The Bruins have advanced to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, but they still don’t know who they’ll face in the conference semifinals.
If the Canadiens upset the Capitals on Wednesday night, the Bruins will face the Philadelphia Flyers. If the Capitals win, though, it will be the defending Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins on the schedule.
Any team that makes it past the first round is, of course, a worthy opponent, but let’s look at some of the pros and cons of facing each.
Flyers
Pros
- Goaltender Brian Boucher is beatable.
- Ian Laperriere, Simon Gagne and Jeff Carter are all likely out for the playoffs.
- The Bruins, by virtue of having a higher seed, would have home-ice advantage.
Cons
- Philly’s always a physical team, which could slow down the Bruins’ recent scoring surge.
- Philly could steal the Bruins’ identity as the underdog.
Penguins
Pros
- The chance for revenge on Matt Cooke. The return of Marc Savard would only make that sweeter.
- The opportunity to close the doors for good at Mellon Arena and take out the defending champs.
Cons
- The Penguins could be the most well-rounded team in the league, boasting the firepower of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin to go with the steady goaltending of Marc-Andre Fleury.
- Winning in Pittsburgh won’t be easy, as the Bruins went 0-1-1 there this season.
- Winning at home won’t be easy either. Pittsburgh went 22-16-3 on the road this season.
There are more, of course, but it’s a worthy debate. So, who would you rather see the Bruins face? The question comes from Charlie in Brockton, Mass. Text “SOX1” to 542542 to vote for the Penguins, or text “SOX2” to 542542 to vote for the Flyers.
As of 9:40 p.m. ET, 22 percent of fans wanted to see the B’s face the Penguins, while 78 percent were in favor of facing the Flyers. Fortunately for the majority, they got their wish. By morning, fans seemed to be even happier after learning their fate, with 82 percent voting for the Flyers and just 18 percent voting for the Penguins
