The first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs has been playing out very similarly to last season for the Boston Bruins. The Bruins capped off a historic 65-win regular season with an opening round meeting with the Florida Panthers and took a 3-1 series lead after taking two road wins in Games 3 and 4. Boston had a Game 5 at home and three opportunities to close out the series. Florida took Game 5 in overtime and then after a wild loss in Game 6 in Sunrise, Florida, Boston would lose Game 7 in overtime at home in stunning fashion. Some would deem it an epic collapse, but what is certain is that the early postseason exit was highly disappointing.
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Fast forward one year, and the Bruins are in the same situation. Two gritty victories in Toronto have given Boston a commanding three-games-to-one lead over the Toronto Maple Leafs, with Game 5 looming in Boston on Tuesday night. Last season, Head Coach Jim Montgomery made some lineup changes and inserted Patrice Bergeron back into the lineup as the future Hall of Famer was recovering from injury. All signs pointed to a series-clinching win. However, the changes in lines might have messed with the chemistry of the club, and Boston lost the fifth game. Even Montgomery himself regretted some of the “overcoaching” in that series. As the Bruins enter Tuesday’s game, the lineup should not see any changes. But what is needed to eliminate a vulnerable, but dangerous Maple Leafs team is something a few Bruins have mentioned.
During Monday’s practice, Montgomery was heard reminding his team of the importance of having a sense of urgency in their game. The Maple Leafs were seen having contentious conversations on the bench in Game 4, and their psyche is certainly fragile. Although nine players in the lineup were not on the Bruins roster last season, the core members of the team still have last postseason fresh in their minds, including their coach, who feels a sense of responsibility for last season’s meltdown. On the surface, the Bruins have three games to win one. But in theory, Boston needs to close out the Maple Leafs on Tuesday by beginning the game with urgency and feed off the energy in the building. Extending this series in any way will only give Toronto renewed confidence and put some Bruins players in a position with which they are all too familiar.
