{"id":1310727,"date":"2019-05-26T23:08:00","date_gmt":"2019-05-27T05:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.postindependent.com\/bruins-blues-set-to-clash-in-bruising-stanley-cup-final\/"},"modified":"2019-05-26T23:08:00","modified_gmt":"2019-05-27T05:08:00","slug":"bruins-blues-set-to-clash-in-bruising-stanley-cup-final","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/local-news\/bruins-blues-set-to-clash-in-bruising-stanley-cup-final\/","title":{"rendered":"Bruins, Blues set to clash in bruising Stanley Cup Final"},"content":{"rendered":"
FILE – In this Jan. 17, 2019, file photo, Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara (33) and St. Louis Blues left wing Pat Maroon (7) fight during the first period of an NHL hockey game, in Boston. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals between the Bruins and Blues is Monday, May 27. (AP Photo\/Elise Amendola, File)<\/strong>
AP | AP<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

BOSTON \u2014 When the NHL altered its rules with an eye toward speed and skill, this is not the Stanley Cup Final it had in mind.<\/p>\n

Hockey is becoming less of a big man\u2019s game, offense is up and it\u2019s faster than ever. Then there\u2019s the big and tough St. Louis Blues facing off against the bigger and tougher Boston Bruins in the final that shows size still matters in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are physical, we\u2019ll be physical,\u201d Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said Sunday. \u201cI don\u2019t think we shy away from that type of game.\u201d<\/p>\n

The past decade-plus has been a study in the NHL getting younger and quicker, and previous champions like Chicago in 2013 and 2015 and Pittsburgh in 2016 and 2017 exemplified that. The 2019 champion will show there are still many kinds of blueprints for winning, though skill is still needed along with size and physicality.<\/p>\n

When the puck drops on Game 1 Monday night, the bruises will begin in what should be a throwback series with the Stanley Cup on the line.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt this point you\u2019re going to get both teams coming out of the gates laying their hits,\u201d big Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be a heavy series. It\u2019s hard to say how much physicality will be going both ways. I\u2019m sure guys will be looking to get their licks in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Boston and St. Louis don\u2019t lack high-end skill, from goaltenders Tuukka Rask and Jordan Binnington to scorers Brad Marchand and Vladimir Tarasenko. They do resemble their coaches \u2014 Cassidy, who has become a mature, straightforward communicator and Craig Berube, a no-nonsense, team-first guy who has turned the Blues into a north-south, no frills team.<\/p>\n

These teams are in many ways mirror images of each other based on their gritty styles and how tough they are to crack.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe two hardest, heaviest teams are in the final,\u201d San Jose Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said after his team was eliminated by the Blues in the Western Conference final. \u201cEverybody talks about skill and speed, there\u2019s room for all these small players. There is a room for that. But I don\u2019t think it\u2019s an accident.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s certainly no accident that the Bruins and Blues like to make opponents black and blue. Bruins forward Danton Heinen said physicality is what he and his teammates have tried to deliver all year long and will continue to, but the Blues figured out last round that they need to be more selective about dishing out punishment.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t just run around out there,\u201d St. Louis forward Oskar Sundqvist said. \u201cWhen you\u2019re going to hit, you need to hit with a purpose.\u201d<\/p>\n

The purpose now is to lift hockey\u2019s hallowed trophy. After Bruins center Patrice Bergeron played the 2013 final with broken ribs and a punctured lung, there\u2019s not much guys won\u2019t do this time of year at their own expense.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the Stanley Cup. This is what everyone plays for,\u201d Boston forward Jake DeBrusk said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be fun, physical and pretty intense, so hopefully the body holds up for everybody here.\u201d<\/p>\n

GOALIE DUEL<\/p>\n

With a league-best 1.42 goals-against average and .942 save percentage, Rask is the front-runner to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. Rask is in his second final as a starter after being on the Boston team that lost to Chicago in six games in 2015.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a team sport,\u201d Rask said. \u201cEverybody has to pull their load. That\u2019s the only way you can win.\u201d<\/p>\n

All the Blues is win, win, win no matter what since Binnington made his first NHL start in early January. They won 30 of their final 45 games to get into the playoffs, and Binnington has a 2.36 GAA and .914 save percentage in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

No goalie has won the Conn Smythe since Jonathan Quick with Los Angeles in 2012.<\/p>\n

CUP EXPERIENCE DISPARITY<\/p>\n

The Bruins and Blues play similar styles yet have very different levels of winning this time of year.<\/p>\n

Five Boston players \u2014 Rask, captain Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Krejci \u2014 are still around from the 2011 Cup-winning Bruins, and Joakim Nordstrom won in 2015 with the Blackhawks. St. Louis has two players with Cup rings, though even that should have an asterisk because Jordan Nolan (2012 and 2014 Kings) hasn\u2019t played since January and Oskar Sundqvist (2016 Penguins) only skated 20 regular-season and playoff games with Pittsburgh that year.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur guys that have been there, that have won a Cup, have lost a Cup, that should give us an edge,\u201d Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said.<\/p>\n

Of course, a year ago the Washington Capitals had only one Stanley Cup winner in Brooks Orpik before Alex Ovechkin lifted it in Las Vegas. Armstrong is banking on his players earning their experience in the final.<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully a year from now we\u2019ll say, geez, St. Louis has got a lot of championship experience,\u201d Armstrong said.<\/p>\n

MAY SWEEPS<\/p>\n

To say this has been a weird playoffs would be the understatement of the league\u2019s 101-year history. Top seeds Tampa Bay and Calgary were knocked out in the first round along with fellow division winners Washington and Nashville, and the Lightning were actually swept by Columbus.<\/p>\n

But there has also been a strange pattern with sweeping teams that the Bruins hope is a coincidence and not a trend related to too much time off. The New York Islanders swept Pittsburgh in the first round, then got swept by the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round. Carolina? Yeah, swept in the Eastern Conference final by the Bruins.<\/p>\n

Boston also beat Columbus after the Blue Jackets swept the Lightning, making teams that won their previous series four games to none a combined 0-3 so far.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s something that naturally you\u2019re going to think about a little bit,\u201d DeBrusk said.<\/p>\n

INJURY WATCH<\/p>\n

Attrition to the San Jose Sharks helped St. Louis get through West final, and despite their physicality, the Blues and Bruins have been fairly fortunate when it comes to injuries this postseason. St. Louis defenseman Vince Dunn missed the past three games with an upper-body injury but returned to practice wearing a full shield over his face, and forward Robert Thomas skated Saturday after leaving early in the third period West final clincher Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Dunn is unlikely to play in Game 1 but could be available later in the series. Thomas is expected to play despite not practicing Sunday.<\/p>\n

The Bruins have had a week and a half off to heal up, which is good news for captain Zdeno Chara, who was injured and didn\u2019t play in Game 4 of the East final. They got a bit of a scare when Marchand jammed his left hand after bumping into teammate Connor Clifton during an intrasquad scrimmage to stay sharp during the long layoff.<\/p>\n

Marchand missed practice Sunday, but coach Bruce Cassidy said it was for maintenance and expects Boston\u2019s leading scorer to be good to go for Game 1.<\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

More AP NHL: https:\/\/apnews.com\/NHL<\/a> and https:\/\/twitter.com\/AP\u2014Sports<\/a><\/p>\n

via:: Post Independent<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

FILE – In this Jan. 17, 2019, file photo, Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara (33) and St. Louis Blues left wing Pat Maroon (7) fight during the first period of an NHL hockey game, in Boston. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals between the Bruins and Blues is Monday, May 27. (AP Photo\/Elise Amendola, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[160],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1310727","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-18 03:56:59","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSKE Ski Country","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1310727","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1310727"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1310727\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1310727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1310727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1310727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}