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EXACTLY What will Happen Capitals vs Bruins.. |
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It's time kids!
Today begins the best two weeks of the hockey season. The opening round of the playoffs. There is NOTHING better than 8 series going at the same time with all the excitement that comes when these players start playing for the toughest trophy to win in the sports universe.. Get out the coffee and blankets...some late nights and long overtimes are coming!
Remember, there is still time to get in on our playoff contest "I KNOW MORE THAN EK." and win the vintage goalie mask! Just put your series one predictions (Series Winner and # of games) into the comments thread of this blog or the blog before this one. For rules of how the winner will be determined check out the blog prior to this one...
As for my picks...Lets start today with the East.
EXACTLY What Will Happen in the BOSTON vs. WASHINGTON Series
When it comes to playoff experience, and general moxy, it is hard to find two teams who know more of what it takes to win this time of year than the Caps and Bruins.
Season Series:
This season these teams played games that were all over the map. Each team won 4 of the 8 contest, the Bruins winning all 4 in regulation, the Caps needing OT to win 2 of their 4. The Caps had one crazy 8-1 victory in Boston on April 11. In the other 7 games the Caps only managed 17 goals and the Bruins held them to 2 goals or less in half the games.
Late Season Trends:
The Caps went 7-2-1 to end the season, but didn't look all that great doing it. They are battling injuries and who will be ready for the start of this series is still up in the air. The Bruins were 6-3-1 down the stretch and saw Taylor Hall really start to give them exactly what they needed...more depth scoring and alot of dynamic energy.
Its all about the goalies and special teams.
I have been saying this for years. If you look at the teams with the better goalies and better special teams you will find the winners.
PP% Caps 3rd, Bruins 10th
SH% Bruins 2nd, Caps 5th
Goal: Advantage Rask. Have to think Rask will be extra determined after the bubble situation last year. The Caps goaltending has been all over the map.
What will happen...
The Chara factor is alot of fun, but not a big enough factor to make the difference I feel. It's hard to count a Laviolette team out in ANY playoff series, but the Caps health is a very real concern.
The Bruins just know how to win.. They will look bad at times and tease you that they are beatable....but they will ALWAYS find a way. This series will be a battle for every puck and I just feel the B's are more willing to pay that price.....but I could be very wrong.
Prediction: Bruins in 6
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