The B's went into Philadelphia and came away with two wins over the Flyers. Winning two games on the road is impressive, but the way the Bruins did so was even more impressive.
In Game 1, they just flat-out dominated the Flyers from the opening puck drop to the final horn. Then, in Game 2, Boston withstood an incredible start for Philly before coming back from a two-goal deficit to win in overtime behind an otherworldly performance from Tim Thomas.
The Bruins are riding high. However, as we found out last year, that doesn't mean much of anything.
The B's will certainly have their work cut out for them on Wednesday night at TD Garden. Laviolette said that the pressure is on the Bruins, but if given the chance, you know the Massachusetts native would love to switch positions with the B's.
With that in mind, the Bruins can certainly expect another inspired start from the Flyers. The Flyers may be down a pair of games, but despite their historic comeback from down 0-3 last season, they simply do not want to fall into a three-game hole again.
The B's will also be a little bit shorthanded. Adam McQuaid's neck injury has him day-to-day, so he's questionable for Game 3. If he isn't able to go, Shane Hnidy will likely have to step in for the youngster, and make just his second appearance of the postseason and his first since Game 2 of the Montreal series.
Regardless, the Bruins likely know they'll have to play better in Game 3 than they did in Game 2. The Flyers dominated the early stages of the game, and they dominated the later stages of the game. Two things — the play of Thomas and David Krejci's one-timer in overtime — were truly responsible for the win. While Thomas has picked up his play in the playoffs, the type of performance showed in Game 2 doesn't come around all the time
Then, there's the power play. Sure, the Bruins have looked better on the power play at times in the past couple of games, but there is still no denying the numbers. The B's remain 0-for-the playoffs with a man advantage, something that will come back to bite them at some point if they don't start cashing in their opportunities.
The Bruins will definitely want to defend home ice — something they've struggled to do at times in the Claude Julien era — and go for the neck as quickly as possible. However, after 2010, they certainly know it's not going to be easy.
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