Boston Bruins Look To Take A 2-0 Series Lead Over The New York Rangers
By Matt Zampini
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.