Apart from one stretch in March, the Bruins were good all season long, even when they had injuries. Tim Thomas is terrific in goal. Zdeno Chara may be the best defenceman in the league this season, the overall defence is good, and up front they have a lot of weapons led by Marc Savard and Milan Lucic. Their power play was fourth best in the league and their penalty killing is middle of the pack, good enough. They were also great at home.

The Bruins certainly didn't disappoint in any way in the first round. Tim Thomas was good when he had to be in goal, their overall defensive play was solid, and they had too many weapons and size for the Habs to compete. They will definitely be experiencing an upgrade in terms of their round-two opposition.

Zdeno Chara. He can put up points and obviously is a huge physical presence.

The line of Alex Kovalev, Alex Tanguay and Saku Koivu was very hot down the stretch and was largely responsible for the Canadiens' turnaround and their making the playoffs. Maxim Lapierre and Guillaume Latendresse also played well. There were signs down the stretch that Carey Price, who struggled mightily in the second half, has found his game again. That Mathieu Schneider was able to return from injury was a huge plus, especially to the power play, which has improved dramatically since he arrived.

The loss of Andrei Markov, if he is unable to play, is big. He was not only their leading point getter at the time he was injured, but also their best defenceman. The blue-line suffers if he's out and Schneider is ailing. Can the Habs get enough offence elsewhere if the Kovalev line gets shut down? Can the Canadiens match up physically against the Bruins?

Alex Kovalev. Obviously, goaltending is always key but when this guy comes to play the Canadiens seem to find success.