CBC-Sports

"Trap" causing headaches for Bruins

May 10, 2009 02:53 PM | Posted by   CBC Sports Staff  

When asked about how his Bruins have struggled to gain clean entries and play its puck-possession game, Boston bench boss Claude Julien said it was because of the defensive system Carolina coach Paul Maurice has installed.

"They play four guys back," Julien said. "They just wait for us in the neutral zone. It's something a little surprising coming from Paul. I know he used to complain about that last year in Toronto about us killing [him] with the trap. But that's what they've done.

"They've created a pretty tough situation for us as far as getting in. We've got to find a way to get pucks in and play more in their own end."

Trap disagreement

Several minutes later, Julien referred to the trap again.

"It's not easy, because they've got three guys waiting for us between the red and the blue-line," Julien said. "They've got a D back deep that just retrieves the puck whenever we chip it in. They're just right on top of us. It's not an easy thing to defend against, and they've done it well. To their credit, they've done it well, that trap game that they've chosen. It's made it harder on us.

“Somehow we have to manage to get pucks behind and also put it in areas where we have good retrieval."

Maurice, whose Hurricanes have overwhelmed the Bruins with their forecheck, disagreed with Julien's sentiments.

"We actually don't trap," Maurice answered. "There are worse things than the trap, by the way. There are more defensive schemes than the trap. We don't. And he knows it."

One game at a time

The Bruins, who found themselves down 3-1 in a first-round series against the Canadiens last season, are approaching the next three matches with tunnel vision.

"You really have to worry about tonight," Julien said. "This is the game that you have to worry about. We always say the big picture can be scary and the smaller picture is a lot more realistic. It's about winning this game tonight and creating another one. You don't get to Game 7 without winning Game 5. After you win Game 5, you've got to win Game 6. We know we have to win Game 7, but we can't win it tonight. It's the reality of things. It's actually not a bad thing, because you only have to worry about one game right now. Not three."

The Bruins have fallen behind by a 3-1 margin in a series 20 times. They have lost all 20 series. They have extended only one of those series to seven games (last season against the Canadiens).

"We just lost three in a row," said Dennis Wideman, whose team won the first match of the series. "We're able to win three in a row."

Bayda out again

The Hurricanes will be without Ryan Bayda (flu-like symptoms) for the second straight game. Tim Conboy will most likely skate in Bayda's spot on the fourth line with Rod Brind'Amour and Patrick Eaves ... Julien said he would wait until tonight to decide which of his 13 forwards will be the healthy scratch. Byron Bitz, a healthy scratch for the first three games of the series, dressed for the first time on Friday. Shawn Thornton was the healthy scratch in Game 4. Blake Wheeler could be a candidate for press-box duty tonight.

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