Thursday, March 18, 2010

Game #71 - at Boston Bruins

Game 71
Penguins (41-24-5, 87 points) at Bruins (31-26-12, 74 points)

Why does it matter?
First off, ignore all of the nonsense about injuring players and payback. There might be someone that confronts Cooke, but the Bruins are trying to get into the playoffs. They're not going to waste significant effort on revenge.

The Pens badly need two points to keep themselves in the conversation for the #2 seed. Nothing matters other than that.

What has been happening lately?
  • Pens -Three losses in four games on this road trip won't cut it.
  • Bruins - A 3-3-1 road trip has typified their play for the last two months - average, maybe even mediocre.
Questions to be answered
  • Will we see Thomas or Rask in net for the Bruins? The Pens don't have any good recent history against Thomas in Boston.
  • Can the offense step up against the normally stingy Boston trap?
  • I'm still looking for a shut out from a Pens goalie. Can they get one? (this question is staying here until they do)
Keys to the game
  • Get traffic in front of the goalie, no matter which one it is. These are essentially playoff games, so there should be some urgency around the crease.
  • Ignore any nonsense. Just play with the same intensity that has been there for the last few weeks.
  • Clean up the mental mistakes. This is critical going into the playoffs. The line changes we saw against Jersey cannot happen, or golf will be on the agenda sooner rather than later.

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