This should be an interesting series to watch, as these two teams took separate paths to reach the second round. The Bruins easily handled their Original Six foes and swept the Canadiens in a relatively easy series. As for the Hurricanes, they had to grind out their series win in seven games, and thanks to some strong play in the last three minutes; they stunned the Devils on their home ice.
Goaltending was the story for both of these teams. On one side, Tim Thomas proved he could play in the playoffs and handle all the pressure. For the Hurricanes, they went into their series with the Devils, as underdogs to win, and didn’t have the goaltending edge. Cam Ward shrugged all that off and outlasted future hall of famer Martin Brodeur, and any time a goalie could do that, he gives his team the edge to win. Not to mention, Cam Ward is also a Conn Smythe winner when he backstopped the Hurricanes to win the Stanley Cup in 2006 as a rookie. So it is fair to say that the Hurricanes are ahead between the pipes.
That may be all for the Hurricanes though, as they will have to contend with a high powered Bruins offence, and try to get through a rugged defence.
In the first round, the Bruins showed no signs of slowing down offensively and that was all they needed in beating the Canadiens. Boston scored no fewer than four goals a game, and scored 17 total goals in just four games. The likes of Phil Kessel and Marc Savard led the way for the Bruins. For Claude Julien he was given the comfort that he could roll out four lines, and that went a long way.
Cracking the Bruins defence won’t be an easy chore, especially after the Hurricanes will be dead tired chasing around the Bruins. Defensively, the Bruins posted a brick wall and the Canadiens struggled to score and the Bruins allowed just six total goals, and didn’t allow more than two goals a game.
The Hurricanes will most definitely have their work cut out for them, but they are a scrappy bunch and provided to be a solid challenge for the Devils. Their two stars came out to play, in net Cam Ward was solid, and up front Eric Staal had the scoring touch, and scored with 35 second left in game seven to clinch the series versus New Jersey.
Defensively, the Hurricanes conceded 15 goals in seven games, which average out to 2 goals a game. Stopping the Bruins attack will be a challenge, and if the Hurricanes could somehow limit the scoring for Boston to just three goals a game, then the series could be prolonged. That could happen, because Cam Ward did post a shutout in the first round, while Tim Thomas did not. The Hurricanes only gave up four goals once and three goals twice. Those are a lot of goals to give up, but if the Bruins are limited, watch out for the Hurricanes, because they can score too.
In the end, the Bruins are too much to handle, as they have the defence, offense and are extremely physical and will punish the Hurricanes and really hurt them, especially after a seven game series. The Hurricanes are better in the goaltending department, and that will hold Carolina in a few games and the series, but the Bruins showed that they are relentless.
SERIES PREDICTION --> THE BOSTON BRUINS WILL WIN THIS SERIES IN 6 GAMES, AND WILL BE GIVEN A REAL CHALLENGE BY THE SCRAPPY CAROLINA HURRICANES, AND BY GOALTENDER CAM WARD.
*THE ONLY WAY THE CAROLINA HURRICANES COULD WIN THIS SERIES IS IF CAM WARD COULD POST AT LEAST THREE SHUTOUTS (WHICH IS DOABLE), AND THE HURRICANES WIN AT LEAST TWO GAMES IN BOSTON.
The opinions and thoughts expressed in this or any other article written by 12nadnuk are of his thinking and what he thinks is correct or close to it in the sporting world. If there are any problems by anyone, 12nadnuk is open for rebuttal and what not, and honest criticism. There is also a comments section, so feel free to post what is on your mind about the article. Thank you for reading.
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