Boston Bruins heading to Washington Capitals territory for Game 3 -NHL Playoffs Preview
Seeing how Washington had played in the 2011-2012 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season, many thought that it would be easy for Boston Bruins to take the Capitals down with a whitewash.
Now that Washington won game-two of the 2012 NHL Eastern Conference playoff quarterfinals, Capitals proved that underestimating them at any moment could have dire consequences for the Boston team which is looking to defend their Stanley Cup championship.
Capitals showed a change in strategy when it came to game-two and potentially being down by 2-0 in the series which had Boston head coach, Claude Julien, comparing them to other teams in the league.
"Their system right now resembles a little bit to one of Tampa," Julien said. "It's something that we're probably not used to seeing from Washington because it was not that same type of hockey that they played before ... more of an up-tempo and more of offense
going. Right now they're just sitting back when we have the puck in full control of it, and they're just waiting for their chances."
Now that Washington was able to get out of Boston with a win to back them up, heading to their own Verizon Center in the District of Columbia, will certainly have them looking to take the lead in the series.
What each team will be hoping for now is a win in regulation rather than going into continuous overtime extensions. Both matchups have ended in overtime and in OT, there is just no telling what might happen as the tensions rise immeasurably.
Braden Holtby, Washington’s recall from the minor leagues who is playing in his first playoff series, has definitely redefined the definition of rookies playing under pressure as the youngster showed superior form.
"You learn more from losing than you do from winning most of the time," Holtby said. "I did some things wrong.”
Holtby was a risk for Washington and it has certainly turned out to be an experience well beyond their expectations of the young goalie.
The Washington-Boston series will continue as game-three is set to take place on Monday, April 16, 2012.
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