Tag Archives: Atlantic division

Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, round 2

Stanley Cup Round 2- Bruins Meet Tampa

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WELCOME TO ROUND 2

TAMPA- Boy, it was a hot one Saturday afternoon. The race to clinch the Atlantic Division bounced back and forth between the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning. Throughout the regular season Tampa came out and dominated, leaving very little room for any other team to overtake first place. But when it comes to the playoffs, all bets are off and regular season stats go out the window. For the Boston Bruins, they have managed to once again get into the minds of the Lightning, as they clobbered their way to a 6-2 victory.

A GOOD START

The Bruins quickly came out strong with Rick Nash scoring on a power play in the first period. Patrice Bergeron scored another goal in the second. Forward Brad Marchand looked to score what would be their third goal, however it was waved off as a cross checking penalty on David Pastrnak was called prior. This is where things got a bit wild.

BOLTS STRIKE BACK WITH A BIT OF CONTROVERSY

As the Lightning were looking to gain momentum, Tuukka Rask had some wardrobe malfunction as a skate blade came off, limiting his movement in net. As he tried to get the attention of the refs, Tampa took advantage and Mikhail Sergachev scored cutting the goal deficit by one. To say he was frustrated was putting in mildly, but the referees made the right call. The NHL public relations quickly explained the rule #9.6:

“There is no goal for referees to stop play for a broken piece of equipment, regardless of whether the equipment belongs to a goaltender or a skater. the lone exception is when referees may stop play after a goaltender has lost his helmet.”

HUSTLE AND FLOW

The Marchand-Bergeron and Pastrnak line has produced a total of 12 goals and 41 points in their last five games. Rick Nash got the Bruins on board from an assist with David Pastrnak during a power play. Forty-two seconds into the second, once again, Pastrnak found Patrice Bergeron and got the Bruins on board, making the score 2-0. However, Tampa answered back as Dan Girardi got the Lightning on board two minutes into the second. A waved-off goal by Marchand and with Pastrnak in the penalty box, the Bruins were able to kill a power play off. Rick Nash quickly scored his second goal of the game, giving the Bruins a 3-1 lead.

WHAT’S UP WITH THE REFS?

After an interesting call on Jake DeBrusk for “interference” and the Rask blade controversy in the second, Tampa were looking to close that gap. But Boston kept control of the game.  The Bruins shook off the remnants of wild second period and with goals from Marchand, Bergeron, and an empty netter by DeBrusk. Boston defeated Tampa 6-2.

SHINING IN NET

Stanley Cup Playoff series round 2

Tuukka Rask stopping a shot

After looking shaky in net in the last few games of the series, many will be looking to Tuukka Rask to have more confidence.  There have been many narratives about Rask getting the start in net against Tampa. In Game 1 of this tough series, it’s easy to see that Tuukka was in the zone. He allowed only two goals throughout the game and stopped 34 shots on net. Pretty good numbers if you consider he was screened by his own defensemen and lost a blade on his left skate.

“These freaking skates nowadays, the blades come off. I was yelling at the ref for 10 seconds. He didn’t  hear me. It sucks. I’m glad we won.”

 

 

FINAL THOUGHTS

Rick Nash Had two goals in the first game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs

Tuukka Rask and Rick Nash were the stars of this game. Vasilevsky was shaky in net, but much like with Toronto, Boston will have to take it one game at a time. Rask needs to continue to shine in net. Offensively, the Bruins need to drive to the net full force and bring back that momentum when they return to Boston. The last time these two teams met was in 2011, and that series went to seven games (with Nathan Horton scoring the clinching goal at the Garden). And we all know how that year ended. This will be a tough series and will only get tougher as we head into June. Will the 2018 Boston Bruins see a repeat of what happened in 2011?

Let the best team win.

 

Follow Liz Rizzo on Twitter @pastagrl88

Bruins or Lightning- Who Owns the Atlantic?

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The Tampa Bay Lightning took the league by storm in the first half of the season, but the Bruins have clawed their way to just four points back of the Atlantic Division lead. Just as it’s been all season, it looks like the Bruins and Lightning will finish with the top two seeds. Who comes in first is still up for grabs. They’re both powerhouse teams and the numbers leave plenty of room for debate over who’s more dominant.

Bruins’ Stats

Both teams share a similar goal differential, with the Lightning at +58 and the Bruins at +56. But the numbers adding up to these are drastically different. As usual, the Bruins have been a solid defensive team, allowing just 177 goals. This is the second lowest in the league behind only Nashville, who has given up 172. Defense has been a consistent strength for the B’s over the last several years and this time the scoring is right on par. They’re currently sitting at sixth in the league in goals for.

It looks like the Bruins are about to finish in the top 10 of the two most important categories. Their special teams have been solid as well, also cracking the top ten in both power play and penalty kill. They’ve converted on 22.3% of power play opportunities, while posting the third best penalty kill in the league at 82%. This is huge considering how chippy playoff games can be, and surely adds to the team’s confidence.

Tampa Bay by the Numbers

Although that all sounds promising, the Lightning are still the top offensive team in the league. They’ve been responsible for 254 circulating red lights this season, mainly thanks to Kucherov, Stamkos, Gourde and Point. These four players alone account for 44% of the teams scoring. Their power play ranks second in the league at 24%, but their penalty kill is among the worst in the league. They’ve only managed to kill off 76.8% of penalties this season, the second lowest out of any playoff-bound team.

Tampa is less of a force on the defensive side but still can’t be overlooked. Victor Hedman is having another unbelievable year with 52 points and a +26 rating, while Mikhail Sergachev has enjoyed a stellar rookie season. The recent acquisition of Ryan McDonagh is huge, too. He’s a great two-way defenseman and eats up 23 minutes a night. Vasilevski got off to a hot start but he’s had his recent struggles. He currently has .922 save percentage to go with a GAA of 2.53. These are solid numbers, but neither stat cracks the league’s top 10. He’s good, but beatable. The real challenge is dealing with Tampa’s star players up front.

Bruins vs. Lightning

These two teams lead the Atlantic, but you can make a case that either one of them is the best team in the entire league.  The main take away from their stats is that Tampa relies more on the offense while the bruins are more balanced. This makes the Lightning extremely susceptible to hitting a wall in the playoffs and puts a lot of pressure on Stamkos and Kucherov.  They’ve been great all year, but slumps are inevitable.  With a mediocre defense, these guys need to stay on top of their game. The Bruins’ versatility allows for a bit more breathing room.  Whether it’s Marchand putting up four points, Tuukka pitching a shutout, or the penalty kill going 7/7, the B’s always seem to find a way to win.  They can beat any team, on any night, in any way.

Boston Bruins left wing Brad Marchand, top, celebrates after his goal off Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (31) during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Boston, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Who the better team is remains up for debate. They’re currently at second and third in the league-wide standings, with Tampa at 102 points and the Bruins with 99. Time will tell if the Bruins can catch them in the standings, but they won the season series.  They’ll play them once more in Tampa on April 3rd, but the B’s won the first two meetings by scores of 3-2 and 3-0.  With all things considered, I might have to give the edge to the Bruins.  It’s almost too close to call, but Tampa’s 76.8% penalty kill draws a huge red flag.  They might have the edge in scoring, but that’s atrocious.

The Bruins have also remained steady since December while the Lightning got off to a hot start and cooled down from there.  They won 16 of their first 20 games, but the Bruins have been more consistent down the stretch.  I didn’t think I’d say this in October, but the Bruins very well may be the best team in the Atlantic.

 

Cover image courtesy of The Tampa Bay Times.