There Will Be Blood

by Joe Ballway

Editorial. Photos by AP News

Everything seems to be breaking just perfectly for the Bruins right now, and the timing couldn’t be better.

Due to one of the most bizarre and unexpected twists in NHL playoff history, Boston has secured home-ice advantage and a date with the seventh-seeded Philadelphia Flyers for the upcoming second round.

That’s right--two of the last teams to qualify for postseason play in the entire league will now battle it out for a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Bruins, bumbling and stumbling out of playoff contention little more than a month ago, are odds-on favorites to advance.

While I’d never dreamed of saying such a thing, we can thank Hal Gill and the Montreal Canadiens for this magnificent aligning of the stars. 

By shocking the world with a 2-1 Game 7 victory over the Capitals on Wednesday night and erasing a 3-1 series deficit, the Habs not only dispatched Alexander Ovechkin & Co. from the playoff race, but they snatched Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin right off the Bruins’ postseason platter.

Had the Capitals won, they would’ve hosted Philly, leaving Boston in line for an incredibly challenging matchup with the defending Stanley Cup champions.

Now if that isn’t a sign that the hockey gods have officially crossed over to Boston’s side, I don’t know what is.

Or perhaps it’s just destiny ensuring that the Bruins and Canadiens, no matter their seeding, get a crack at yet another bitter playoff battle. You could say that it would take a downright miracle for Montreal to contain the high-flying Pittsburgh offense, but didn’t we just say that about the Capitals?

Bottom line--as even the Bruins demonstrated in the first round, anything can happen in the playoffs with a hot goalie and some additional lucky bounces.

FIVE KEYS TO ADVANCING vs. the Flyers

1) Tuukka Time

Tuukka Rask is the main reason the Bruins are in the second round. Actually, he’s pretty much the reason they’re in the playoffs at all.

So if the Bruins hope to advance to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1992--way back in the days of Bourque, Neely, Oates and Moog--”Tuukka Time” will continue to be their biggest recipe for success.

Rask’s greatest assets are his cool demeanor and steady positioning--two things that make him an extremely reliable postseason netminder, even as a rookie, because he doesn’t falter in close games. And we all know that the Bruins insist on playing every game close.

But Tuukka’s patience in tight situations will be tested in this series more so than in the last, when Buffalo’s diminutive forwards failed to establish a physical presence in front of the net. For Philadelphia, the likes of Scott Hartnell, Daniel Carcillo and Mike Richards will take no issue making life extremely difficult for the Finnish phenom. 

This series should serve as even more of a test of Rask’s mettle than the last--and that’s saying something, considering he just outdueled the U.S. Olympic hero and Vezina Trophy favorite.

2) Offensive Resurrection, Part Deux

In my Round 1 preview, I targeted three players as “X-factors” who needed to step up their offensive output in order for the Bruins to have a chance at pulling off the upset: Michael Ryder, Miroslav Satan and Milan Lucic.

Well, pat on the back for me.

Ryder came through with an exceptional two-goal performance that helped the Bruins steal the second game in Buffalo, shifting the series momentum their way, while Satan turned out to be Boston’s clutch performer with two game-winners---one in the second overtime of Game 4, which put the Bruins in control of the series with a 3-1 lead, and one in the third period of Game 6, which gave the Bruins a two-goal cushion at a crucial juncture and turned out to be the series winner.

And, while Looch continued his enigmatic performance for the majority of the series and was even demoted to the fourth line on more than one occasion, he delivered two assists and some stirring body checks in the final game, showing signs that he may be ready to break out of his prolonged slump and reestablish himself as a pace-setting physical force just in time for what promises to be a very chippy series.

Combine the re-emergence of those three players with David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron’s continued excellence, Mark Recchi’s steady veteran presence and the return of Marc Savard--a major boost for the team, both emotionally and skill-wise--and the Boston offense is suddenly much more formidable than the dull, dejected and downright flaccid group of forwards we were subjected to for much of the regular season.

Now, if only they could get Marco Sturm and Blake Wheeler going…

3) Stay out of the box!

In what has turned out to be yet another lucky “break” for the Bruins, Simon Gagne and Jeff Carter--two of the Flyers’ most dangerous offensive weapons, particularly on the man advantage--will miss the series after each breaking a foot in the first round against New Jersey.

This is good news for the Boston penalty kill, which, despite going a perfect 19-for-19 against the Sabres, faces a much tougher task against a Philadelphia power play that clicked at 21.5% efficiency during the regular season, good for third in the NHL.

However, while Gagne and Carter will certainly be big losses, the fact remains that the Flyers boast a relatively deep arsenal of offensive weapons, including Chris Pronger on the blueline. Mike Richards led the team with 13 power-play goals in the regular season, and slippery winger Claude Giroux already has 3 this postseason, so the Bruins will still be in for a world of hurt if they get into too much penalty trouble.

4) On the flip side. . .

It’s no secret that the Flyers are among the more thuggish, oft-penalized teams in the NHL--they gave New Jersey 32 power-play opportunities in 5 games, while, for instance, the Bruins gave Buffalo just 19 chances in 6 games.

Not much is likely to change in this series as the Flyers’ style of play is extremely aggressive and physical. It will be up to the Bruins to take advantage of the opportunities they are given--something they have done extremely well recently.

The Bruins exploded, by their standards, with 5 goals on the man-advantage in 23 attempts against Buffalo--a team that ranked second in the league in penalty killing during the regular season. Boston’s puck movement was noticeably more effective than it was in the regular season; much of this is due to the fact that offensive-minded defensemen like Matt Hunwick and Dennis Wideman are finally rediscovering their touch.

Throw a healthy Savard into the mix, and the Bruins have a much more potent power-play unit--one that will need to put forth peak performance in what will likely be a higher-scoring series than the last.

5) Don’t Underestimate Brian Boucher

The Bruins go from facing Ryan Miller, arguably the best goaltender in the league, to Brian Boucher--a guy who, if you take a look at his regular season numbers, barely seems worthy of tying Miller’s skates, let alone starting an NHL playoff game.

But the fact remains that Boucher had no trouble containing Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk, two of the league’s most skilled forwards, in the first round.

Of course, some goaltenders just get hot at the right moment--what’s up, Jaroslav Halak?--or are merely the beneficiary of stellar play in front of them.

Anyone could look at Boucher’s statistics and immediately think “fluke”--a 2.76 goals-against average, a .899 save percentage and a ghastly 9-18 record as the emergency #1 goaltender for the Flyers towards the season’s end.

The playoffs, however, are an entirely different animal, and confidence can be a crazy thing. Though it was ten years ago, Boucher came out of nowhere in his first stint with the Flyers to bring them to the Conference Finals back in 2000. Couple that with his performance last series, and it appears that he’s one of those players that, for some inexplicable reason, elevates his play in big-game situations.

So, the bottom line is that the Boston forwards shouldn’t approach him any differently than they approached Miller. Even with Savard back, this offense is going to have to work hard to continue playing at a high level--the supposed inadequacies of the opposing goaltender as seen on paper mean little when said goaltender is on a hot streak in the postseason.

Prediction: Bruins in 6

Yeah yeah, I know, I picked the Sabres to win in the first round. But the circumstances are different now.

Bottom line, with a healthy Savard and a thriving Rask, the Bruins are a better team, though the Flyers won’t go down without a fight--and speaking of fights, don’t be surprised if this series turns into a bloodbath.

And oh yea - remember that time the Flyers broke Patrice Bergeron back in 2009? Yeah, there's also that. People forget--there's a reason these two met in the Winter Classic.

And there's a reason it feels oh so right they're meeting again.

Bring it Philadelphia. We're ready.