Stanley Cup Betting Series Preview: Philadelphia Flyers vs. Boston Bruins

How They Got Here: The Flyers were supposed to be dominated in net and in terms of physical play against the New Jersey Devils in their first round series, but that just wasn’t the case. Philly really had control of that series from the get go and was the first team to clinch a berth into the second round by taking out the Devils in five games.
Player To Watch: The hot hand in hockey is one that is always worth following. C Claude Giroux is as hot as it gets at this point. He has scored four goals and racked up two assists in his L/4 games to lead the way for the Flyers past New Jersey. Giroux put together a 47 point season, and though he wasn’t a main cog in the offense, he is more than capable of being a difference maker.
Goalie Outlook: G Brian Boucher only won nine games in the regular season, but my did he pick a great time to post four wins in five days! The Flyers net minder allowed just 1.59 GAA in those five starts and really had the Devils’ sharpshooters scratching their heads. He’ll have to do the same against Boston.
Key To Victory: We said that the power play had to be great for Philadelphia, and that unit was what really made the difference in that five game set. The Flyers connected for a whopping eight power play goals, three of which came from Giroux in those five NHL betting affairs. Special teams must continue to be special.

Boston Bruins

How They Got Here: The offense was hit and miss for the Bruins, but consistent defense and great goaltending really got them to the second round of the playoffs. The upset of Buffalo wasn’t an unexpected thing though, especially knowing that Boston was going to have the potential to be the physically dominating team in that series. No one pictured the Bruins getting the chance to host a Game 1 at any point in these playoffs though, that’s for sure!
Player To Watch: When it mattered most in Game 6 of their series with the Sabres, the B’s got a great game out of C David Krejci. He scored a pair of goals and logged an assist in the series clinching 4-3 victory on Monday night. At 6’0″ 177 lbs, Krejci isn’t the most physically imposing player on skates, but he has a knack for producing on offense, as he scored 51 points this year in 79 regular season games.
Goalie Outlook: G Tuukka Rask posted at least a .900 save percentage in the L/4 games of Boston’s first round duel with the Sabres. In all, his 2.18 GAA was rock solid, and numbers like that could carry the B’s a long way in these playoffs. Rask even had an assist in the first round, something that no other goaltender can say!
Key To Victory: Just generating enough offense has kept Rask happy all year long, and that’s all that it’s going to take in this series against Philadelphia as well. Getting four and five goal outbursts may be great for Pittsburgh, San Jose, and Vancouver, but it’s not going to be necessary for Boston. Don’t take nights off and find a way to consistent light the lamp three times per game, and this series will be easy.

The Final Word: There’s no reason to think that the Bruins won’t get their allotment of goals against Boucher regardless of how well he has been playing in net. Philly fans will get a harsh reminder that their goalie only went 9-21 in the regular season in this series.