Internet Hotstove is a series where Last Word On Sports asks the opinions of respected bloggers from around the internet about their team’s chances in the 2013-14 NHL Playoffs. The goal is to get a broad view of opinion from around the league as an alternative to other playoff previews.
If life were a video game the Boston Bruins would already be your 2013-14 Stanley Cup champions. Unfortunately, in the real world being branded as EA Sports choice to win the cup is somewhat of a curse. But if there is any team that can beat a curse with actual roster depth it is the Boston Bruins. Last year’s Stanley Cup runner up return and will be looking to complete what they could not last year. A lot of people are predicting that they do just that, especially since they are located in the “inferior” Eastern Conference.
Meet the Bloggers:
Ty Anderson- Bruins Writer for HockeyBuzz.Com @_TyAnderson
Nick Godin- Staff Writer for TooManyMenOnTheSite.com @FlyingOrr
Sarah Connors- Managing Editor for StanleyCupOfChowder.Com @Sarah_Connors
1. Who is the Bruin’s biggest playoff x-factor?
Anderson: I think that title goes to Loui Eriksson. This is a player that the Bruins acquired in exchange for Tyler Seguin last summer, so the expectations were obviously high. He struggled a bit — mainly due to two concussions in the first three months of the year — but he’s undoubtedly turned it on for the Bruins since coming back from his Silver Medal trip to Sochi. On the Bruins’ third line with Chris Kelly and Carl Soderberg, Eriksson brings another scoring punch to a Boston third line that could really take advantage of a team’s third defensive pairing over the course of a seven game series. Together, this is definitely Boston’s best third line since 2011’s trio of Kelly, Rich Peverley, and Michael Ryder.
Connors: Patrice Bergeron, definitely. The difference in the way this team performs without him vs. when he’s on the ice is pretty drastic – that was painfully apparent in last year’s finals, and continued this year. He’s a significant contributor in all three zones, as well as on both the power play and the PK. Barring possibly Zdeno Chara, this team could lose pretty much any other skater and not have it affect the team half as badly as losing Bergeron would.
2. Which Eastern Conference opposition would you like to Bruins to face the least?
Godin: Based on this year’s performance, I think the Bruins hardest opposition would be the Montreal Canadiens. Montreal won this season series between the two and have proved to be a legitimate concern. The Bruins have struggled with Montreal’s speed all season. I do believe the Bruins can beat Montreal in a 7-game series, but it goes without saying it wouldn’t be easy for the Boston.
Anderson: The Montreal Canadiens in round two has to be the most difficult matchup for the Bruins. The Habs have taken six of the last seven games against the B’s, and they have an unmatched ability to get under the skin of top tier talents like Milan Lucic, Zdeno Chara, and Brad Marchand. And that’s without even mentioning Thomas Vanek, the Canadiens’ big trade deadline pick up and a player with 30 goals and 62 points in 55 career games against the Bruins.
Connors: Unfortunately, it’s the one they’re playing in the first round. The Bruins haven’t done super well against Detroit, historically, and their other potential matchups (Philly, CBJ) were a lot less intimidating. Especially if Detroit comes into this series fully healthy, the Bruins are going to have their hands full.
3. Boston has been a little bit lacklustre in the first round the past couple of years, does this worry you at all?
Godin: No, this doesn’t worry me all that much. I think every team has to go through a slightly difficult transition from regular season to playoffs. 2012 was just a very frustrating series. Caps goaltender Braden Holtby was simply unstoppable, therefore that series wouldn’t the best example.
Anderson: I think it should to a certain degree, but if there’s one thing that you’ve come to learn from this Bruins team, it’s that they typically make the adjustments that they failed to the year prior. Most of this squad has seen everything the Stanley Cup Playoffs have to offer, and I think that can go a long way in a series. By now it seems as if the B’s can work themselves out of anything. They began their 2011 playoffs down 0-2, and even last year they were down by three goals in the third period of Game 7. They’re battle tested, and while that’s a cliché, they certainly seem to know what’s at stake. That and I think the presence of Jarome Iginla, a player still in search of his first Cup, will prevent them from skating with any dullness. He’s become a strong voice for more than just his linemates in that locker room.
Connors: Not really. Their difficulties in the last few years have been mainly because of suddenly-hot goalies (Reimer last year; Holtby the year before). I think in the first round, some of these teams come in and they have the ability to cause an upset. If the Bruins are able to get goals past Howard, they should be fine, previous first round struggles be damned.
4. What could prove to be the Bruins Achilles heel in the playoffs?
Godin: Dennis Seidenberg suffering a season-ending injury. No doubt.
Anderson: Their defense. Given the loss of both Dennis Seidenberg and Adam McQuaid — both of whom starting skating earlier this week but are nowhere close to returning according to Claude Julien — the Bruins are forced to roll with Matt Bartkowski in their top-four defense come playoff time. Expected to play with Johnny Boychuk, a rough start for Bartkowski could put Andrej Meszaros back into the Boston defensive mix. Neither or these guys have really blown the door off in their head-to-head matchup for ice time, and have had their moments where they’re exposed for being underwhelming talents in their zone.
Connors: Lack of defensive depth, for sure. If by some miracle the team gets Dennis Seidenberg back at some point, that reality becomes a little less scary, but the fact of the matter is the Bruins have approximately three high-caliber defensemen at this point.
5. How far do you expect the Bruins to go in this year’s playoffs?
Godin: I see the Bruins making it to the Stanley Cup Finals. It’s not farfetched to say that this Bruins roster is better than the one that met the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2013, or the roster that defeated Vancouver to win the Stanley Cup in 2011.
Anderson: Barring a major injury to Chara or Tuukka Rask, anything short of the Eastern Conference Finals would be a major disappointment in Boston. This is a team that’s cruised throughout the regular season and established themselves as the conference’s best. An early exit would really take a lot of wind out of their regular season accomplishments.
Connors: I think they could get all the way to the Finals, easily. On paper they’re the best team in the East, with the best record against the West of any East team. It’s going to be interesting, regardless.
Main Photo:
Interested in writing for LWOS? We are looking for enthusiastic, talented writers to join our (insert sport) writing team. Visit our “Write for Us” page for very easy details in how you can get started today!
