The Bruins take on the last place Leafs tonight. This is good news for the Bruins who have seemingly only been playing teams that are above them in the standings or that typically play very well against them lately (damn you, Carolina). Don’t let the Leaf’s last place position fool you; they’re actually only second last in the NHL. Seriously though, they’re only eight points behind the Bruins so it’s not like the Bruins can just waltz, mambo, tango, or tap into Toronto and expect a win. They’ll get a run for their money and they’re playing a Leaf team that’s already hit bottom (less pressure can often mean better play). I think if the Bruins merengue in they’ll be fine though.
Aaron Ward will probably play tonight. He was out after being pushed into the mud and kicked…in the head…with a metal boot. Schaefer is still dealing with his festering and dripping shin wound and so he will not be playing tonight. There is a chance that Chuck Kobasew could return tonight as well. Chuck already has a few goals against the Leafs this year so it would be nice to have him back. Patrice Bergeron has resumed short workouts. Apparently he’s begun working out on an elliptical trainer. I’m not sure what that is and I have no idea how to describe an ellipse since I failed geography.
The Leafs are an organization that is mired in questions right now; will Mats Sundin be traded? Will the Leafs get the first overall pick in this year’s draft? What’s wrong with Darcy Tucker? Who should the team trade away and who should they keep? Does Cliff Fletcher have a big enough supply of geritol? What happened to the stripe on the bottom of the jerseys? All important questions. Some people say that the answer is to simply blow the Leafs up. To those people I say that no matter how bad the team may be, they don’t deserve to be executed in a fiery explosion.
If the Leafs do decide to break the team apart, then what do they have to offer? Sure lots of players have no trade clauses but there are ways of getting players to waive those. With players like Hal Gill (a rich man’s version of Hal Gill) and Boyd Deveraux, the Leafs can offer cheap depth to teams that are seeking it. With players like Andrew Raycroft, the team can offer headaches like you wouldn’t believe. But with a player like Thomas Kaberle, who looks entirely like Doctor Evil but with hair, they could net serious return. If Leaf fans can take solace in anything, it’s that all of these decisions are in the capable and steady hands of a 72 year old man and a group of simpering trustees. That sounds like a recipe for success to me.
As the Leafs deal with all that, the Bruins are in a dog fight to keep their eighth playoff spot. But that won’t stop them from holding their Boston Bruins Charity Auction. For anyone who can participate, I suggest they do so. The Bruins are people to and through your generous donations, poor folks like Zdeno Chara can help stave off malaria and starvation for another week.
Keys to the game:
1. The Bruins have to keep up that good, defensive attention to detail that was so prevalent in their win against Pittsburgh. The Leafs are coming off of a 5-4 loss to the Islanders so obviously the Leafs can score if they’re potting four goals against a defensive team like that.
2. The good news is that they also let five goals in against a defensive team like the Islanders. That brings me to my next point: the Leafs will screw up in their own end so just let them and then pounce on the opportunities. Whether the Bruins play an all out trap or not, they just have to make sure to keep their feet moving, pay attention to defense and forecheck and they’ll be fine.
3. The Leafs do not have a very good power-play or penalty kill and so the Bruins may actually finally be able to out-special-team someone.
4. Goaltending is usually a big factor against the Leafs. Whether Auld, Thomas or Rask, the Bruins have had some very good goaltending when playing the buds. Hopefully that continues.
Prediction:
4-1 Leafs
-Gerz
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