We've Created a Monster

Now look what you've done, B's! Well, it's not nearly as bad as it could be. In fact, most people would probably say that the Boston Bruins are in one of the best positions possible heading into the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. I can't say I disagree with them, but the fact that Bruins fans are becoming more and more complacent is scary. We don't want to be caught with our pants down in overtime of game seven like last year. (Imagine another stud goalie beat in OT to close out a second season in a row).

I shouldn't think negatively, I know, but at this time in the playoffs, cautious thinking can often be beneficial. So let's dissect the Bruins' situation here.

In the eastern conference, only one higher seed advanced to the second round, the Pittsburgh Penguins. They get the pleasure of playing the eighth seed, the Montreal Canadiens. Should be a breeze for them, right? Wrong. Take another look. Before the playoffs started, all I wanted was for the Bruins to secure a seed that would keep them away from the Washington Capitals. I was hoping to give one or two teams a shot at quieting the league's hottest offense before the Bruins would be forced to do so. That happened a little sooner than expected. It may be kind of a buzz kill to think about, but while the Bruins were returning to form and ousting the mighty Ryan Miller, Mr. eight seed was working a little magic across the border as well.

Tuukka Rask shone against the Buffalo Sabres in round one. He made 179 saves over six games to rack up a 2.18 GAA. The guy was standing on his head. No doubt about it. Whoops. Look who's playing the best offense in the league and standing them up! Jaroslav Halak, Montreal's goaltender for six of seven games in the series, Halak made 217 saves and posted a 2.46 GAA. Here's the problem. Halak's save percentage is .939 to Tuukka's .927.

Halak is hot, and he beat the best offense that the league has to offer over a seven game stretch. Yeah, Boston has a tough goalie, but so does Montreal. On that note, take a look at Philadelphia goalie Brian Boucher. His 1.59 GAA and .940 save percentage lead playoff goalies, and he's coming up against the Bruins next.

It is a valid point to mention that Boucher's GAA and SP are coming from a five game sample against a team that many would say is not at their best. It's true. No playoff statistics can tell the whole story because their sample size is just too small. But they must be taken into consideration. The upcoming battles against the Philadelphia Flyers will not be a walk in the park for the Bruins. And if they get to the Conference Finals, they will have an even tougher time against the reigning Stanley Cup Winners in the Pittsburgh Penguins, or a team that just shut down arguably both of the league's top offenses in the Montreal Canadiens. Look at the monster we've created for ourselves...

The problem is that monsters are inevitable in any playoffs. Any team that you are facing in the playoffs is there for a reason. In this case, the Bruins will not have to worry about the best offense in the league any more, instead, they might have to worry about the team that beat the best offense in the league. Either way, its a tough matchup, and its hard to say which is worse.

I think the Bruins are in a good position. After coming off of their strongest performances of the season, they are poised to keep their momentum rolling. At this point, they know that there is no escaping the monster, and so the best thing that they can do is keep their motivation up, and maintain their underdog spirit. I think a vast amount of the energy that fueled the Bruin's wins against the Sabres had to do with a resurgence of an underdog after a less than ideal season. Heading into the semifinals, the Bruins will face the danger of losing that mindset and slipping back into the careless "I'm better than you so I am bound to win" attitude that lost them last season's series with the Carolina Hurricanes. If they had gone on to face the Penguins, I doubt that that danger would have been much of a problem, as the B's have all sorts of reasons to fight against the cheapshotters from Pittsburgh. I don't think this year's Bruins will succumb to that danger, and I think that the crowds at the TD Garden will remind them to avoid it. If they cannot avoid the slide, however, it will be a long series.

Ultimately, the fight with the monster has only begun. The Bruins are better than the Flyers. Let's hope it doesn't go to their heads.