BRIGHTON -- The first-round playoff series has moved to Toronto with an even 1-1 standing in the best-of-seven matchup between the Bruins and the Leafs.
Toronto has outshot Boston in each of the first two games and Auston Matthew broke loose for a three-point superstar performance in Monday night’s Game 2 win while beating Boston’s best, Charlie McAvoy, for the game-winning strike.
The improvement plan is pretty simple for the Black and Gold headed into Wednesday night’s important Game 3 against the Maple Leafs at the Scotiabank Arena. They need to hold the puck more, they need to move it up the ice with more pace and connectedness and forward groups needs to win more battles as they had in beating the Leafs eight straight times headed into Game 2.
Here's a more detailed breakdown of what the Black and Gold need to do to wrest control of this competitive playoff series:
1. Hang onto pucks and make more happen in the offensive zone – The B’s have lost the shots on net battle in each of the first two games despite winning Game 1 in pretty convincing fashion thanks to their power play. They need to find a way to pressure Toronto’s suspect defensive corps more than they have to this point and test Ilya Samsonov a lot more with Grade-A chances than they did in the first two games on home ice. “There are a lot of things that we can improve on and that is certainly one of them,” said Kevin Shattenkirk. “We need to wear down their defensemen. We feel like that’s an area that is a strength, playing behind their net and cycling pucks. Our forwards are really great at that and overwhelming at times. Puck placement is really important on our dumps and our forecheck. We just have to be confident in being aggressive and taking every option away. It was uncharacteristic for us that we didn’t get enough pucks behind the net, and we didn’t get enough pucks to the net, and we need to get more pressure in that area of the game.”
2. The Maple Leafs forecheck really got going in the second half of Game 2 with Hampus Lindholm, in particular, experiencing a tough time breaking pucks out with Boston playing shorthanded once Andrew Peeke went down. At times it looked a little too much like the issues that the Bruins defensemen had breaking the puck up ice against the suffocating forecheck even if it wasn’t quite as extreme. It’s about the forwards making themselves good passing options for the defensemen and everybody moving the puck up the ice with more of a speed and attack mindset. “Just the transition and getting out of our own zone and not spending a lot of time there,” said Matt Grzelcyk. “We can kind of build our offensive game and create a little more havoc around their net by getting the puck down low. I probably don’t want to give away too many things, but I think [the Leafs changed up their forecheck]. There are adjustments that are going to be made, especially after we win. They won [Game 2] so now it’s time for us to make the adjustments going back the other way. Either way you just want to get back on pucks quick, and not spend too much time hanging on to them because they are coming down on us really hard. We just need to make sure we’re all on the same game plan there and be a five-man unit to get it out [of the zone].”
3. Plain and simple, the Bruins forwards need to win more battles in all three zones. Matthews was a dominant force and Jim Montgomery used the word “tenacious” at least three times to describe his Game 2 play on Tuesday morning. It felt like he wanted to see more of that tenaciousness from his star forwards if they want to seize control of this series against the Maple Leafs in their own barn for the rest of this week. “We’ve just to win more battles. That’s the thing right now,” said Brad Marchand. “They’re competing hard and they’re getting numbers on pucks and more loose pucks, which is making it easier for them to break out and harder for us to attack the net. So we have to win more battles down [in the offensive zone]. They’re playing a really good playoff-type game right now. You knew they would. They’re built different than in past years and playing a lot more physical. They’re very committed to forechecking and playing tight defensively, so you’ve got to give them credit.”