There are advantages and disadvantages to facing both; facing the Flyers means the B's get home-ice advantage, but if the B's end up with a series against the Penguins, it could provide a little extra motivation, taking into account Marc Savard's imminent return to the ice.
One way or another, the B's will have their work cut out for them — and as far as general manager Peter Chiarelli is concerned, either matchup is fine with him. The Penguins and the Flyers both present their own unique challenges.
"I suspect that if we play [the Flyers], I think it'll be a crash-and-bang series," Chiarelli said on Tuesday. "They've got some big, physical forwards, they like to play in your face, they've got [Chris] Pronger on the back end who plays a physical game and also can move the puck. So I think that's the type of series you'll see there."
The Penguins, on the other hand, are led by the finesse of forwards like Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin — but that certainly doesn't mean there will be no physical aspect to the game, as many unfortunately witnessed on March 7, when Savard came away with a Grade 2 concussion and six weeks of nonactivity.
"Because [the Penguins] have the two elite forwards, I think you're going to see more of
a tactical matchup type of series," Chiarelli said. "It'll still be physical because
they've got some big bodies up front, including [Alexei] Ponikarovsky
and [Mike] Rupp, but I would guess — and I haven't talked to [head coach] Claude
[Julien] about it — but a little bit more of a tactical series against
Pittsburgh."
The drama that accompanies a Boston-Pittsburgh matchup may make for better ratings, but it certainly won't be an easier task for the Bruins to handle. The B's went 1-3 against the Pens this season, and the last time the two squads met on March 18, Boston looked completely lifeless and suffered a 3-0 loss.
Against the Flyers in 2009-10, Boston went 2-2, and one of those wins
included their New Year's Day overtime win in the Winter Classic.
Chiarelli believes his team may be able to glean a bit of extra punch because of all of the hoopla surrounding the Matt Cooke-Marc Savard incident, but he also believes his team will try to put all distractions aside in the name of focusing on the task at hand: finding a way to win.
"I think if anything, it'll motivate us," Chiarelli said of tension with the Penguins, "but I think our group is pretty
focused right now. I know it will be talked about in the media, and
certainly it'll be one of the major story lines — but I like the focus
of our group right now, and I don’t think it’ll be too much of a
distraction."
