Saturday’s NHL matchups are rivalries as intense as any you’ll find across the sporting landscape. The hallowed history of the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens is as rich as any rivalry that the history books can produce. The legacy of these two teams and their place in the NHL makes for some intense discussion, never mind the action on the ice.
Across the continent a hockey rivalry is being grown in southern California. Gone are the days that you could say that last statement with a smirk, because the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings are perennial Stanley Cup contenders. The Kings won the trophy in 2012 and the Ducks won their Stanley Cup less than a decade ago in 2007.
A 30-mile (and six hour) jaunt up the Santa Ana Freeway separates the home bases of Anaheim and Los Angeles. The familiarity of the two franchises has fostered a contempt that is equal to any in the NHL today. Throw the laid back southern California attitude out the window because these two clubs cannot wait to tear each other apart.
While Boston and Montreal have met 34 times in the playoffs, this will mark the first time the Ducks and Kings get to play a series against one another. Despite lacking the postseason pedigree of their Eastern Conference compatriots, this Pacific Division final or Western Conference semifinal will be overflowing with awesomeness.
Montreal Canadiens at Boston Bruins (Montreal leads 1-0)
As if the Boston faithful needed another reason to hate electrifying Montreal defenseman P.K Subban, the Norris Trophy winning defenseman buried the top seeds in Game 1. His double overtime winner sent Boston to their second consecutive Game 1 loss. Montreal is hoping that they don’t suffer a similar fate as the Bruins’ first round opponent (Boston won four straight to eliminate Detroit 4-1), but the Canadiens look more battle tested than the Red Wings.
For every post whistle slash, crosscheck or token cheap shot from Boston, the Habs continue to skate away. While getting under opponents skin is a key part of the Bruins game, their resilience and fortitude was on display with a furious 3rd period comeback Thursday night. Tuukka Rask had a very mortal game, surrendering more goals in one game than he had for the entire playoffs. As confident as that might make Montreal, expect a better game from Rask in Game 2. A fun fact to watch out for: As good as Rask has been against everyone else, he holds a 3-10-3 regular season record against Montreal and a 99-50-1 record against the rest of the NHL. Keep an eye on that. Either way I think the Bruins pull out a squeaker in Game 2 giving Montreal their first postseason loss. Bruins 3-2, in overtime of course.
Los Angeles Kings at Anaheim Ducks (Game 1)
The biggest question mark in this series will be in goal for the Ducks. Dallas made Anaheim look really, really bad for large portions of their first round clash which is problematic considering the type of roll the Kings are on. Ryan Getzlaf has battled through injury and has combined with Corey Perry to continue their high-scoring act. The Ducks have found some scoring depth, getting goals from 11 other players not named Perry or Getzlaf.
Not much to add about the dynamic run from the Kings who had played themselves into the verge of playoff extinction. The key has been Jonathan Quick in goal for Los Angeles who seemed to flip a switch after Game 3 into “time to get serious” mode. Since the Game 3 overtime loss Quick surrendered only five goals in the final four games posting a ridiculous .962 save percentage.
Anze Kopitar will be matched up against Getzlaf and has shutdown capabilities and some slippery offensive skills of his own. The Kings are loaded with offensive talent, but have yet to get any significant production from Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Dustin Brown. Los Angeles knows what they have behind them and can afford to take some chances on offense. Drew Doughty has been the best skater on the ice for Los Angeles so far and he’ll continue to cover the entire ice surface against a fast Anaheim club. There will be some token posturing in Game 1 with no shortage of hits and chippy play. Los Angeles will take Game 1 and keep that train rolling. Kings 4-1