if it's better to have more time to think about a brutal playoff loss or to get back out there ASAP. For whatever dumb reason, the league took that out of our hands as they put not only one but possibly two back-to-backs (also Games 6 and 7 if it goes that long) in this huge playoff series. What else can you say but NHL gonna NHL? There are a million reasons why hockey will never be more than a niche sport in many parts of the world and little annoying things like this don't help its cause. Granted, this will all be a moot point once Game 3 starts and we stop complaining about a silly thing like this that we cannot control. Both teams will be playing under the same condensed timeline but at least with veteran rosters and experienced head coaches we can expect plenty more tight, drama-packed action as someone takes a 2-1 series lead.

       

    

Just Like 2 Years Ago, B's Take Gm. 1 vs. TB. Let's Hope The Rest Of The Series Plays Out Differently

 

    We knew that one way or another, the Bruins and the Lightning were on a collision course this postseason. While it's a shame that we aren't talking about the Eastern Conference Finals here-since I firmly believe that they are the two top teams in the East-we won't dwell on that since this should be a fantastic series no matter what. Boston took Game 1 by a final score of 3-2 this evening in Toronto as they got out to a three-goal lead before some sketchy moments in the end clinging to that one-goal advantage. It was a fair result though because they were the better club for most of the contest, led by goaltender Jaroslav Halak (35 saves) who improved to 4-0 since Tuukka Rask went home.

    This is the only the third time that Boston and Tampa Bay have met in the playoffs with the B's winning that epic seven game ECF series in 2011 on their way to the Stanley Cup and the Lightning paying them back years later (2018) with a gentleman's sweep (5 sad games). Tampa's captain and superstar center Steven Stamkos has been out since March following core surgery so as you would expect, his absence has left an impossible-to-fill void in the Lightning's lineup. I think not having Stamkos is most apparent on their power play where Tampa was 0-for-3 tonight, tacked onto the Columbus series that makes them 0-for-13 after the round-robin. Oof.

    The best period of the tilt for the Black and Gold came in the first where Boston outshot Tampa Bay 15-10 and they were rewarded with a late tally by Charlie Coyle. Playoff Krejci is a thing so I believe that Playoff Coyle should similarly follow suit because he becomes another player when the games matter most, as we saw last postseason. For the second time in these playoffs, Coyle showed off his crazy hands (hello ladies!) by knocking a puck out of the air for a goal. This time, it came in the form of a deft tip from Brandon Carlo's shot at 18:52. Brad Marchand added the second assist on Coyle's third goal of the playoffs. 

     Unlike the Lightning, Boston's power play has quietly been getting into gear since an ominous start against Carolina. They were only 1-for-3 this evening but it was a timely one as David Pastrnak slammed in a one-timer from Krejci (7-game point-streak, Boston's longest in the postseason since Patrice Bergeron in 2014) and Torey Krug (who keeps adding more zeroes to his upcoming contract every game now) for a 2-0 Bruins lead at 4:34 of the second period. This finally appeared to wake Tampa Bay up as they outshot Boston by a whopping 18-7 count in the frame yet they still couldn't find a way to get one past Halak. 

      Apparently starting and ending periods was an issue all game for the Lightning as once again, they gave up an early goal in the final stanza. Boston's top line made the magic happen as Bergy-the four-time Selke Winner-started the play by stealing the puck by Tampa's goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy (28 saves) then feeding it to Pasta who fittingly put some extra sauce on a backhand look to Marchand who didn't hesitate to knock it in. 3-0 Bruins at 1:17 of the third period on Brad's fourth goal of the playoffs. Tampa's All-World defenseman Victor Hedman wouldn't go down like that as he scored a pair of goals (at 8:50 and 18:46 with an extra skater on the ice) to make things rather scary at least from Boston's perspective. Both goals oddly enough deflected off of Charlie McAvoy then past Halak. The first was a weak wrist shot from the point so that has to be stopped no matter what. Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat had the assists on Hedman's first then Kevin Shattenkirk and Tyler Johnson did the honors on the second.

    Tampa Bay is bound to play a more complete game on Tuesday night (7, NBCSN) but I also expect Boston to not allow a pair of goals late in the third period. Clearly the difference between the Lightning being down 0-2 in the series versus tied 1-1 is enormous so there is no way they don't come with a full 60-minute effort. Halak outplayed Vasilevskiy so the question is can he do that three additional times? Moreover, does he really have to carry the B's or just not screw things up by allowing real some extra soft goals? All I know for sure is that all hockey fans are in for a treat with these powerhouse clubs facing each other. 

     

      

       

    

    

B's Get Past The Canes In Five Games Thanks To A Pair Of Power Play Goals In 2-1 Game 5 Nailbiter

    It wasn't always pretty but the most important thing is that the Bruins completed their most fundamental task today by beating the Hurricanes 2-1 in Game 5 which tipped the first round series in their favor 4-1. With that, Boston gets at least a few days of rest before what figures to be a much more difficult series in the second round against either Philadelphia (up 3-2 in their series vs. Montreal after losing tonight) or Tampa Bay (who similarly knocked Columbus out in 5 games earlier this afternoon). David Pastrnak returned after missing Games 2-4 and produced two assists while Boston scored both of its goals on the power play in the second period-a gift tap-in by David Krejci and a cheeky bank shot as time expired by Patrice Bergeron-and Jaroslav Halak finished with 23 saves.

     If high-scoring end-to-end action is your thing, this probably wasn't the tilt for you. Then again, a low-scoring contest that was so dictated by special teams not surprisingly ended up in Boston's favor. Their power play went 2-for-4 while their penalty kill was a perfect 3-for-3. It might actually have been Carolina's best outing of the entire series except for the whole scoring goals thing which last time I checked was rather important. Not having Andrei Svechnikov the past few games obviously was a huge factor but outside of Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen, their forward lines lack some real depth and ditto for their defensemen who are pretty terrible outside of Dougie Hamilton (seriously) and Jaccob Slavin. Oh and maybe alternating between Petr Mrazek (25 saves but he went 0-3 in the series) and backup goaltender James Reimer for every single game of the series wasn't a winning formula but what do I know? 

    The Canes couldn't have asked for a much better start in a possible elimination game as Haydn Fleury gave them a 1-0 lead almost halfway through the first period at 9:35. Aho and Jordan Martinook provided the assists on the promising young blueliner's second goal of the postseason. They say that the closeout game is always the hardest one to win and for almost two full periods, the Black and Gold looked pretty disinterested in the proceedings. Boston simply knows how to win though, something that can't be said for an opponent that fell to 1-8 against them combined the last two postseasons. With that in mind, Carolina made two mental mistakes as they clung to the 1-0 advantage in the second period and Boston did what a championship contender does: they made them pay dearly each time. You know the fact that Game 6 would have been tomorrow helped inspire the Bruins a tad as well since who wants to play another back-to-back in these strange times? 

    Playoff David Krejci got the party started for the B's as a loose puck found him wide open on the doorstep and it appeared like he couldn't believe his good fortune as he made it 1-1 at 15:20. His third goal of the postseason extended his point-streak to five games with Pasta and Bergy adding the helpers. What turned out to be the game-winning tally for Bergeron is something that will be shown for years to come namely when he eventually retires (fingers crossed as a Bruin) then enters the Hockey Hall of Fame. Few guys would have the combination of smarts to know the clock was running out on the second period while also possessing the skill to put the puck right in Mrazek's skates when Carolina's goaltender made a huge error by standing up too straight. Boston took a 2-1 lead with 3.5 seconds left in the frame on Bergeron's second goal of the postseason, assisted by Pastrnak and Krejci.

    The third period didn't feature many shots on goal (6-5 in favor of the Hurricanes) and while Carolina controlled the puck for long stretches in Boston's defensive zone, they couldn't solve Halak or Boston's air-tight defense again. Halak was at his best in Game 3 (besides his unforgivable turnover that led to the lone Canes goal) but he needed to be better than his shaky Game 4 self and thankfully he was solid. Whomever the B's meet next, Halak has to be on top of his game to give the Bruins their best chance to continue advancing. For now, they should be proud that they were able to beat a good team (albeit flawed) with relative ease despite a few off-ice issues that would affect lesser clubs in a much bigger way.

Lifeless Bruins Rally From Two-Goal Deficit In The 3rd Period For A Thrilling 4-3 Victory In Game 4

 

    If you are a Bruins fan, I sincerly hope that for some reason you missed the first two miserable periods of tonight's Game 4 between Boston and Carolina. It wasn't bad enough that the Hurricanes led 2-0 after the second period but simultaneously, the B's couldn't find a way to solve James Reimer (29 saves) who is just as mediocre as you remember from 2013 with Toronto. Luckily, the Black and Gold saved all their energy for an absolutely scintillating third period where they outscored the Canes 4-1 en route to a 4-3 win that gives them a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. 

    Both of Carolina's goals in the first and second period respectively were ones that Jaroslav Halak (16 saves) would surely like to have back. Justin Williams' shot from along the boards at least seemed to be through some traffic thus affecting Halak's vision but nonetheless, his glove hand just missed it for a 1-0 Canes lead at 9:17 of the first. Speaking of former Leafs bums, Jake Gardiner had the primary assist and Vincent Trocheck added the other helper on Williams' first goal of the postseason. Boston had some chances, like when David Krejci hit the post but for much of the first 45+ minutes of action, they were gripping their sticks too tightly and trying to pick corners on a guy that frankly shouldn't necessitate that type of effort or precision.

      Things got worse for the B's in the second period as Jordan Martinook's shot slipped right under Halak's glove once again. No excuse on that, Martinook's second goal of the playoffs was assisted by Sebastian Aho (NHL-best 8th assist of the postseason) and came at 12:08 for Carolina's first two-goal lead of the entire series. Suddenly, everyone's hot take after Game 3 that the Bruins were somehow better without Tuukka Rask seemed at best silly. The larger point was that without David Pastrnak in the lineup, the B's were failing to generate any goals 5-on-5. Their power play actually went 0-for-3 tonight as well so they really needed to get it all done even strength. 

    There were two plays in the third period that were shall we say co-turning points for the Bruins: Charlie McAvoy's bone-rattling hit on Eric Staal (that ended the night for Carolina's captain) and Jake DeBrusk's first goal that cut it to 2-1 Hurricanes and mercifully breathed some life into Boston. Reimer came flying out of the crease to get a loose puck but Jake was just a little faster to stickhandle around Reimer and still manage to shoot it while he was falling down. DeBrusk's second goal of the postseason came at 7:26 and it was assisted by Ondrej Kase and Connor Clifton. Little did we know that would set off an explosion as Boston outshot Carolina 16-2 (!!) in the frame and they scored the four goals in a wild span of 6:51. 

    Playing in his second straight game, Clifton made his presence felt even further with the tying goal-an absolute missile to the top corner of the net-at 10:10. Joakim Nordstrom (game-high 7 hits) and Chris Wagner had the assists on Clifton's first goal of the postseason which also gave him his first career multiple-point playoff game. If those weren't enough highlights for the B's, Torey Krug sprang Brad Marchand for a breakaway and a beautiful go-ahead goal at 11:40. Brad's third goal of the postseason also gave him a four-game point streak (3 goals, 4 assists) in the series. Boston's second line put the icing on their fantastic performance as DeBrusk bagged his second goal at 14:17 after some deft passing from Kase and Krejci. It was never Halak's night so he couldn't resist but to give up one more questionable goal as Teuvo Teravainen's backhander/deflected shot beat him at 18:33. Teravainen's third goal of the playoffs was assisted by Brady Skjei and Dougie Hamilton. Luckily, there wasn't enough time left for the Hurricanes to put anymore pressure on Halak that likely would have resulted in the tying goal and a subsequent overtime. 

    It's tough to overstate how important that win was for the Bruins and conversely, how devastating the loss was for the Canes. Now Boston has three chances to beat Carolina only once more which is not too tall an order given their revolving door of goaltenders and growing list of injured forwards. Anytime you can eliminate a team in the NHL playoffs, you have to do it because you never know what can happen once a team starts to gain momentum back in a series. Game 5 is Wednesday afternoon (4, NESN) and I feel confident that the Bruins can get rid of the still-overmatched wannabe Whalers in only one more game than it took them last year. Perhaps most importantly (besides the final result), Halak needs to have a sharp performance to prove that he can be counted on against a better team(s) that will be down the road. This should give you some comfort before you fall asleep: the Bruins have a 19-2 all-time record in best-of-seven series when they lead in a series 3-1. It's not over yet but it is very close to saying goodbye to the Hurricanes once and for all.   

       

      

    

    

    

With Pasta Still Out & Rask Gone, Halak & The B's Respond With An Impressive 3-1 Win In Game 3

 

    There were only two ways that this afternoon's pivotal Game 3 between the Bruins and Hurricanes would go after Tuukka Rask's stunning departure: either Boston would be shell-shocked and they'd lose behind a rusty Jaroslav Halak or like the Canadiens playing yesterday for Claude Julien, they'd be extra inspired (not that it should take much during the NHL playoffs) and cobble together a great performance. Thankfully for purposes of our collective sanity (haha relatively speaking during a pandemic) and the overall quality of this blog and post, the Black and Gold came through with a rock solid 3-1 victory which gives them a 2-1 series lead. 

    Making his first appearance since getting shelled in a 4-1 loss on August 2-Boston's first round-robin game vs. Philadelphia-not to mention his first playoff game in years, Halak showed that he still has plenty left in the tank with 29 saves. He was this close to a shutout if not for a brutal turnover that led to the easiest goal of Nino Niederreiter's life that cut it to 2-1 early in the third period. The Bruins would not be denied as they scored first for the second game in a row but this time actually made it mean something. They also had the first two-goal leads (twice) of the series, adding a power play goal and a shorthanded goal to the all-around team effort.

    Boston was lucky to survive the first period scoreless since Carolina outshot them 15-7. The noon start was apparently rough on Boston's mostly old legs but they bounced back with a great second period, outshooting the Hurricanes 20-8. Following a double-minor high-sticking penalty on Trevor van Riemsdyk late in the first frame that carried over to the second, Coyle gave his team a 1-0 advantage when he batted in a rebound 14 seconds in. You'll remember that James Reimer won Game 2 for the Hurricanes but their head coach Rod Brind'Amour decided to roll the dice and go back to Game 1 starter Petr Mrazek (36 saves) and while it wasn't his fault that they lost, the curious choice didn't pay off. Like Red Sox hitters used to do (you know, when they tried to actually win games), Coyle deftly hit the puck out of mid-air after a trademark rebound by Mrazek. Charlie's second goal of the postseason was assisted by Brad Marchand and playoff David Krejci. 

    Once again, the B's came out ready to go in the third period and were rewarded with a huge shortanded tally by Sean Kuraly (their first of the postseason) at 1:16. Coyle and Charlie McAvoy had the helpers as Kuraly drove to the net and perfectly deflected in Coyle's on the money feed. He might not score many goals but the rate of extremely important ones that Kuraly gets from his entire total is insane. 

    Niederreiter's goal was actually on the power play and his first of the postseason was unassisted unless you count the silver platter that Halak used to put the puck right in his glove. With the net vacant, Niederreiter laid the disc on the ice and knocked it in the net. Woof. Showing the mettle of a battle-tested veteran, this didn't rattle Halak and similarly, his Bruins teammates refused to fold after his gaffe. Fittingly, the B's iced it with an empty-netter with 31 seconds left in regulation as Krejci lofted the puck ahead to Marchand to slide into Carolina's net. Game over on Brad's second goal of the postseason and already his sixth point (2 goals, 4 assists) of the series. Krejci's assist gives him five points (2 goals, 3 assists) in the three games which isn't too shabby either.

    The only real downer of Game 3 was what looked to be a very serious injury suffered by Hurricanes budding star Andrei Svechnikov late in the third period. He was battling Zdeno Chara in front of Boston's net when fell over in pain due to his knee/ankle twisting in a weird angle. It's the playoffs but you never want to see anybody get hurt, especially like that, when you know that he is probably going to be out for a long time. The fact that he is arguably Carolina's best forward (and they don't have much depth there to begin with) will certainly be a factor for the rest of the series. 

    For the B's, Anders Bjork was called for three penalties today so he could definitely be a healthy scratch for Game 4. Karson Kuhlman, Nick Ritchie and Jeremy Lauzon were all out this afternoon after playing in Game 2. Connor Clifton was fine, Jack Studnicka looked good in his NHL playoff debut and Par Lindholm was about as visible on the ice as he ever can be (competing against his former club). Both teams get a few more extra hours to rest before Monday night and it's basically a must-win for the Canes. It's tough to see them winning three straight against the Bruins, particularly without Svechnkikov. 

 

    

     

There Will Be No Sweep This Year As The Hurricanes Win Game 2, 3-2 With Pastrnak Out

 

    Did you really think that it would be easy to get past Carolina this postseason after Boston breezed by them last year in the Eastern Conference Finals? Bruins superstar David Pastrnak-who tied for the NHL lead in goals during the regular season with Alex Ovechkin-was a surprise scratch (unfit to play) announced shortly before Game 2 and the Hurricanes played well enough to earn a 3-2 victory behind a game-winning goal in the third period by former B's defenseman Dougie Hamilton. The series is even now 1-1 with Game 3 coming up bright and early on Saturday afternoon (12, NBC).

     Tuukka Rask (23 saves) started on back-to-back days since Game 1 was yesterday morning/afternoon. Boston did switch some things up: Anders Bjork started in Pastrnak's spot on the right wing of the top line and Karson Kuhlman slotted into the lineup as well on the third line at right wing. Predictably, neither had much of an impact despite Bjork having a great scoring chance early in the opening frame. The B's also took a 1-0 lead for the first time in the bubble (5 games) and their power play scored on their first two chances and yet it still wasn't enough to grab a 2-0 series lead. 

      The Hurricanes weren't afraid to make a move themselves as backup goaltender James Reimer (33 saves) got the start instead of Game 1's starter Petr Mrazek. Going back to the epic 2013 Game 7 win by the B's/choke job by the Maple Leafs, we all certainly are aware of Reimer's checkered history. Give him credit though, at least for one night he outplayed Mrazek (or maybe just had better luck since he also gave up a ton of rebounds). Playoff David Krejci is in full effect as he gave the Black and Gold a 1-0 advantage at 15:41 of the first period. On the power play, he whipped a wrist shot from distance and through some traffic for his second goal in as many games-assisted by Brad Marchand and Torey Krug. 

    Boston was up 1-0 after the first period but they got blitzed by Carolina in the second period, specifically from their best forwards. Teuvo Teravainen tied it with a power play tally of his own at 15:13 of the second period. He sniped a shot over Rask's right shoulder, assisted by Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho (who has a 5-game point and assist streak). Before the Bruins had much time to recover, they trailed 2-1 as Svechnikov took a pass from Martin Necas and also beat Rask up high at 16:41. UNH's Trevor van Riemsdyk had the second assist on Andrei's fourth goal of the postseason. You could feel those goals coming for the Canes as they constantly hemmed Boston in their own zone even when it was 5-on-5. Down only 2-1 after two periods wouldn't be so bad for the B's yet somehow they found a way to tie it with 4.4 seconds left in the frame. Marchand did the honors as Patrice Bergeron found him with a pass right on the doorstep that first hit the post but then Brad was able to sweep the loose puck into the net. His first goal of the postseason was also assisted by Krejci. 

    Almost halfway through the final period of regulation and knotted at two goals apiece, it felt like Game 2 might follow the same script for Game 1 and head to overtime but Hamilton had another idea. He was left wide open by the slow to react Bruins defense and he absolutely crushed a rocket of a shot that Rask had no chance to stop (also top shelf) at 8:30. Necas had the lone assist on Hamilton's first goal of the postseason and likely one of the biggest of his entire life. 

      There really is no point in trying to (incorrectly) predict what will happen in Game 3 since playing in the bubble with no home fans or travel means this will be a postseason unlike any that we've ever seen before in the NHL. The Bruins fell to 32-22 in Game 2s of best-of-seven series in which they led 1-0 while the Hurricanes improved to 6-8 in Game 2s when they trailed 0-1. Boston is 21-21 in Game 3s when the series is tied 1-1 while Carolina is 4-6 in Game 3s when the series is tied 1-1. Finally, the B's are 24-17 all-time in best-of-7 series that are tied 1-1 and the Canes are 5-5 in the same scenario. What does it all mean? You got me, we'll all have to tune in on Saturday to find out. Oh and also think good thoughts for whatever is ailing Pastrnak (we know at least it's not Covid-19 since he was at tonight's contest in the stands). Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy called him "day-to-day and questionable" for Game 3. Odds are it'll be another tight contest but at least it's the weekend so drinking that early in the day is a little less sad.

What A Way To End Game 1: Bergeron Scores The Game-Winner As Boston Beats Carolina 4-3 In 2OT

       After the 2020 NHL playoffs started yesterday afternoon with an absurd five overtime game (fourth longest contest in league history) between the Lightning and Blue Jackets-won 3-2 by Brayden Point and Tampa Bay)-it pushed Game 1 between the Bruins and Hurricanes from last night to an 11 a.m. start this morning. This being 2020, the silliness of course continued with a double overtime contest between Boston and Carolina. Thankfully, the Apocalypse might be upon us but at least Patrice Bergeron is still Patrice Bergeron and he won it at 1:13 of double overtime after a beautiful sequence with linemates Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak. It was a bit of redemption for Boston's top line that was completely shutdown in the Stanley Cup Final last year vs. St. Louis and hadn't gotten going in last week's "preseason" games as Marchand termed them.

      Bergeron's overtime tally was the fourth in his career, giving him the new franchise record and moving ahead of Terry O'Reilly and Mel Hill who both had three. Also, Bergeron's two points (goal, assist) pushed him in front of David Krejci (goal) for second most playoff points (106) in team history. Finally, Patrice has 41 career playoff goals which is now the fourth best as a Bruin. Bottom line, this would have been a tough loss for the B's since they outshot the Canes 40-28 and truthfully should have won this in regulation given all the great scoring chances that they squandered. 

     Even though they swept the Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals last season, this is not the same overmatched Carolina club. This series is sure to be harder than that for the Bruins to win but you still have to realize that the Hurricanes' goaltending situation and defensemen are both suspect at best. Petr Mrazek made 36 saves but if the B's (namely Jake DeBrusk) could have hit the target a little better, he would have been pulled after allowing five or six goals. Matt Grzelyck also had a shot hit the crossbar then post on the same play, haha that's basically impossible to do. So how did the Hurricanes last until double overtime? Well, Tuukka Rask (25 saves) was not particularly sharp, Boston's power play was useless (0-for-4) and Pastrnak had a brutal turnover leading to a shorthanded goal by the immortal Brock McGinn which sounds like the name of an 80s teen movie villian.  

    Every doomsday scenario has to be considered in this insane time to be alive so don't be shocked if Jaroslav Halak starts for the Bruins, mostly because Game 2 is tomorrow night (8, NESN) and remember that Game 3 is an early start on Saturday (12 p.m., NBC). Rask played every game last postseason but that doesn't seem feasible this time around since if the B's keep advancing, they're bound to play back-to-backs which are typical of the regular season but not the playoffs. 

    Neither team could really hold a lead since Carolina opened the scoring at 13:02 of the first period on Joel Edmundson's blast but from there, they rallied from brief 2-1 and 3-2 deficits. The former Blue's first goal of the postseason was assisted by Teuvo Teravainen and Sebastian Aho. Pasta quickly answered with his first goal of the playoffs at 17:45, the result of a pretty cross-crease feed from Marchand and second assist to Bergy.

    Mrazek allowed a bunch of juicy rebounds all game long (one of his specialties) and Boston was able to take advantage of that early in the second period. He failed to cover up a loose puck which allowed Charlie Coyle to swoop in and fire it past the basically vacant net. Carolina head coach Rod Brind'Amour challenged the play but it stood as Coyle's first postseason goal at 4:38 of the second period. The first lead in five games (including the exhibition vs. Columbus) lasted for a grand total of 21 seconds as Boston got a power play from the challenge that didn't work but Pastrnak promptly coughed the puck right up to McGinn who skated in on a breakaway and beat Rask up high with a backhander. Woof.

    Once again, a blunder by Mrazek led to another Bruins go-ahead goal though when Ondrej Kase (who was great all day) fired a relatively easy shot that Petr kicked directly to Krejci. In his patented calm manner, he wheeled around the Hurricanes' goaltender and flipped the puck in for his first goal of the playoffs 59 seconds into the third period. Charlie McAvoy (team-high 33:45) had the other assist for the B's. The one Carolina goal that you could really blame Rask on was fittingly the tying one in the third period: something named Haydn Fleury (subbing in for Sami Vatanen who was "unfit to play" along with Mr. Overtime Justin Williams) threw a wrist shot on net from just inside the blue line and it somehow went in. Granted, there was plenty of traffic in front which surely obstructed Rask's view but come on, it wasn't a Zdeno Chara slap shot over 100 mph. Former Panthers great Vincent Trocheck had the lone assist on Fleury's shaky tying goal that came at 9:49. 

    Much of the first overtime was the same story for Boston: missed opportunities. They outshot Carolina 11-6 and drew the lone penalty of either overtime-Brady Skjei held Charlie Coyle late in the 1st OT. Bergeron's goal was the only shot by the Bruins in double overtime and who better to end it than him-one of the best players in Bruins history. The whole sequence was Bruins porn as Brandon Carlo started the rush, Pastrnak gave the puck to Marchand at center ice, Brad gave it back to David then he dropped a backhander to Patrice. Of course, Mrazek looked like he was on a slip and slide as he slid over too far to have a chance to stop Bergy's low, hard shot into the corner of the net.  

    Looking ahead to Game 2, the numbers favor the Black and Gold: they are 32-21 all-time in Game 2s when leading a best-of-7 series 1-0 while the Canes are 10-14 in Game 2s when they trail 0-1 in a best-of-seven series. Furthermore, Boston is 37-17 all-time in best-of-seven series when they lead 1-0 and Carolina is 6-7 all-time in a best-of-seven series when they trail 0-1. Obviously 2020 is bonkers and with no travel or fans, these historical figures might not mean as much as they typically do. We shall see but at least playoff hockey is back in a big way for the B's after today's awesome victory.

Someone Should Probably Tell the Bruins That the NHL Playoffs Start on Tuesday Afternoon

    Did you know that the NHL has returned to action? Most hockey fans are probably aware that the season re-started last Saturday after pausing in mid-March due to the Coronavirus pandemic. However, if you are a Bruins fan, the best team in the league before the break has looked nothing like that going 0-3 in round-robin play to drop from the top seed in the Eastern Conference to the No. 4 seed. As a result of Sunday's 2-1 loss to Washington, the B's will meet the Hurricanes in the first-round of the playoffs instead of the Islanders (who they would have met if they had beaten the Capitals). 

    On one hand, with such an experienced team, it's hard to overreact to three games that probably didn't mean all that much. With all the East teams in Toronto for their bubble city and West teams in Edmonton, there is no such thing as home ice in the 2020 NHL playoffs (haha the Maple Leafs and Oilers would surely agree after both were bounced in the round-robin). Then again, of all the major sports home ice has always meant the least in hockey but it still has to be bizarre to play in front of an empty arena. 

    Regardless, a win or two in the past week would have been nice for the B's considering that things really ramp up on Tuesday with the start of the NHL playoffs. They no-showed in a 4-1 loss to the Flyers (who surprisingly went 3-0 to become the No. 1 overall seed in the East) last Sunday afternoon. That was followed by a frustrating 3-2 to Tampa Bay on Wednesday afternoon then today's snoozefest. Most alarmingly, the Black and Gold never led in those three contests. Hell, they never even were in front during their lone exhibition game: a 4-1 loss to the Blue Jackets on July 30. 

     Of course, it's pretty tough to win when you score four total goals in three games and half of those came from Chris Wagner. We all love the Mayor of Walpole but if he is your leading scorer, you are going nowhere fast except home from the postseason. Charlie McAvoy-against Tampa-and Jake DeBrusk-today against Washington-had the other goals if you were keeping track. No Bruins update would be complete without some Tuukka Rask drama and it happened right out of the gate when he was "unfit to play"-the 2020 catch-all term for NHL players-against Philadelphia. He's been OK in his two appearances but he allowed a terrible rebound that led to the late game-winning goal vs. Tampa Bay then he also gave up a backbreaking tally to T.J. Oshie with 16 seconds left in the first period this afternoon vs. Washington. From there, Braden Holtby put together his usual lights out performance vs. Boston, finishing with 30 mostly routine saves. Oh and all-around lowlife Tom Wilson fittingly had the deciding goal for the Caps. 

      Jaroslav Halak was not sharp against the Flyers and Rask played every game in the playoffs last year, so I don't expect there to be a goalie controversy. Boston's top forward line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak were held scoreless in these three games but there's no way they go totally missing like that against Carolina (who swept the Rangers in three games). Zdeno Chara obviously looks all of his 78 years old but hopefully grandpa will pick it up when the games mean something. 

     I don't believe that you can take much from last season's sweep by the Bruins of Carolina in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Hurricanes were woefully overmatched and thus, the series was never that competitive. If Covid-19 and this current horrifying existence has taught us anything, it's to take nothing for granted. The Penguins got upset by the Canadiens in four games, same as the Oilers against the Blackhawks. Boston will be favored and they should win the series but I doubt it will be a sweep.

    Most importantly, with all the terrible things going on all over the world right now, at least we have these wonderful playoff games to take us away for a few hours. For that, I could kiss NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on the lips. Haha just kidding, he's still a smug douchebag. 

    Predicting what will happen is a waste of time but we all know how prideful and hard-working this Bruins group has been the last few years. After coming so close to winning another Stanley Cup last June vs. St. Louis (only to choke in Game 7 at TD Garden), it was remarkable how quickly they put that behind them to have a killer regular season. None of that means anything now though, it's a new season and they have to be ready to go from Game 1, unlike the general malaise that they've been stuck in for the last week-plus.  

Game 1: Bruins vs. Hurricanes, Tuesday at 8 p.m. on NESN

Game 2: Bruins vs. Hurricanes, Thursday at 8 p.m. on NESN

Game 3: Bruins vs. Hurricanes, Saturday at 12 p.m. on NBC

Game 4: Bruins vs. Hurricanes, Monday at 8 p.m. on NESN