The Bruins Face A Challenge From the Penguins

The Boston Bruins get ready to face-off against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL Eastern Conference finals and the Bruins are trying to prove the betting sites wrong. The bookmaking experts have the Penguins as almost even money to win the Eastern Conference finals and then go on to win the Stanley Cup. But throughout these entire playoffs, the Boston Bruins have found a way to defy the odds and get results that no one expected. This series would be a good time for Boston to find some more of that magic.

The online betting websites love to point out how good a team has to be for Jarome Ignila to be considered just another cog in the machine. One of the reasons that the Pittsburgh Penguins are so resilient is because they had to learn how to play the better part of two seasons without captain Sidney Crosby. To combat the persistent health issues of their best player, the Penguins went out and created a roster of veteran superstars. The final addition was Iginla, who came over to the team at the trade deadline. Calgary sent Iginla to Pittsburgh to give him a chance to win a Stanley Cup. Iginla just may get his wish.

Why the Penguins Will Win

For some unknown reason, the Penguins picked up veteran goaltender Tomas Vokoun in the offseason and then started Marc-Andre Fleury in the playoffs anyways. The sportsbook experts pointed to Fleury’s inconsistency as the main reason for Pittsburgh’s playoff problems the past two seasons. It took four very shaky games before Pittsburgh finally put in Vokoun and solidified the team’s lineup. Now that Pittsburgh has solved its goaltending problem, this team could be the one to beat when it is time to start the Stanley Cup finals.

Why the Bruins Will Win

There is something about the Boston Bruins that makes it hard to count them out of any series. When Tim Thomas suddenly decided to take time off, the Bruins were without their Vezina Trophy winning goaltender. But Tuukka Rask stepped in and took over and the team just picked up where it left off. Patrice Bergeron was injured just prior to the playoffs and it looked like Boston would be without its top scorer. But Bergeron returned just in time to help Boston push its way past the first two rounds. Now this Boston team brings all of its momentum to the Penguins and Pittsburgh could be in trouble.

The Bottom Line

This Eastern Conference final will be a clash between two very confident and physical teams. Home ice advantage may not mean a lot here as both of these teams have significant success winning on the road. The difference here will be how well each team can play in front of the other team’s net. Lately, that has been the exclusive domain of the bigger and stronger Boston Bruins.

Pick: Boston in seven