Marchand sporting. . Merlot? (Photo Credit: Steph Phillips)
The Boston Bruins head back tot he Garden today to take on the Washington Capitals in game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarter Final. Currently the series is split right down the middle, each team with two wins under their belt, requiring another two wins to advance in the series. The only team thus far in the playoffs to advance is the Nashville Predators who knocked out the Detroit Red Wings last night. Congratulations Preds!
For the Bruins in game 4, there are really no words to explain what occurred. It was just a minute and a half into the game when the Capitals got on the board first, providing the Capitals with confidence, despite missing star forward Nicklas Backstrom. There really were no ‘stellar’ plays to talk about in this game. Simply put, despite valiant efforts by Peverley and Pouliot, the Bruins sucked more than a hooker on a street corner on a Friday night in Vegas. They lacked net presence, rebounding, shots and all-around offense in general.
“At the end of the day it’s trying to resolve the situation of capitalizing on our chances.”-Claude Julien (via Bruins Beat)
Heading into Game 5, the Bruins are changing things up a bit. After yesterday’s practice, there were some noticeable line changes. Here is a look at what to expect in today’s game:
Milan Lucic-David Krejci-Brian Rolston
Rich Peverley-Patrice Bergeron-Daniel Paille
Jordan Caron/Chris Kelly-Benoit Pouliot-Tyler Seguin
Shawn Thornton-Gregory Campbell-Brad Marchand
Yes, you read that correctly, Marchand is going to be sporting the fourth line to start out Game 5. The ‘Little Ball of Hate’ has been a good brat for the most part throughout the playoffs, but has bigger skates to fill if the Bruins intend to move forward in the series. Tortunately for the Bruins, they are a team that is easily adaptable, each and every player has played on a line with each other at some point or another and are familiar with the style each plays with.
In order to come out on top today, the Bruins are going to have to continue to dominate play through the neutral zone and create offensive opportunities, but provide a much better net front presence and rebound opportunities.
Be sure to tune into NESN at 3pm EST to see if the Bruins can take yet another lead in the series or listen to the game on 98.5 the Sports Hub.
A Cup A Bruin 