May 16, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Bruins forward David Krejci (46) faces off against New York Rangers forward Brian Boyle (22) during the first period at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Michal Ivins-USA TODAY Sports

Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals between the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers will be at 3 p.m. on Sunday afternoon at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. With a victory on Sunday, Boston would go up 2-0 in the series and be in total control over the Rangers.

Boston’s banged up defensemen are taking a step in the right direction toward being back in the lineup. On Saturday, Dennis Seidenberg skated before practice and Wade Redden practiced with the team for the first time since being in the lineup for Game 6 against Toronto. Andrew Ference still hasn’t skated since his undisclosed injury. Although it looks like all are improving, it still doesn’t look like they will be available for Game 2 on Sunday.

In Game 1, the three young defensemen stepped up big time. Dougie Hamilton, Matt Bartkowski and Torey Krug all looked very comfortable for having such little playoff experience. On Thursday night, Krug scored his first career goal to tie the game in the third period. Bartkowski has shown he is a very good puck handler and is growing in confidence each game he plays. Although sometimes shaky, Hamilton looked very good on the power play. He was putting shots on net and moving the puck efficiently, which is what the Bruins want.

Good things happen when you shoot the puck, and Boston will have to continue to put pucks on net if they want to beat Henrik Lundqvist. The Rangers are going to come out with high energy Sunday afternoon and the Bruins will have to match it. New York found themselves down 0-2 against the Capitals and even though they still won the series, I can guarantee that they do not want to put themselves back in that situation.

Every game between Boston and New York this season has been a one-goal game and I would expect nothing less then another thriller on Sunday afternoon.

February 12, 2013; Boston, MA USA; Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron (37) tries to screen New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist (30) while Rangers defenseman Marc Staal (18) defends during the second period at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Bruins will take on the New York Rangers in the playoffs for the first time since 1973. Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Final is scheduled for Thursday night at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.

Boston is coming off a hard battled series against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Everyone knows the story by now. In Game 7, Boston found themselves down three goals in the third period and seemingly lost all hope. But then the comeback commenced. The B’s scored three goals in the final twelve minutes to tie the game and Patrice Bergeron scored the game winner in overtime.

It was nice to bask in the moment of perhaps the greatest comeback in Boston sports history, but now it is time for the B’s to turn their attention to the New York Rangers.

Just like the Bruins, the Rangers also played a grueling seven game series. In Game 7 in Washington, they beat the Capitals 5-0 to advance to the second round. After being down in the series three games to two, New York won the final two games to send the Caps home.

The Bruins and Rangers faced off three times this 48-game season with the Rangers winning two of the three games. The B’s won the first game 3-1 and the Rangers won the final two games 4-3 (one in overtime and one in a shootout).

Heading into the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals, Boston is banged up. On Tuesday morning, the Bruins announced they have called defenseman Torey Krug up from Providence because of the lack of d-men. As of right now, it does not look good for Andrew Ference, Wade Redden and Dennis Seidenberg (who played 0:37 in Game 7 against Toronto). Ference was seen with a boot on his left foot at the Garden on Monday night. Coach Julien did not have an update on the injuries in his press conference on Wednesday and says, “My final roster will be decided before the game.” Youngsters’ Dougie Hamilton and Matt Bartkowski stepped up big time in Game 7 and will likely play a big role again this series with all the injuries.

It will be key for Boston to put pucks on net against Rangers’ goalie Henrik Lundqvist. Lundqvist is a Vezina Trophy nominee who had an outstanding season, along with a terrific series against the Capitals. For the B’s to be successful against “King Henrik”, they need to put as many shots as possible on net to create rebounds and second chance opportunities. This is what worked for Boston against the Maple Leafs and will have to do the same thing to be effective against New York.

Game 1 is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Thursday night and will be televised on the NBC Sports Network. You can find pre-game and post-game coverage on NESN throughout the series as well.

May 6, 2013; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Carl Gunnarsson (36) battles Boston Bruins forward Milan Lucic (17) for the puck during game three of the first round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs at the Air Canada Centre. Boston defeated Toronto 5-2. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

In Game 4 of this best of seven series, the Boston Bruins will have a chance to take a commanding three to one lead on the Toronto Maple Leafs.

On Monday night, the Bruins came into the Air Canada Centre and ruined what was supposed to be a party in Toronto. The first home playoff game in nine years for the Leafs was supposed to be full of jubilation and joy, but ended in sorrow and heartache for Leaf’s fans. Every time the crowd was getting loud, Boston made a big play to silence them. Boston went on to win the game 4-1 and gained home ice advantage back.

The keys to victory for Boston in Game 4 are:

1. Shoot the puck on net. Leaf’s goalie James Reimer has been shaky when it comes to handling pucks and has given up numerous rebounds all series. The Bruins are averaging just fewer than 40 shots this series and need to keep that number up. By putting shots on goal, there will be plenty of rebounds and second chance opportunities to score goals.
2. Get off to a good start, again. Just like in Game 3, the Maple Leaf’s fan base is going fill the Air Canada Centre and be loud and boisterous. They want that first home playoff win and they want in badly. Just like in Game 3, it is key for Boston to get the crowd out of the game early. Whether it is scoring a goal or two, finishing checks or limiting Toronto’s scoring opportunities, the first ten minutes of the game will be critical in calming the crowd and keeping them out of the game.
3. The Lucic-Krejci-Horton line needs to show up. Through the first three games of this series, they have accounted for 17 points (including eight in Game 3). The three have been up and down all season but when they all are on, Boston is hard to beat. When all three play their best, the rest of the team seems to elevate their game as well.

The Bruins have a huge opportunity in front of them on Wednesday night. With a win, they would go to back to Boston with a chance to close the series out in front of their home crowd. If they come out flat and play like they did in Game 2, they’ll go back to Boston with the series tied at two games apiece.