Wednesday, April 29, 2009

B's 2nd Round Opponent Snap Shot - The Canes!

CAROLINA HURRICANES

Regular Season Record: 45-30-7, 97 pts

Head-to-Head Record vs Bruins this season: 0-4

Last Stanley Cup Win: 2006

Last Stanley Cup Final Appearance: 2006

Last Postseason Appearance: 2006

Current Canes Players with Stanley Cup Rings: Ray Whitney (1), Rod Brind'Amour (1), Matt Cullen (1), Erik Cole (1), Chad LaRose (1), Anton Babchuk (1), Niclas Wallin (1), Frantisek Kaberle (1), Cam Ward (1)

How They Got Here: The first round series against the Devils was a back and fourth affair. Five of the seven contests were decided by a single goal and two have gone to overtime, if you count Carolina's winner with 0.2 seconds left in Game 4.
Martin Brodeur was stellar for the Devils but so was Hurricane goaltender Cam Ward, who was Brodeur's equal in every way, matching the Devil netminder save-for-save throughout the series. That is, until the last minute and a half of Game 7 when the Hurricanes shocked New Jersey with one of the biggest quick turn wins in playoff history by scoring the TYING & WINNING GOALS with under 1:20 minutes left in their collective seasons.

Another Reason (NOT) To Cheer For The Hurricanes: Carolina was a great story when they won the Cup in 2006, but everything went downhill from there as the club missed the postseason for the next two seasons. But with head coach Paul Maurice returning behind the bench, the Hurricanes were one of the hottest teams down the final stretch and look like a contender in the wide-open Eastern Conference.

The Big 3 look to's:
  1. What They Bring To The Table: A bust in Edmonton with 27 points in 63 games, Erik Cole returned to Carolina in a trade deadline deal and brought back instant chemistry. Reunited with Eric Staal on the top line, Cole should be one of several big weapons up front.
  2. In net - Cam Ward is also on his game, breaking the franchise record with 39 victories this season and finishing 14-4-2 over the last 20 games. A Conn Smythe Trophy winner in 2006, Ward has been a workhorse in goal, building a 10-1-2 record in March and finishing the season with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage.
  3. Up front - Eric Staal led all Hurricanes in goals (40) while Tuomo Ruutu set a career high with 26 goals. On the blueline, Joe Corvo led all Hurricanes defenseman in points (38) while Anton Babchuk had a career season, posting 16 goals (best among all 'Canes blueliners) and 19 assists with a plus- 13 rating.
It's really has been a LONG wait for the B's and their fans after the BROOMING the HATED HABS in only 4 games but this match up looks like it may be worth it as it should be a very SPICY & rough series from the get go! Can't wait till Friday! Let's Go Broounze! - KingKrej46

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