With the start of the Second Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, two beasts in the East are meeting up in what should be one of the most exciting series yet. The Tampa Bay Lightning are facing-off against the defending Eastern Conference Champions the Boston Bruins. With the Bruins taking the first game 3-2, there are still many different storylines to watch unfold. Since Tampa Bay’s Captain Steven Stamkos still out of the line-up, the Lightning will look toward Anthony Cirelli to help fill that gap.
Anthony Cirelli Must be the Difference Maker
Depth and depth scoring are two of the most important things to have when it comes time to take a run at Lord Stanley’s Cup. When fully healthy, the Bruins and Lightning are some of the deepest teams in the league. It is needed on both sides of the puck and can help explain why both of these two teams have had so much success recently. With Tampa Bay missing their top centreman, this does put a wrench in things.
Out since the beginning of March, Stamkos has struggled with a lower-body injury and has yet to play a game since. With the Lightning number one centre out of commission for the time being, Cirelli needs to be on top of his game on both sides of the ice. Through 168 games played, Cirelli has scored 40 goals and 54 assists totalling 94 points. Along with a Corsi For of 52.6 percent. It will be Cirelli’s defensive skills that the Lightning will need most if they are to win this series.
If Cirelli is the future Selke winner many believe he will become, this is the perfect opportunity to prove. Not to forget, Cirelli will become a restricted free agent at the end of this season and a lot of teams would love a player like 71.
Countering Boston’s Forecheck
The Boston Bruins come at their opponents again and again. They’re constantly forechecking, making sure to wear down their opponents until they make a mistake. That’s when the Bruins take advantage and do the most damage to their opponents. They make sure to get the puck in deep and come racing for it hard. This is part of where Cirelli is going to have to be at his best.
A big part of any defensive zone is the centreman. Playing as the centreman, one must always be back to help support your defenceman any way you can. As the centreman, it will be an absolute necessity for Cirelli to be low supporting his D-men, at all times. The Lightning defence is going to have to make quick break out passe that are consistently on the tape. The Bruins come so hard and so fast that if Tampa’s defence isn’t quick enough, it will be a long but short series for them.
Cirelli has more than enough speed that he could help to dissolve some of the Boston forecheck. If timed correctly, Cirelli can use his speed to drag a forechecker with him. This would leave more time and space for Tampa’s defence to work their way up the ice in order to make the right play.
Playing Up to His Selke Potential
With that being said, whatever defensive system Jon Cooper and the Lighting use, Cirelli’s ice-time is bound to go up. Currently, Cirelli is tenth on the team in average time on ice with 18:25. Cirelli’s speed will be one of the most important things he uses against the Bruins this series. Plays like the one below are exactly what Lightning fans are expecting to see in this series.
Cirelli should win the Selke for this play by itself. pic.twitter.com/OfQPPfvq03
— Bolts Jolts (@BoltsJolts) February 9, 2020
Mathew Barzal is one of the fastest players in the league. With an open lane like that, not many players would be able to chase him down. Yet, without even breaking a sweat, Cirelli comes back to make an astounding defensive play.
Anthony Cirelli leads the Tampa Bay Lightning in takeaways and is in the top 25 across the league in the same category. He needs to make sure he can maintain those numbers when going up against guys like Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, and Brad Marchand. The biggest key to Cirelli doing well in this series is making sure he stays consistent. During the regular season, when Cirelli was on the ice in five-on-five situations the Lightning had an outstanding .943 save percentage and were plus-25 in goals scored.
At the end of the day, both Anthony Cirelli and the whole Lightning team are going to have to play extremely disciplined. With a lot of bad blood ready to spill over from the regular season, this is going to continue to be an exciting Eastern Conference match-up.
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