So it’s 10:30am, I was up until 2am performing with my band and totally have a post-show hangover despite not touching a drop of booze. Yay perspiration but double-yay for Excedrin. And since the game is at 12:30 and I’m meeting friends for beer in a half-hour this is going to be a pretty lame game preview. So I’ll make this fast: What to look for:
- The Return of Marc Savard. He practiced on the third line with Paille and Ryder this week, and was seen on the 2nd PP unit. Will he make an immediate impact on the offense like fans hope or will the two months of rust hold him back?
- Physicality. Rumor has it that Mr. Shawn “Wayne” Thornton will be the healthy scratch. That’s a big hit for the Bruins in the toughness department, so guys like Lucic, Boychuk, Chara, Begin and Sobotka really need to step it up, especially if guys like Hartnell and Carcillo get chippy. And you know they will. The upside to all this is that Sarvard is back and when you have Savvy as your number three center, things are looking up.
- Flyers offense. Flyers are down Carter and Gagne. How will this affect the offense? It didn’t do much against the Devils in the one game the Flyers took on New Jersey without those two, but the Devils had pretty much packed their bags at that point and were picking out tee times for the rest of the summer. How will they do against a tough Bruins defense and Tuukka Rask?
- Rask vs. Boucher. Speaking of goalies…. both goalies had a stellar round one. Boucher shut down the Devils and Rask went toe-to-toe with soontobeVezinawinner Ryan Miller. Many are doubting Boucher can continue his pace. How will he fare against a Bruins offense that’s starting to find the net, and will Rask continue to be Cool Hand Tuuk?
That’s all for now. I’ll probably be tweeting between periods and commercial breaks if I can get any reception. Follow me at @JustinDOY. Go Bruins.
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