Bruins-Bolts Matchup

The Bruins will play the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference Finals, a matchup that bodes well for the B's. In four meetings this season, the Bruins went 3-1-0 against TB, including an 8-1 victory at home on December 2nd. They last faced off on March 3rd in Boston, in a penalty-filled game won by Lucic's goal with less than 4 minutes remaining.
The 2010-2011 Lightning are a far cry from the 2009-2010 team, as they earned the 5 seed with 103 points this year, but last year finished with 80 points and missed the playoffs, and had the sixth-worst record in the NHL. Their turnaround can be attributed to their electric offense, which features the number 2 and 5 points leaders in the NHL this season, Martin St. Louis and Steve Stamkos. The aging veteran St. Louis is in his 10th season with the Bolts, and at the age of 35, had a career best 68 assists to go with his 31 goals. His line mate Stamkos is at an opposite point in his career. He finished his 3rd professional season with 91 points, and at age 21 is one of the league's best players. Their offense also features Vinny Lecavalier, Ryan Malone, Simon Gagne, Steve Downie, and Alex Tanguay, to go with their top defenders Victor Hedman, Mike Lundin, and deadline acquisition Eric Brewer. Their mainstay in net is Dwayne Roloson, who has gone 8-3-0 in the playoffs with a .941 save percentage and 2.01 GAA.
In their 4 matchups this season, the B's outscored the Bolts 15-8, but never faced Roloson, who was acquired from the Islanders 20 games into the season. Roloson is a 41-year old journeyman, who has played for 6 teams over 13 seasons. His most notable season was in 05-06 with the Oilers, as he stood on his head during the playoffs and reached the Stanley Cup, only to be lost for the series in Game 1 with a knee injury, and the Oilers ultimately lost the series in 7 games. His play in this series will determine the Lightning's fate, as he is facing the year's hottest goaltender in Thomas, and will have to prevent the B's from getting up early in the series if the Bolts have a chance. But in the end, the Bruins are too hot to handle and should take the series in 6 games.