Not too many people expected the Boston Bruins to win not one, but both games in Pittsburgh to open up their series against the Penguins, but that is exactly what they did.
In fact, simply saying that the Bruins won the games is a huge understatement. Boston absolutely dominated Pittsburgh in every facet of the game; scoring goals, making saves, causing turnovers, the whole nine yards. The Penguins have been outscored by Boston 9-1 on their home ice in two games.
Boston is the kind of team that is taylor-made to beat the Penguins. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are two perfect examples of star players that get frustrated and act immature fairly easily, and the Bruins know exactly how to get under their skin with guys like Brad Marchand, Milan Lucic, and Shawn Thornton.
Another major mismatch in this series is the goaltending. Tuukka Rask has been unbelievable for the Bruins, surrendering only one goal in two games to arguably the best offense in all of hockey. Tomas Vokoun, on the other hand, was chased in the first period in favor of Marc-Andre Fleury, and we all know how much he has struggled under pressure.
Boston has a two-game lead in the series and they have yet to play at TD Garden. Talk about sitting pretty.
With home ice advantage, Claude Julien can send his agitators on the ice whenever he wants to against whoever he wants to, especially Crosby and Malkin. We have already begun to see a similar trend that we saw in Pittsburgh's series against Philadelphia last year: frustrate the Penguins, and they get thrown off of their game.
Timely goal scoring has been another plus for the Bruins. Brad Marchand capitalized on a Sidney Crosby hiccup and gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead only 28 seconds into Game Two, setting the stage for a game that the Penguins could never climb back into. Once Vokoun was pulled, Fleury gave up a goal on the first shot he faced, with only nine seconds left in the first period. If Fleury makes that stop, the Penguins are only down 3-1 going into the second, which is a deficit that can most definitely be overcome. Instead, the Bruins gain even more momentum, rolling on to a 6-1 stomping of the Penguins.
Boston has the confidence it needs in order to finish this thing very quickly. The Bruins just beat the almighty Penguins twice on their own ice and are returning home in front of a crowd that has seen them win four straight on home ice.
Pittsburgh, on the other hand, is in desperation mode. The Penguins have relinquished home ice advantage, they are not scoring nearly as much as they are used to, and they are giving up way too many goals in order to keep themselves in games.
It goes without saying that the Bruins have Pittsburgh's number right now, and if the Penguins cannot turn things around immediately, they will be hitting the golf course very soon.