How the Bruins can turn this series around

Now that's what I call, Playoff Hockey. Despite the 2-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres at the HSBC Arena in game one of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals last night, the Boston Bruins can turn this thing around as there were more positives to praise than negatives to accost. 

Let’s Get Physical:

• There’s no surprise Milan Lucic was in the middle of the near-melee that nearly transpired late in the first period. No. 17 seems to elevate his overall game — especially his physicality – in each years’ playoffs series, and last night was no different. I'm sure he'll be having more than one 'meeting' with Steve Montador before this series is over and done with. 
• During the regular season, Boston out-hit Buffalo in four of their six contests for a total of 135-129. Last night, the Bruins were out-hit by a 41-25 landslide. Fourth-liners Shawn Thornton (7:06), Daniel Paille (13:08), and Steve Begin (10:37) are going to log similar minutes to last night’s. But what they did during those short minutes needs to continue — combining for nine of the Bruins’ 25 total hits. Their physical play in every shift is going to be paramount in this series.

Keep It Composed:

• Raffi Torres and Patrick Kaleta are dressed to agitate; and they do it well. Even Adam Mair and Mike Grier can get under the skin of their opposition with their physical play and thunderous hits. But it’s up to the Bruins not to get wrapped-up in the shenanigans that these guys bring to the ice. If Boston decides to trade between two-and-five penalty minutes with one of these forwards, they better leave it to Nos. 22 or 27. Lucic, Johnny Boychuk, and Zdeno Chara need to stay on the ice and out of the box.
• This wouldn’t be a bad time for No. 27 to become the agitator that we all grew to hate when he was in Montreal. If he can morph into that guy that players hate to play against, perhaps he can get players like Thomas Vanek off their own game.

Defense First:

• ie: Matt Hunwick’s panicky indecision on whether to step-up and pinch the puck in the offensive zone or not. Derek Roy undressed the flat-footed Hunwick at the Bruins’ own blue-line, causing an odd-man rush with linemates Tim Kennedy and Vanek. The result of No. 48’s poor decision making was an early 1-0 lead for the Sabres, as the red-hot Vanek wristed a a drop-pass past Tuukka Rask. Making mistakes like these and Buffalo will capitalize more often than not.
• Johnny Boychuk continued his great play on the blue-line as the No. 2/3 defenseman for Boston. Boychuk finished last night’s contest with 24:49 of ice time — third-most on the team — three hits, three blocked shots, and five shots on goal. This was one rookie — along with Tuukka Rask and Sabres’ D Tyler Myers — who didn’t seem to get rattled or nervous with the pressures of their first NHL post-season Game One.
• AHL call-up Adam McQuaid played well and did what was expected of him — physical, blocking shots (3), and playing sound, fundamental defense. However, he’s not going to play much more than his 7:36 of ice time last night. So that leaves the other five to really step-it-up and stay out of the box.

Put The Pressure On 'Em:

• Continue with added forechecking, putting pressure on Buffalo's blue-liners and look for those turnovers. With added pressure — especially in the second period last night — the Sabres D ran around a bit in their own zone and truned the puck over. The more scoring chance on Ryan Miller the better their chances. 
• Clog up the neutral zone and make it tough for the Sabres' blue-liners and forwards to make the transition into Boston territory. Odd-man rushes from Roy, Vanek and Co. is something the Bruins need to limit as much as possible. This puts added onus on the B's forwards to backcheck.

In The Crease:

• I think we know what we’re going to get out of the 23-year-old Tuukka Rask from now on. One post-season game may be a bit early to crown the rookie sensation, but his performance last night was near perfect. Having played in one of the strongest leagues in all of Europe, FM-ligan (FNL), from the age of 17, and two full-seasons with the AHL Providence Bruins has certainly prepared him to shine on the big stage. Stopping 30-of-32 shots last night, I’m sure he’d like a “do over” on the Sabres second, and game-winning goal from Craig Rivet, having a screen in front of him. But despite the loss, if Rask continues this type of play between the pipes, this series is going the distance.
• Ryan Miller: I’ll leave this one to Matt Kalman and his brilliant piece from last night on The Bruins Blog.net

Put It All Together:

• Like we’ve seen time and time again, the Bruins fail to play a full 60-minutes. Buffalo came out like a bat-out-of-hell in the first period; putting Boston back on their heels. Although the second period was completely lopsided in favor of the B’s in every aspect of the game, the Sabres were the ones who lit the red lamp. If Boston can weather the storm — as the Sabres are sure to carry the momentum from last night into tomorrow night’s Game Two back in Buffalo — and play like they did in the second period over the course of 60-minutes, the B’s could end this series with an upset.