Tampa Bay Lightning versus Boston Bruins: NHL Play-offs Preview
One thing which both the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Boston Bruins have in common is that they both have entered the Eastern Conference finals by sweeping their opponents in the semi-finals 4-0 in the series and making their clashes even more interesting.
Both teams ended the season on a high note with a little difference as the Lightning gathered 103 points with 39 wins and the Bruins with 103 points and 44 wins. Tampa Bay eliminated the first seed of the Eastern Conference, the Washington Capitals, in a
surprising 4-0 series as they continued their three-game winning-streaks from the quarter-finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Pittsburgh put Tampa Bay on the verge of elimination after Game 4 in the quarter-finals as they took control of the series 3-1 after Game 4. Tampa Bay emerged successful as they won three in a row including the deciding Game 7to take the series along with
four straight wins against the Capitals.
Boston on the other hand did things differently. Their first round series against the Montreal Canadiens was a little dissimilar as it was an up-and-down series with both the teams tied until the end as the Bruins narrowly escaped in Game 7 after Nathan
Horton made the game-winning goal in overtime. They dittoed Tampa Bay in their semi-final series and took revenge on the Philadelphia Flyers for making a laughing stock out of them last postseason and won four straight games to advance into the third round.
During the regulation season, Boston had the advantage as they won in the three out of four meetings, but looking at both the teams past performance in the current play-offs makes this series a highly anticipated third round which will have fans on the edge
of their series throughout. Making predictions on how the series might turn out is a way to build that anticipation and prepare ourselves for a series that can take a surprising turn at any moment.
In terms of statistics, both the Lightning and Bruins are very comparatively similar. Tampa Bay and Boston are missing Simon Gagne and Patrice Bergeron respectively due to concussion related symptoms. Each team has four players which are in double figures
when talking about points and are extremely determined this time around to make things right after failing a number of times.
Offensive End
While the offensive end of both the teams remains almost equal. Milan Lucic and David Krejčí remain the top scorers for the Bruins. Lucic was their top scorer during the regular season, but has only recorded two goals and five points in an 11-game span.
Tampa Bay on the other hand has a handful of players who performed consistently and steadily which resulted in their high scoring games. When they sparked a comeback against the Penguins in Game 5, Tampa Bay defeated the Penguins by a huge margin of 8-2.
The offensive onslaught that the Lightning is equipped with, if triggered can score multiple goals in a matter of minutes. Martin St. Louis, Steven Stamkos and Sean Bergenheim are an unstoppable trio for the Lightning. Even though Bergenheim only scored 14
goals throughout the regular season, he showed his talent when they needed him the most in the play-offs and has scored seven goals in 11 games.
Defensive End
Talking in terms of defence, Boston is the clear winner. Tim Thomas is not the NHL’s leading goalie without any doubt and Zdeno Chara is one of the best defenders. It is near to impossible to score through the stone-walled duo which gives them an advantage
on ice.
For the Lightning, Dwayne Roloson has played amazingly well, but due to the lack of experienced defence to protect the goalie, Tampa Bay has a noticeable disadvantage in this regard.
If experience comes into play, the Bruins will without a doubt, easily take the series hands down, but if Tampa Bay can just control themselves without being pressurised by the insane Boston crowd, they also have a pretty good chance at advancing for the
Stanley Cup.
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