BOSTON – The Bruins are up 3-2 in the best-of-seven series against the Columbus Blue Jackets and are one win away from advancing to the conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes for the first time in six years.
So things are pretty good for the Black and Gold after their 4-3 win over the Blue Jackets in Game 5 on Saturday night at TD Garden. The Perfection Line has combined for six goals and 11 points in the last two games, Boston’s young defensemen are stepping up to contribute in a big way to Boston’s postseason efforts and Tuukka Rask’s .936 save percentage against the Blue Jackets pretty aptly describes how good he’s been.
But they’re not exactly perfect for the Bruins, and Bruce Cassidy pointed out one area in particular that needs some work. Boston’s second periods have been a time in games where they’ve lost ground in the puck possession game, and at times lost momentum against the Blue Jackets.
They were outshot 15-12 by Columbus in Saturday night’s game, but Boston also scored the only goal to that point in the game. Rask was required to be extremely good in that second period to protect that one-goal lead, and Bruce Cassidy knows that’s a formula that the Bruins can’t sustain moving forward while not working smart enough with the long change.
“[Rask] kept us above water. I think it happened the other night in Columbus as well. He was good in that period when we weren’t as good. In the third period, we started checking well again and were able to close the deal the way we’ve typically done it this year,” said Bruce Cassidy. “That is an area of concern with our club – second periods.
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“[We need to figure out] how to manage the puck better and put it in good spots so we can get fresh legs out there. Not lose two or three on the fore-check – two on the fore-check, one to a line change, all the sudden the odd-man rushes start happening. That’s something we’ll address again, but easier said than done to fix.”
Clearly it’s about working smarter rather than harder for the Bruins and good decision-making with the puck so nobody is marooned on the ice for long shifts in those second periods. That’s something the Bruins will need in all situations as they need to play their cleanest, best brand of hockey to get the fourth and final win against a Columbus team with two chances to eliminate them over the next few days.
Highlights from Bruins' Game 5 victory over Columbus>>>
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