Bruins schooling Pens like they did to Canucks

[Bodee]

I would like to first say that I despise the Bruins, Hawks and don't like the Kings much. Mostly, because all 3 teams knocked our guys out and got a Cup within the last 3 years. So I am of course cheering for the Pens, an obvious Cup fav.

The bloody Bruins are doing to this years fav to win the Cup, as they did to the Canucks in 2011. Unfortunately some sick forces out there have crushed what everyone thought was a sure thing.

Amazingly, the same circumstances have been resurrected in this series:

1) they can't score a single power play goal

2) they can't score hardly any goals

3) the best players are not playing their best

4) the number one goalie got shell shocked in a game

How are the Bruins doing the exact same thing to the Pens like they did to our Canucks a couple years ago?

This is not supposed to happen!

I am just baffled

[Drakrami]

This must sting Leafs fans that much more. 4-1 with under ten to go.....

[CanAus8]

As much as you want to hate the Bruins, you have to admire their balance, coaching, ability and intelligence to understand the modern NHL. The Penguins have what most of us would think would be the right ingredients to dominate anyone who gets in their way but the Boston has made them look very ordinary.

Good team defense (they are not a run and gun team), toughness that puts everyone else at a lower level and a good blend of unappreciated skill makes them the favourites for this year's cup. They did the same to the Canucks 2 years ago - found a way to beat a very good team.

It helps to have the 2 toughest guys in the league as part of your team. It makes everyone else on the team a lot braver. Can you imagine how effective Marchand would be if he didn't have Lucic and Chara to hide behind every time he takes a cheap shot at the other team's star player.

The Bruins live up to their mystique and reputation. Every player on the team knows that they are the "big, bad Bruins" and even players like Jagr plays tougher.

Despite the admiration I still hate "the Rat".

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[riffraff]

I'd say the pens are truly getting schooled.

The only similarity is the pens now look like this years Canucks:

Can't score

Brutal pp

Inconsistent effort

Emotional instability

Player invisible at times

Bad defensive zone play

Can't get the puck out of their own end

Honestly the way the pens have "transitioned" from their own zone up through neutral ice has been terrible. The first two games I swore I was seeing the Canucks.

[cbdoubleu]

Forget the hits and physical play. Yes that makes Boston hard to play against, but it's their trap that school teams like the Penguins. What did you see all games 1 and 2? Penguins trying to beat the Bruins 1 on 4 through the neutral zone and at the blueline.

Bruins do a few things exceptionally well; they always cover the points and they always make sure the puck is in deep. Any time the Pens get the puck in their own end, there's already Bruin sticks all through the neutral zone and the forward or forwards forechecking are on you quick. Good luck threading a pass through all those sticks. Bruins get it back, dump it back in, and wear you down. Eventually you try to walk it out, now they turn it over with numbers in their favor and make you pay. And they have good enough forwards. They're going to make you pay.

Then with speedy wingers covering your points, they take your D right out of the equation on offense. Pens aren't a crash and drive to the net team, what are they doing? Looking for the guy at the points. Those passes get picked off and now it's foot-race. Now you're down a couple so you really try to open it up, and now you're just fishing pucks out of your net every 5 minutes.

You have to turn the tables on the Bruins. Go back and look at how the Caps played them. You gotta start dumping it in and turning their D, and force them to try to make plays through a crowded neutral zone. You don't have to physically beat them or be "man enough" to get involved in after the whistle stuff. That's a smoke screen.

The best way to neutralize a good counter-puncher is to stop trying so hard to punch them. That's what they want.

[Industrious1]

The penguins haven't been exacting much in the way of physical retribution on the Bruins either. I think I've seen one big hit (Neil on Lucic) going in Pittsburgh's favor. Most other contact against them has been fluff or a half hearted effort to finish.

They aren't going to be able to dance and weave around Boston's defense...they are going to have to push their way through and i'm just not sure they are equipped to do it at this point.

[Boudrias]

Forget the hits and physical play. Yes that makes Boston hard to play against, but it's their trap that school teams like the Penguins. What did you see all games 1 and 2? Penguins trying to beat the Bruins 1 on 4 through the neutral zone and at the blueline.

Bruins do a few things exceptionally well; they always cover the points and they always make sure the puck is in deep. Any time the Pens get the puck in their own end, there's already Bruin sticks all through the neutral zone and the forward or forwards forechecking are on you quick. Good luck threading a pass through all those sticks. Bruins get it back, dump it back in, and wear you down. Eventually you try to walk it out, now they turn it over with numbers in their favor and make you pay. And they have good enough forwards. They're going to make you pay.

Then with speedy wingers covering your points, they take your D right out of the equation on offense. Pens aren't a crash and drive to the net team, what are they doing? Looking for the guy at the points. Those passes get picked off and now it's foot-race. Now you're down a couple so you really try to open it up, and now you're just fishing pucks out of your net every 5 minutes.

You have to turn the tables on the Bruins. Go back and look at how the Caps played them. You gotta start dumping it in and turning their D, and force them to try to make plays through a crowded neutral zone. You don't have to physically beat them or be "man enough" to get involved in after the whistle stuff. That's a smoke screen.

The best way to neutralize a good counter-puncher is to stop trying so hard to punch them. That's what they want.

[Jester13]

I wonder if Kes and Burr, and even Kass, will once again be allowed to play their classic Brad Marchand type hockey with whoever takes over the reigns as head coach for Van? Enough of caring about what others think of our team or style of hockey. Granted, take the diving out of it, but let's make other teams and fans hate us like they hate the Bruins. I think it's that 'not give a crap, in your face hockey' that is winning it for the Bruins. They play the game hard, a little dirty, but they always walk the line. THen they score goals and have good goaltending. There is no reason, in my mind, that the Nucks can't play like that. We have some size, grit, pests, D, goaltending, and skill, and now that AV is gone we can unleash a little and, hopefully, play a more well-rounded classic NHL style of play that wins hockey games; especially in the playoffs.

[MikeyBoy44]

Sydney Crosby nowhere to be found...that's why I think he'll never be on the same level as Gretzky or Orr.

[higgyfan]

Sydney Crosby nowhere to be found...that's why I think he'll never be on the same level as Gretzky or Orr.

[Captain Aerosex]

Just because the Canucks got blown out in their losses doesn't mean they were schooled...took them to 7.

What I find interesting is the all those people who were saying the 2011 Canucks wouldn't stand a chance against the 2013 Pens...they were a damn good team, and they certainly fared better against a very similar Bruins team (except inhuman Thomas is even better than Rask).

Boston is New New Jersey. Look for another 5 years or so of them ruining offensive teams in the playoffs unless there's some tweaking done to the league à la post 2005.

[TheCammer]

I don't even thinks it's that. Pittsburgh is hanging in there physically. There's just something wrong with Pittsburgh's system I find. They allow teams to gain the zone very easily. We saw it with Philly last year and now even with the Bruins and their goalies haven't been great to make up for their D's mistakes.

[Tearloch7]

Forget the hits and physical play. Yes that makes Boston hard to play against, but it's their trap that school teams like the Penguins. What did you see all games 1 and 2? Penguins trying to beat the Bruins 1 on 4 through the neutral zone and at the blueline.

Bruins do a few things exceptionally well; they always cover the points and they always make sure the puck is in deep. Any time the Pens get the puck in their own end, there's already Bruin sticks all through the neutral zone and the forward or forwards forechecking are on you quick. Good luck threading a pass through all those sticks. Bruins get it back, dump it back in, and wear you down. Eventually you try to walk it out, now they turn it over with numbers in their favor and make you pay. And they have good enough forwards. They're going to make you pay.

Then with speedy wingers covering your points, they take your D right out of the equation on offense. Pens aren't a crash and drive to the net team, what are they doing? Looking for the guy at the points. Those passes get picked off and now it's foot-race. Now you're down a couple so you really try to open it up, and now you're just fishing pucks out of your net every 5 minutes.

You have to turn the tables on the Bruins. Go back and look at how the Caps played them. You gotta start dumping it in and turning their D, and force them to try to make plays through a crowded neutral zone. You don't have to physically beat them or be "man enough" to get involved in after the whistle stuff. That's a smoke screen.

The best way to neutralize a good counter-puncher is to stop trying so hard to punch them. That's what they want.

[aGENT]

Astutely said .. turning the Bruins defense IS effective .. one just needs the speed and size to get on top of them in the corners .. I would put the puck in Chara's corner and run him every chance I got .. after 6 periods of such treatment he would be looking over his shoulder ..

[Primus099]

Crosby Malkin and Letang all have 0 points. The Bruins have completely shut them down offensively, they're dominating them. We were up 2-1 after the first 3 games even though we were outscored 10-5

The Pens are down 3-0 and have been outscored 11-2. We looked good against the Bruins in 2011 compared to how the Pens look against them this year

[Ghostsof1915]

Maybe the lesson learned is rarely to trades done at the deadline put you over the top. The other lesson is trading away assets for rentals to make a splash in the playoffs rarely works as well.

So instead of trading away 2nd round picks every year, maybe we should look at moving veteran pieces that don't fit and pick up draft picks instead?

[Relfk]

Maybe the lesson learned is rarely to trades done at the deadline put you over the top. The other lesson is trading away assets for rentals to make a splash in the playoffs rarely works as well.

So instead of trading away 2nd round picks every year, maybe we should look at moving veteran pieces that don't fit and pick up draft picks instead?

[CB007]

The Bruins game plan is pretty simple, and it's the same way L.A and Chicago won a Cup too.

1) Solid defence first. Both defencemen back, rarely pinch or make stupid plays.

2) Get under the skin of the opposing team's stars

3) Big, physical defencemen crunching the other team's forwards every shift and wearing them down

4) A very fast forecheck, causing turnovers

5) Opportunistic offence off mistakes, not forcing offence

A good defence beats a good offence every single time, and a good goalie will stop a good forward whenever they go head to head. That's why the last 3 Cup winners (even 6 if you go back to when Pittsburgh had a good defence, and then Lidstrom in Detroit, then even Anaheim before them) were all defence-first teams.

If the Canucks want to win a Cup any time soon they need a defensive, not an offensive coach like AV was. We've got solid guys on our blueline in Hamhuis and Garrison, two offensive guys who can also hit in Edler and Bieksa, and now two very bright future shutdown defencemen in Tanev and Corrado. A good defensive coach will make these guys play a good shutdown system, and with Schneider in net there's no reason we can't win a Cup on defence alone. Enough of this nonesense "offence from the blueline" and stupid pinches, it's time to play smart sound defence.

[CB007]

Astutely said .. turning the Bruins defense IS effective .. one just needs the speed and size to get on top of them in the corners .. I would put the puck in Chara's corner and run him every chance I got .. after 6 periods of such treatment he would be looking over his shoulder ..

[canucksnihilist]

what we are seeing is: speed doesn't trump size.

this is the same as 11 - hawks are fighting the good battle that is entertaining, and fun to watch. And are on a collision course with an immovable object. go hawks!