Bruins vs Flyers - NHL Playoffs - Eastern Conference Semi-Final

This is it! 1,230 games have been completed and the 2nd season begins. 16 teams participate and 1 will hoist the most coveted trophy in professional sports: the Stanley Cup. This is one of the toughest tournaments in the world and P&B will be your round by round guide.

Chara clears the pucks passed a forechecking Giroux (Photo via zimbio.com)

2

VS

3

2011 Season Series:

Boston won 3-1

What's the story?:

The Bruins battled back from a 2-0 hole against the Habs to win a la dramatique in a game 7 overtime classic.
Thomas looked great at times and downright lost as well. I have to give Coach Julien props for not pulling the trigger on Thomas and throwing in Rask. Rask is a fantastic 2nd option (he could be a great 1st option for many teams). Personally, I would've started Rask in game 3. This proves yet again that I'm not an NHL coach for good reason(s)! Bergeron was a monster against the Habs winning 61.1% of his faceoffs and leading the team on the offensive end. On the other side of the spectrum, Lucic and Chara have been downright terrible and not carrying their weight. Guys like Marchand, Kelly and Recchi have filled the void in their offensive absence.

Philly also went the distance in their first round battle vs the Sabres. They dominated game 7 with a humbling 5-2 win. There's so much all-star Ryan Miller can do on his own. He kept the Sabres in most of the games. Kinda makes me wonder what it would be like to have Miller tending the cage for these Flyers..as we all hilariously know, this is not the case. Flyers coach Laviollette has iced 3 different goaltenders in the first round. Not sure if this happened in the past but it sure is special. Giroux continues to prove that he is a playoff beast by picking up 9 points. No pucks have been stolen up to this point, which kinda sucks. Well this guy got busted.

Questions You Should Ask Yourself Before you pick a winner:

Who will be Philly's netminder of choice or will the three headed monster reappear? Will Lucic return to his 30 goal form? Can Thomas bring his Vezina winning form for the Bruins? Can you really sail on the ocean in one of Chara's shoes?

Key Playas and Pretendas to watch:

Bruins Playas: Bergeron, Marchand, Horton,Kelly

Bruins Pretendas: Lucic, Campbell, Kaberle

Flyers Playas: Giroux, Briere, Leino, Richards

Flyers Pretendas: Carle, Zherdev, Syvret

P&B Prediction:

The Bruins cannot win this series without scoring a PP goal like they did in the series vs Montreal. You can expect them to pick up more goals on the man advantage and take this physical series in 7.

-Paqman