The St. Louis Blues stole home-ice advantage Wednesday at TD Garden with their 3-2 overtime win in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final.
The Boston Bruins not only need to rebound from their first defeat since Game 3 of their second-round playoff series against the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 30. They’ll also need to do so in enemy territory, as their best-of-seven series with the Blues shifts to St. Louis for Games 3 and 4 on Saturday and Monday, respectively.
The Bruins hardly seem panicked, though. Boston’s roster is littered with veterans who’ve been down this road before, including Patrice Bergeron, who made clear Thursday before leaving for The Gateway City that the Bruins won’t be rattled by the hostile environment at Enterprise Center.
“We know it’s gonna be electric, and it seems like there’s a buzz there in St. Louis right now behind their team — no different than how it was here in Boston,” Bergeron told reporters. “But we’ve been through it before. I think for some of the young guys Carolina was very loud. It was a loud building and not necessarily easy to play. I think it’s always about simplifying your game and take it not a shift at a time, but like a period at a time, and go from there.
“I think the first 10 minutes are always huge in a game, and we know St. Louis likes to start strong. It’s about worrying about what you can control, and it’s how you play.”
The Blues haven’t been all that dominant on home ice in the postseason, registering a 5-5 record. But their barn might lose its top now that St. Louis is playing in its first Cup Final since 1970, especially on the heels of the franchise’s first ever title-series victory.
And it’s not just the crowd, either. The Blues will have the last change for Games 3 and 4 (and 6, if necessary), giving St. Louis coach Craig Berube an opportunity to find the most favorable matchups possible, particularly when facing Boston’s top line of Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak, which has been held in check through two games.
Still, the chess match is made that much more intriguing by the energy level that’s sure to engulf St. Louis over the next few days. Fortunately for the Bruins, they’ve been able to handle adversity every step of the way this postseason, regardless of the venue. They defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs north of the border in Game 6 before winning Game 7 at TD Garden, and then eliminated both the Blue Jackets and Carolina Hurricanes on the road. Overall, the B’s have gone 6-2 away from TD Garden this postseason, scoring 3.3 goals per game and allowing just 1.6.
“We’ve been in enemy territory,” Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters Thursday, one day after St. Louis snapped Boston’s eight-game winning streak. “Went into Toronto, it’s not easy to win there. Went into Columbus, Carolina, lot of talk about their fan base. Columbus, we went in there with the cannon. Our guys just dealt with it. We’ve got a veteran crew that’s been there before. I don’t anticipate they’ll be overwhelmed. I suspect St. Louis will be loud, should be — their team’s in the Stanley Cup Finals.
“And how we prepare coming out of a losing streak, we kind of prepare the same for every game. We prepare to win, what we need to do to win. We assumed this streak wouldn’t go on forever. It didn’t. So it’s time to start a new one.”
It helps the Bruins have developed a special chemistry this season, which defenseman Charlie McAvoy described Thursday upon arriving in St. Louis.
“I know personally I was excited today to get up and get on the road,” McAvoy said. “We have a lot of fun, we have the team hospitality suite and those things, and personally, I probably speak for a lot of guys, we just enjoy each other’s company. We’re a really close-knit group, we’re a family and we like to just be around each other. I think maybe it even eliminates a little bit of distraction, coming out and just being with these guys who all share the same goal as you. I don’t think that changes for us. We’ve played well on the road, we’re a confident group on the road. So, we’re ready to be here and have a great practice (Friday), and like I said earlier, just put ourselves in the best position to bring our best game in Game 3.”
The Blues took care of business in Boston, forcing a split of the series’ first two games and emphatically seizing momentum in Game 2. As a result, the Bruins’ intestinal fortitude will be tested in St. Louis, where the next two games could go a long way toward deciding who hoists Lord Stanley when the dust settles.
If history is any indication, the Bruins will be ready for the challenge, win or lose, for everything points to them being a calm, cool and collected bunch ahead of Game 3.
