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SERIES SO FAR: |
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Game 1 - April 18
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Montreal
Boston
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5
2
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Boxscore
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Game 2- April 21
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Montreal
Boston
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4
6
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Boxscore
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Game 3 - April 23
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Boston
Montreal
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3
5
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Boxscore
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Game 4 - April 25
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Boston
Montreal
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5
2
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Boxscore
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Game 5 - April 27
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Montreal
Boston
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2
1
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Boxscore
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Game 6 - April 29
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Boston
Montreal
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1
2
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Boxscore
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Game 7 - April 30*
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Montreal @
Boston
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7:00 p.m.
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*If necessary |
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Harry Neale
Boston has had an excellent season and if Joe Thornton is
healthy, that should continue into the playoffs.
Montreal has been on a real roll to make the playoffs, but
may have burned themselves out getting there. They must be
motivated, as they haven't been there for four years, and
they do have Jose Theodore in goal. But Boston is just too
strong offensively for the Canadiens.
Boston in six
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MONTREAL CANADIENS
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Ranked 8th in the East
Record: 36-31-12-3
87 points
207 GF 209 GA
After three seasons on the outside looking in, the
Montreal Canadiens are back in the playoffs. No small
accomplishment considering the blow the franchise was
dealt prior to the start of the regular season.
Finnish captain Saku Koivu was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins
lymphoma, a potentially fatal cancer.
Koivu, Montreal's best forward, was lost, and so too,
many pundits believed, were the Canadiens' playoff chances.
But galvanized behind their fallen leader and backstopped
by a MVP-calibre campaign from Jose Theodore, Les Glorieux
edged the likes of the free-spending New York Rangers
and Jaromir Jagr's Washington Capitals for the final
playoff spot in the East.
While Theodore anchored the Habs' defence, newcomers
like Yanic
Perreault and Doug Gilmour ignited Montreal's offence.
Perreault, who signed as a free agent during the offseason,
led the Canadiens in both goals (27) and points (56).
Entering his 19th postseason, Gilmour led the club with
31 assists and his leadership was invaluable.
The Canadiens will also get a boost from the presence
of Koivu, who returned the Habs' lineup just days before
the regular season ended.
KEY STATISTICS
Playoff Record: 4-2
Power play: 6-26
Penalty killing: 15-20
KEY INJURIES
G Jeff Hackett - shoulder
F Richard Zednik - concussion
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BOSTON BRUINS
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Ranked 1st in the East
Record: 43-24-6-9
101 points
236 GF 201 GA
It's been quite a turnaround for the Boston Bruins.
After missing the playoffs by one point last season,
the Bruins made sure that they didn't have to go through
another physically draining post-season race, coming
together as a team to surprise the rest of the
Northwest Division and become the class of the Eastern
Conference.
The Bruins didn't blow away their opposition with offence
or stifle them
with defence, but the team showed a tremendous knack
for pulling out a win in close games.
Of the Bruins 43 wins, nearly half have been by one
goal.
After tempting Bruins fans for the past two years with
the odd flash of talent, Joe Thornton took his game
up a level this season, challenging for the scoring
title until he injured his shoulder in early March.
The Bruins' offence is the team's biggest strength,
with a number of
forwards capable of shouldering the load.
In addition to Thornton, the team has 40-goal scorer
Bill Guerin, Russian sniper Sergei Samsonov, Glen Murray
and Brian Rolston.
Boston's defence rarely contributes to the scoresheet,
but it is a solid unit led by Hal Gill. If the blue
line makes a mistake, it is usually covered by goaltender
Byron Dafoe, who will be a huge factor in how far his
team can go.
KEY STATISTICS
Playoff Record: 2-4
Power play: 5-20
Penalty killing: 20-26
KEY INJURIES
C Jarno Kultanen - knee
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No first-round playoff series is steeped in more history
than the
Montreal Canadiens matchup with the Boston Bruins.
The series is the 29th all-time between the two Original
Six franchises, the last meeting coming in 1994 when the Bruins
beat the Habs in seven games to advance to the second round.
The Bruins won the 2001-02 regular-season series 3-2, and
with a deep group of talented forwards, they must be to be
considered favourites in this playoff matchup. In those five
games Boston registered 182 shots. The Canadiens mustered
a meagre 110 by comparison.
That said, the eighth-seeded Canadiens come into the post
season brimming with confidence. Backstopped by Theodore,
the Habs have won of seven of their last 10 games and are
on emotional high buoyed by an improbable playoff berth and
the return of Koivu.
Confidence, chemistry and goaltending could be the Canadiens'
key to the second round.
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Jose Theodore
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Theodore stole the show by stealing his second straight game from the Bruins, who peppered him with 35 shots. He was particularly sharp in the lategoing with a sweeping blocker save on Bill Guerin highlighting yet another spectacular performance.
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Brian Rolston
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Rolston scored the lone goal for the Bruins, collecting his own rebound and deftly backhanding it into the open net by a beaten Theodore. Later on, he had two splendid long-range chances while patrolling the point, only to be denied by Theodore.
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