With game sevens becoming the latest trend in the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs, it just goes to show that the three remaining Eastern Conference playoff teams all believe that they can contend for the cup. However, even though the Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers all exude a strong sense of confidence in their games, it’s going to take a team that can play strong, physical and consistent hockey at both ends of the ice to beat whoever comes out of a superior Western Conference.

Two of the remaining three teams in the West have won three of the last five Stanley Cup finals and are probably more poised to win the cup in 2014 than any of the remaining teams coming out of the East. With the way the Chicago Blackhawks are playing, and the deep lineups that the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings put on the ice, the only Eastern Conference team that could come close to challenging for the cup would have to be a rough and tough Bruins hockey club.

The Bruins have the unique ability to play crash-and-bang hockey all the while not having any trouble with putting the puck in the back of the net.  They have averaged a solid 33.3 shots per game and play well at home, so far scoring 20 goals in just six games played inside TD Bank Garden. These are the kinds of stats that make them the only real contender to come out of the Eastern Conference.

Besides playing well at home and putting pressure on the opposing team’s goaltender, the Bruins do a good job of controlling the game more often than not. That is going to need to happen, as teams like the Blackhawks have the ability to take control and dictate the flow of the game in a matter of seconds. Having a sense of ownership when it comes to puck possession is perhaps the biggest necessity for any Eastern Conference team to have if they want to challenge the West, and this is something that the Bruins already practice.

In 2014, it’s going to take a champion to beat a champion. With the Blackhawks being the favorites to represent the Western Conference in the Stanley Cup final, it’s the Bruins gritty yet offensively productive lineup that may have the best chance of stealing the thunder away from a team out of the West.