Daily Clips – 5/27/13

Penguins’ Vokoun still thinks he’s on ‘tryout’

By Josh Yohe Published: Sunday, May 26, 2013, 11:06 p.m. Updated 10 hours ago

Tomas Vokoun should feel pretty comfortable by now. He has pulled the Penguins out of a first-round mess against the New York Islanders and played a vital role in their dominance of the Ottawa Senators.

The Penguins are his team, right?

Vokoun would have you believe otherwise. The veteran is enjoying his role as starting goaltender during the Stanley Cup playoffs and almost assuredly will start Game 1 against the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference final. But he takes nothing for granted.

“I always feel like it's a tryout,” he said.

It's been quite the tryout.

Vokoun is 6-1 in seven playoff games, rescuing the Penguins after goalie Marc-Andre Fleury — and the defense in front of him — played a dangerously loose style of hockey against the Islanders that put their Stanley Cup hopes in jeopardy.

His consistency has been just what the Penguins needed. The team that is scoring 4.27 goals per game during the postseason doesn't require superb goaltending, but rather needs a steady hand that will keep it in every game.

Vokoun has done just that, allowing no more than three goals in any of his seven starts. He has recorded one shutout, a one-goal game, a couple of two-goal games and a trio of three-goal games.

Vokoun's 1.85 goals against average and .941 save percentage rank among the NHL's best numbers this spring. Still, he doesn't suggest that the job is officially his.

“I don't look at it any different than I (did) before the first game,” he said. “Once you stumble, you never know what's going to happen. It doesn't matter. I'm part of the team, and we're here to win, so whoever's in net and whatever's going on, as long as we're winning, that's the most important thing.

“Obviously, you feel good about winning and helping the team win. But as far as the future, we'll see.”

Vokoun is taking the modest approach, and his teammates still hold Fleury in high regard. But the Penguins aren't afraid to acknowledge that Vokoun's calm influence is something they required following the poor start against the Islanders.

“He's been really, really good,” defenseman Matt Niskanen said. “He's been that stable force back there that gives us a chance every night. He's making all the big saves right now.”

Vokoun's calming personality, Niskanen said, is almost as important as the big saves.

“That's just kind of the way he is, so calm,” Niskanen said. “Everything about him is calm. He's a good veteran to have in obviously an important division. When you see him and how he handles himself, it just rubs off on everyone.”

Vokoun entered these playoffs with a 3-8 career postseason record.

He's already doubled that win total and shows no signs of slowing down. Vokoun said he feels strong physically and, despite the workload, hasn't missed one off-ice workout.

“He's just been so strong,” defenseman Douglas Murray said.

Vokoun said that, despite the wild past few weeks, he takes a few moments to smell the roses of these playoffs.

“Quite a bit,” he said with a smile.

And then he turns serious again when speaking of the playoff games that remain.

“For me,” he said, “there's nothing set in stone here. I play every game like it could be my last.”

Breakdown: Eastern Conference final, Penguins vs. Bruins

By Rob Rossi Published: Sunday, May 26, 2013, 11:03 p.m. Updated 8 hours ago

The cream has risen in the East.

Though only the fourth seed, the Bruins always have been perceived as the greatest threat to the Penguins returning to the Stanley Cup Final.

This showdown appears to be a contrast in philosophies: the Pretty Penguins vs. the Big Bad Bruins. However, to assess these clubs based on their historical reputations would be foolish.

The Bruins are physical, but centers Patrice Bergeron and Tyler Seguin possess elite skill as does that Jaromir Jagr fellow who joined Boston at the trade deadline.

Yeah, him again.

Jagr's cross-ice passing tortured the Penguins while he played for Philadelphia last postseason. Like those Flyers, these Bruins have forwards (notably Milan Lucic) who will go hard to the net to cash in.

The Bruins likely need to find more offense than they did against Toronto or the New York Rangers because the Penguins are scoring like it's 1989, averaging 4.27 goals in 11 playoff games.

Captain Sidney Crosby has seven goals, and fellow former MVP center Evgeni Malkin has 16 points. But neither has consistently found that gear that separates them from, well, everybody else.

Even without that gear, Crosby and Malkin are nightmare matchups for the Bruins defense, which looked like it had slowed before it was battered this postseason.

GM Ray Shero will not say it, but he probably had the Bruins on his mind when he acquired wingers Brenden Morrow and Jarome Iginla, defenseman Douglas Murray and forward Jussi Jokinen, the latter a faceoff force who could somewhat offset the usual dominance on draws by Bergeron.

Iginla chose the Penguins over the Bruins in March.

His history outside of Calgary may be defined by this series.

REGULAR SEASON

The Penguins went 3-0-0 against the Bruins. They outscored Boston, 8-5, in those games.

LEADERS

Penguins: C Brandon Sutter (2 goals): LW Chris Kunitz, RW Beau Bennett, LW Jussi Jokinen (tied, 2 assists); Kunitz, Jokinen (tied, 3 points).

Bruins: C Tyler Seguin (3 goals); C Patrice Bergeron, D Zdeno Chara (tied, 2 assists); Seguin, Chara (tied, 3 points).

GOALIES

Penguins: Tomas Vokoun (2-0-0, .958 save percentage, 1.50 goals-against average), Marc-Andre Fleury (1-0-0, .875 save percentage, 2.00 goals-against average).

Bruins: Tuukka Rask (0-2-0, .881 save percentage, 2.54 goals-against average), Anton Khudobin (0-1-1, .813 save percentage, 4.61 goals-against average).

COACHES

DAN BYLSMA, PENGUINS

Playoff record: 36-25, won Stanley Cup (2009).

CLAUDE JULIEN, BRUINS

Playoff record: 48-38, won Stanley Cup (2011)

PLAYOFF HISTORY

The Penguins and Bruins have split four series.

1979 STANLEY CUP QUARTERFINAL

Bruins 4, Penguins 0

The Don Cherry-coached Bruins, on their way to a showdown with rival Montreal, ran roughshod over an overmatched Penguins squad. The Bruins swept the Penguins, racking up 16 goals in four games.

1980 STANLEY CUP PRELIMINARY ROUND

Bruins 3, Penguins 2

The Penguins led, 2-1, before the Bruins stormed back with an 8-3 road win in Game 4 and a 6-2 close-out victory in Game 5 at Boston Garden.

1991 WALES CONFERENCE FINAL

Penguins 4, Bruins 2

Trailing, 2-0, Kevin Stevens promised a series win. The Penguins won the next four games by a combined score of 20-7. Ulf Samuelsson's controversial hit on Cam Neely lingers for fans of both clubs.

1992 WALES CONFERENCE FINAL

Penguins 4, Bruins 0

Jaromir Jagr won Game 1 in overtime for the Penguins, but the rest of the series was mostly noncompetitive. The Penguins burnt the Bruins for 15 goals over the last three games.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

KRIS LETANG, PENGUINS

His ability to win puck races and control tempo could shape the series. The Bruins thrive on forecheck-pressure and offensive-zone possession. The Penguins' system is based on quick puck movement from defensemen. Letang's decision making will be challenged. If he cuts down on mistakes, his ability to carry the puck and make plays is something for which the Bruins have no solution.

TYLER SEGUIN, BRUINS

Speed and skill are what tax the Penguins most. The Bruins are not blessed with many players who combine both attributes, but Seguin is the exception. Aside from goalie Tim Thomas, he was arguably the biggest difference-maker for Boston's 2011 Cup run, which he owned offensively from the third round on. He scored three of the Bruins' five regular-season goals against the Penguins.

Kovacevic: Yes, Duper really is that super

By Dejan Kovacevic Published: Sunday, May 26, 2013, 9:48 p.m. Updated 9 hours ago

One wrong turn, and he'd be out.

No matter how well he'd have performed to that point, you just knew that, at the very first sign of a slump, he'd be demoted from starring role to supporting cast.

Because he wasn't supposed to be there. Because that's how it goes in pro sports: The one who isn't supposed to make it always has a little extra to overcome.

Tomas Vokoun?

Well, yeah, that pretty much paints his status with the Penguins all through these Stanley Cup playoffs, even now that he's backed them to the Eastern Conference final.

But think bigger picture.

Think about the guy who's tied for most goals this postseason at seven — with Sidney Crosby, no less — but who doesn't earn a fraction of the fanfare.

Think about the guy who broke through for 25 goals two seasons ago, then more impressively scored 20 in this past lockout-shortened season — outscoring Minnesota's $98 million man Zach Parise, among others — but who still, incredibly, isn't taken seriously as a first-line winger in some circles.

Think of Engine No. 9.

And, please, get beyond any thinking that Pascal Dupuis is anything less than exactly what you've been watching for a while now.

“You know what? I don't worry about that,” Dupuis was saying with a soft smile during a lengthy chat we had following practice Sunday morning. “I look around and see all different kinds of pressure for different players, maybe because of money or other factors. I don't feel like there's any more scrutiny on me than anyone else on this team.”

Really?

How, then, to explain that dominant two-goal display March 28 against the Jets, on the very day of the Jarome Iginla trade that represented a direct threat to bump Dupuis from the top line?

Here's how: He made a statement.

That determination, that drive you see from shift to shift, comes honestly.

Born in Laval, the quaint Montreal suburb where Mario Lemieux played his junior hockey, Dupuis' inspiration was his father, Claude, a modest two-way winger for Maine of the old North American Hockey League in the 1970s. Claude never reached the NHL, but it wasn't for lack of effort.

“Everything comes from my dad, from watching him work,” Dupuis said. “I was 10 years old, and I was squatting and running with sand bags on my back, just to be like my dad.”

Ultimately, though, he added, “It has to come from within. I've always believed that. For me, it's within. My training, I don't do it for anybody else. I do it for my wife and kids. If the guy next to me doesn't do it, if he doesn't want to run back and forth from the training facility, if he doesn't want that extra half-hour on the bike, who cares? My father saw that I wanted to do it.”

The other trait shared by father and son?

“With the skill level I had, I knew I had to work.”

If he didn't grasp it then, he sure did when he went undrafted in 2000 even after scoring 50 goals in 61 games for Shawinigan of the Quebec junior league.

He kept going. The Wild signed him as a free agent. After a year in the minors, he was in the NHL to stay. And after the 2008 Marian Hossa trade — yep, it's still called the Hossa trade by most — Dupuis arrived from Atlanta as a near-afterthought and became a champion. He kept going. He could have made a fine living as a solid third-liner, and he'd have exceeded expectations.

But he pushed his way up with Crosby, he benefited from playing alongside the captain's unrivaled speed/skill combo and, in the most impressive achievement of his career, legitimately fit right in.

Which isn't to suggest he's needed Crosby for everything, contrary to popular misconception.

Did you know that, since the 2011 Winter Classic in which Crosby was concussed, Dupuis has scored 32 goals without Crosby or Evgeni Malkin on the ice?

Did you know 30 of those goals came at even-strength or short-handed since he's rarely on the power play? Did you see that laser over the shoulder of the Senators' Craig Anderson in Game 1 of the last round?

Neither did Anderson.

Dupuis is 34, he's been here six seasons, and he might not be here a whole lot longer with unrestricted free agency looming this summer and several other Penguins due to have their hands out.

He wants to stay — “Winning is very important to me, and this team is like family,” he said.

“Business will take care of itself” — but he is undoubtedly the NHL's most underpaid player at $1.4 million, and you can be very sure that will change. It's about time to fully appreciate what he's brought, before it's too late.

“He's just become a great all-around player,” Crosby said. “The thing about Duper is that he gets better all the time because he works at it and because he learns. He never stops pushing.”

Maybe because he can't.

I pressed Dupuis a bit on the feeling that someone's always been over his shoulder on the depth chart.

“You know,” he finally conceded, “I guess I don't really want to find out.”

Penguins notebook: Crosby gets permission to ditch protective shield

By Josh Yohe Published: Sunday, May 26, 2013, 1:48 p.m. Updated 10 hours ago

Sidney Crosby's playoff beard will be a little more noticeable now.

Crosby has been given permission to scrap the protective shield that he has been wearing since returning from breaking his jaw.

Starting with Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final against the Boston Bruins — the game will be played at Consol Energy Center, likely Wednesday or Thursday — Crosby will look like himself again. He practiced on Sunday without the shield.

“I definitely can see better on the ice now,” said Crosby, whose jaw was broken on March 30 by a deflected Brooks Orpik shot.

Crosby admitted to being slightly apprehensive when first hitting the ice without the shield.

“I think that's pretty typical,” he said. “It might take a couple of days probably before I'm sticking my face in front of the net as much as I would have with the full cage.”

The injury has not hindered his work.

Crosby is third in NHL postseason scoring with 15 points and first in points per game with a 1.5 total.

He recorded nine points in five games against the New York Islanders and six points in five games against the Ottawa Senators.

Crosby, who has never faced Boston in a playoff series, has produced 32 points in 22 career games against the Bruins.

“It actually feels weird being out there without it,” Crosby said. “But it's much better.”

• Left wing Chris Kunitz did not practice Sunday. He was banged up in Game 4 but returned for the third period of that game and played in Game 5.

• Coach Dan Bylsma, who is unsure of the conference final schedule, said he might give the Penguins another day off before the series begins.

• The Penguins practiced for about 45 minutes on Sunday at Consol Energy Center and are scheduled to practice again Monday.

Ron Cook: Dupuis or no Dupuis? For now, that's an easy one

By Ron Cook / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Capgeek.com bills itself as the definitive source for NHL salary information. Go to it and you will see that Penguins winger Pascal Dupuis ranks 18th on the team's salary-cap hit list this season at $1.5 million. The site doesn't call him the best bargain in hockey, but I will. He might just be the best bargain in professional sports.

"I'm glad when people think I deserve more," Dupuis said Sunday after the Penguins' practice at Consol Energy Center. "That means I must be doing a good job."

Dupuis has been better than good. He and linemate Sidney Crosby were the NHL's goal-scoring leaders with seven through the playoff games Saturday. You would expect that of Crosby, the world's best player. But Dupuis? He doesn't even get power-play time.

Dupuis has put himself in a fabulous spot. He skates on the top line with Crosby and Chris Kunitz on a team that is scoring goals at a historic pace and looks to be on an exorable march to the Stanley Cup, although the Boston Bruins -- the next opponent -- plan on having something to say about that. Dupuis then will become an unrestricted free agent after the season. Capgeek.com ranks him as the second-most attractive free agent-to-be behind Washington's Mike Ribeiro. Dupuis could be looking at the contract of a lifetime.

"I think it could happen here," Dupuis said. "I want it to be here."

Dupuis doesn't just say those words. He lives them. He took less money to stay in Pittsburgh when he signed his two-year, $3 million contract after the 2010-11 season. He's from Laval, Quebec, Canada -- just north of Montreal -- but continued to live here during the NHL lockout last fall.

"Every day, I grocery shop," Dupuis said. "I go to Starbucks. I take my kids to the park. I go to their hockey and gymnastics and cheerleading practices. We have great friends here away from hockey. We love it here."

The problem is the Penguins might not be able to afford Dupuis. Or, at 34, he might have to take a year or two less in his next contract to stay. The Penguins couldn't match the Los Angeles Kings' four-year, $13.6 million offer to defenseman Rob Scuderi after they won the Cup in 2009. No one in the organization begrudged his decision to leave for Los Angeles, where he won another Cup last season and could win a second with the Kings this season. No one will begrudge Dupuis if it comes to that for him.

"I'm a guy who always has believed you only need so much money in life," Dupuis said. "At the same time, you want to be paid your fair value. I'm not going to worry about it now. My mind is clear every time I come to the rink. That will be a good situation to be in after we hoist the Cup."

Dupuis is right.

He can't lose.

Dupuis is a big reason the Penguins are averaging 4.27 goals per game in these playoffs. They are trying to become the first team since the 1992-93 Penguins to average better than four goals a game.

Dupuis' evolution into a goal-scorer is remarkable. He always was a high-energy, speed guy with a defensive conscience, which has made him a terrific penalty-killer who has scored two short-handed playoff goals this spring. But he's so much more now. He scored 20 goals in 48 games in the lockout-shortened season after getting a career-high 25 in 82 games in 2011-12.

"My goals five or six years ago mostly were slap shots coming down the wing where I would just blast away," Dupuis said. "Now, it's more rebounds in the crease. It's charging hard to the net and having someone find my stick. It's winning battles in really tight quarters. I know those goals are there. I want them."

That's one of the reasons Crosby loves playing with Dupuis. For years, people have been saying Crosby needs better wings. It's instructive that he never said it. To the contrary, when he came back from his broken jaw after missing the first playoff game against the New York Islanders, he said he preferred playing with Dupuis and Kunitz, no offense to future Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla.

"If there's one guy who has believed in me the most during my career, it's No. 87," Dupuis said.

This is the deepest the Penguins have gone in the playoffs since their Cup season in 2009. Dupuis was on that team, but he hardly was a big factor. New coach Dan Bylsma hardly seemed impressed with him. Dupuis was a healthy scratch in eight of the 24 postseason games. He didn't have a point in the other 16 and was a minus-5.

"It was tough," Dupuis said. "You have your pride. You want to be the best teammate possible, but you also want to help by being on the ice. But I probably wouldn't be the player I am now if I hadn't gone through what I did in [2009]. Just the motivation. The little chip on my shoulder."

Dupuis has carried it a long way, but the journey this season is only half-finished. Eight playoff wins down, eight to go.

"It's an unbelievable team," Dupuis said, looking around the Penguins room. "Every game, we scratch good players. Then when those guys get a chance to play, they contribute. It's a great group."

No one has put his hand in the pile and contributed more than Dupuis.

Not on a per-contract-dollar basis, anyway.

"I must be doing something right," he said, grinning.

Just about everything, actually.

Penguins, Bruins ready to fight depth with depth

By Shelly Anderson / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

It's a collision course both teams saw coming and did absolutely nothing to avoid.

"We knew that if we were going to get to this point, we were probably going to have to play them eventually," Penguins center Brandon Sutter said of the Boston Bruins.

"That's the way it worked out."

The Penguins and Bruins are the final teams standing in the Eastern Conference and will begin a best-of-seven playoff series this week that will send one to the Stanley Cup final against the Western Conference champion.

"I've always thought we would have to go through them at some point to get to where we want to go," Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli said of the Penguins.

The Penguins won the Cup in 2009, the Bruins in 2011. Each has been considered a contender to win it again in the years since.

Toward that end, Chiarelli and his Penguins counterpart, Ray Shero, have made depth a priority for their clubs.

"You don't get this far without depth," Penguins center Sidney Crosby said. "Both teams have used that a lot and rely on all four [forward] lines. There will be a lot of matchups, and that's maybe a big factor in this series, I think."

The depth on both teams comes on multiple levels.

The two clubs accounted for the top six postseason scorers -- led by Boston's David Krejci with 17 points in 12 games -- and eight of the top 11 before Sunday's game. The Bruins also have one of the top two-way centers in Patrice Bergeron, who leads the playoffs with a 63.5 percent success rate on faceoffs.

"In building teams, you want to be deep and you want to be deep with quality," Chiarelli said. "You never know what things might get thrown at you in the course of a series, and you're able to give different looks -- out of necessity or out of your own desire if things aren't working."

The Penguins and Bruins have skill, speed and grit throughout their lineups beyond the top two lines or top defensive pairing. Both teams also have highly capable replacements sitting out each game and have gotten a spark from players inserted into the lineup at times.

"They play four lines -- not equally, but I would say they play their third and fourth line more than a lot of teams," Penguins defenseman Matt Niskanen said of the Bruins. "They tend to roll them, and they've got a lot of good players up front. Guys with different roles, certainly, but they can all play. The new guys on the back end have been really good for them."

Those two new guys are rookie defensemen Torey Krug and Matt Bartkowski, a Mt. Lebanon native.

Krug, in particular, got as much as or more attention in the second round than Boston captain Zdeno Chara, a 6-foot-9 defenseman and former winner of the Norris Trophy.

Krug, 22, who was not drafted, had played in three NHL games when he made his playoff debut in Game 2 of the Bruins' second-round series with the New York Rangers. He has four goals, three of them on the power play, and an assist in five games.

"I don't know him very well," Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said. "I just know what he's done in the last five games for them, adding the offensive jump, the speed he's played with on the power play, the shot. His skating ability is a big part of his offense.

"It's a different dynamic to their team. With him back there, there's a different dimension to their power-play unit."

The Bruins defensemen have come up with 13 goals and 30 points this postseason. The Penguins defensemen have eight goals, 35 points.

Both teams' fourth lines -- not always pivotal in the playoffs -- are producing.

For the Bruins, center Gregory Campbell and wingers Daniel Paille and Shawn Thornton not only are physical but also have combined for five goals, 13 points and have a collective plus-minus rating of plus-13. Campbell scored the winning goal plus an empty-netter Saturday when Boston eliminated the Rangers, 3-1.

"Their fourth line is playing well and getting some big goals," Sutter said.

The Penguins have had a revolving cast on their fourth line.

The Bruins have physical players throughout their lineup. Their 474 hits top the playoff list while the Penguins rank sixth with 319.

"They have a well-structured game and they stick to it," Niskanen said. "They'll try to grind you down by rolling those four lines and with a forechecking game. They've got some big bodies mixed with some speed and skill.

"They're a well-balanced team. It's going to be a challenge."

Penguins Notebook: Crosby ditches face protector for first time since jaw injury

By Shelly Anderson / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Penguins center Sidney Crosby took another step -- or perhaps it was just a tweak -- in his recovery from surgery when he practiced Sunday without the padded plastic bar that had been attached to his helmet to protect his jaw.

"I mean, it doesn't really change anything," Crosby insisted. "It's nicer to see a little bit better, but a 'step' is probably a big word for just taking a little thing off of my helmet."

Crosby has been medically cleared to play without the extra protection and is expected to do so when the Penguins meet the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference final.

"It feels weird, actually, because you're used to wearing a full face [protector] for a month or whatever it was, but definitely much better," Crosby said. "Air and seeing, everything like that is much better."

Crosby got hurt March 30 when a deflected puck struck him in the jaw, breaking it in the chin area and knocking out several teeth. He had plates and screws surgically implanted the next day.

He added the extra protection when he returned to the ice for practice and kept it on when he returned to the lineup May 3 for Game 2 of the Penguins' first-round playoff series against the New York Islanders.

Crosby isn't the only one who had grown accustomed to the extra protection.

"I kind of like seeing the pictures of him with it, the playoff type of pictures," coach Dan Bylsma said. "But [not wearing] it does show off his [playoff] beard a little more."

The waiting game

The Penguins don't know what their schedule for the Boston series will be. Or when it will start. Or even what days they will practice while they wait.

They have plans to practice again today, but mostly they will wait, maybe take a day or two off as the week unfolds and the NHL waits to see what the matchup will be for the Western Conference final before it releases a schedule.

"Staying sharp and staying focused is part of our plans for practice this week," Bylsma said.

Although they are potentially four wins away from advancing to the Stanley Cup final, the Penguins don't want to use what could be a layoff of several days to get too obsessed with the Bruins.

"We don't want to over-dissect it," defenseman Matt Niskanen said. "It's the same game, really, just a new opponent -- a very good opponent -- but the game doesn't change and our game plan won't change a whole lot.

"Just getting to know their tendencies, getting that fresh in our mind and the adjustments we want to make going into the series."

The Penguins plan to spend more time in the interim worrying about themselves than their next opponent.

"If we had to start [tonight], I think we'd be ready. It would be OK," Crosby said. "But in the playoffs, you're never going to complain about rest and preparation, especially before the series starts. We'll make the most of it."

Kunitz, Neal sit out

Wingers Chris Kunitz and James Neal did not practice Sunday. In keeping with the team's playoff policy, no update was provided.

Beau Bennett filled in for Kunitz on Crosby's line and Tanner Glass filled in for Neal on Evgeni Malkin's line, an indication that the team is holding spots for Kunitz and Neal rather than shuffling their personnel in preparation for playing without them.

Jagr scoreless but still sharp

Bruins winger Jaromir Jagr had no points in Boston's second-round win against the New York Rangers and has no goals this postseason.

"He's had a lot of chances, and he's created a lot of chances," said Boston general manager Peter Chiarelli, who acquired Jagr at the trade deadline after the Penguins snatched Jarome Iginla out from under the Bruins.

Part of the cost to get Jagr just increased to a first-round draft pick. It was conditional based on whether Boston advanced to the conference final.

Jagr was part of the Philadelphia team that bounced the Penguins in the first round last year.

Bylsma was asked whether Jagr -- the long-time Penguins star who helped them win two Stanley Cups in the 1990s, his mullet years -- was washed up at 41.

"He's still a force down low with the puck offensively," Bylsma said. "He's a tough guy to take the puck off of. I don't look at birth certificates. He might be 40 years old, but he still has power-play ability, coming off the flanker, coming off the half-wall.

"So yes, he's still got game. Maybe not the same hair as he did when he was in Pittsburgh, but he's still got game."

Boston roots

Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik has a lot of ties to Boston. He played at Boston College and makes his offseason home there.

"It's going to be fun," he said of the series against the Bruins. "Hopefully, keep the ticket requests to a minimum."

During the NHL lockout that pushed the start of the season into January, Orpik skated with several Bruins. He didn't gain any insight on those players that could give the Penguins an edge.

"None that help me more than other guys," Orpik said. "I think we're all pretty familiar with their guys.

"Maybe I have more respect for some of their guys now that you typically wouldn't have. Guys like [pesky winger Brad] Marchand that everyone hates. Those type of guys are usually pretty good guys off the ice.

"I got to know them a little more as people, but nothing that will help us on the ice, I don't think."

Crosby Cleared to Remove Jaw Protector

Sunday, 05.26.2013 / 12:50 PM / 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs Coverage

By Sam Kasan When Penguins captain Sidney Crosby took the ice for the team’s Sunday afternoon practice at CONSOL Energy Center something was missing. Crosby, 25, hit the ice without the extra jaw protector that has been attached to his helmet since he returned from a broken jaw injury May 3. Crosby has been cleared to play without the jaw protector and will not wear it when the Penguins play the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference finals. “They’re comfortable with it coming off, being hit and things like that,” Crosby said of the team’s doctors. “That’s what it came down to. “It doesn’t really change anything. It’s nice to see a little bit better.” "It’s something he’s been cleared to be able to do," head coach Dan Bylsma said. "He didn’t shake his head at the doctor and say, ‘I’m taking it off.’ So he’s obviously progressed and his time period away from the injury has allowed him to even think about doing that." Crosby suffered a broken jaw March 30 after being struck in the face by a puck on a deflected shot. He missed the last 12 games of the regular season and the first game of the postseason.

Crosby returned with a special protective attachment to his helmet to shield his jaw. He wore the piece in all 10 playoff games this year. The full-face shield didn’t affect his play, as he finished third on the team in scoring with 15 points (7G-8A), including his second career playoff hat trick in Game 2 vs. Ottawa. But now that the protector is gone, it will take some time for Crosby to get used to its absence. “It feels weird cause I’m used to wearing the full-face (shield) for a month,” Crosby said. “It feels weird, but much better. Seeing is much better. “It might take a few days. I won’t be sticking my head in front of the net as much as I would with a full-face on. But a few practices and I should be back to normal.” There is one downside to losing the face shield. "I kind of like seeing the pictures of him with it," Bylsma said. "Gives a little playoff-type of pictures with that there. But it does show off his beard a little more."

Crosby practices without facemask

Sunday, 05.26.2013 / 2:05 PM / Stanley Cup Playoffs

By Chris Adamski - NHL.com Correspondent

PITTSBURGH -- Sidney Crosby's playoff beard just got markedly more visible.

The Pittsburgh Penguins captain has been given medical clearance to play without the plastic mouth and jaw guard that he wore throughout his first 10 Stanley Cup Playoff games this month.

Crosby, who missed the entire month of April in addition to the Penguins playoff opener because of a broken jaw sustained in a March 30 game against the New York Islanders, practiced on Sunday with a regular helmet for the first time since being sidelined by facial injury.

To protect his jaw and teeth that were damaged when a puck deflected up into his face March 30, Crosby was required to wear a clear plastic apparatus that extended from his helmet down around the lower part of his face.

"I kind of liked seeing the pictures with him in it," coach Dan Bylsma quipped after practice Sunday. "Those playoff-type of pictures with that on there. But now he can show off his beard a little more."

Sporting a straggly playoff beard, Crosby shrugged off the significance of the removal of the mask.

"I think [taking a] 'step' is probably a big word for taking a little thing off my helmet. It feels weird, actually, because you're used to wearing a full face [shield] for a month," Crosby said. "It actually feels a little bit weird but definitely much better. In terms of getting air and seeing and everything like that, it's much better."

Despite missing the opening game of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Islanders, Crosby is tied with linemate Pascal Dupuis for the playoff lead in goals with seven. He finished tied for third in the regular-season scoring race with Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals after being overtaken during the final week by Tampa Bay Lightning teammates Martin St. Louis and Steven Stamkos as he missed the Penguins' final 12 regular season games.

Crosby said that, while he's comfortable with the jaw guard off, it might take him a few practices before he's completely re-accustomed to being without the protection when it comes to going into corners or standing in front of the net.

Luckily, he has time. The Eastern Conference Finals schedule has not been set yet, and coach Dan Bylsma said the Penguins are planning for their series against the Boston Bruins to start no sooner than Wednesday.

In the past 18 months, Crosby has twice returned from lengthy absences because of concussion symptoms. On neither occasion was there a noticeable alteration to his game in terms of shying away from contact.

"I'm not sure he's really totally focused on the fact [that the jaw mask] has been there the last two weeks, playing-wise," Bylsma said. "He's not going to go on the ice and think, 'Oh, it's not here right now; I have to be a little more careful in those situations.' It's not going to be an issue at all for Sidney."

Pens not putting stock in regular-season success

Sunday, 05.26.2013 / 5:15 PM / Stanley Cup Playoffs

By Chris Adamski - NHL.com Correspondent

PITTSBURGH -- The veteran Pittsburgh Penguins are too wise to let a three-game regular season sweep of the Boston Bruins provide them with any reassurance that the upcoming Eastern Conference Finals will come easy.

"It's the playoffs," wing Pascal Dupuis said. "It's a different game. It's a different animal in the Stanley Cup Playoffs."

As the Penguins prepare to face the Bruins -- the schedule for their first Eastern Conference-Finals appearance since 2009 has not yet been released -- they'll study video of their three one-goal victories against Boston during the regular season. But players say the games contested March 12 and March 17 at Consol Energy Center and April 20 at TD Garden have little bearing on what will happen in the next two weeks.

"We'll definitely look at the tapes, see some things we did well and did wrong against them in the first three matchups," Dupuis said. "But everything is different, the players on our team are different from when we met them the first two times. And of course you know that when everything is on the line every shift out there in the playoffs, things aren't the same."

Boston held a lead in two of the three meetings, and the Penguins had a lead of more than one goal just once against the Bruins this season -- for a time period of 11:28. In a measure of how evenly-matched the two teams are, over their three regular-season meetings, Pittsburgh led for 57:52 and Boston held a lead for 64:25.

The most entertaining game they played was the first one. On March 12, the Bruins took a 2-0 first-period lead and held it until Chris Kunitz scored with 6:18 left in regulation. That was the first of three Penguins' goals in a span of 4:15 that allowed Pittsburgh to escape with a 3-2 win.

"It took us [almost 54] minutes to finally score, but we thought we were playing well," defenseman Brooks Orpik said. "You've just got to be really patient against them. Patience is the biggest thing because they can really frustrate you with the way they play.

"They're really good defensively and in the neutral zone they're really, really responsible, so they kind of bait you into situations where you think you have something and it closes down pretty quick. And they're a good transition team, so you just have to really be patient."

Throughout the Pittsburgh locker room, players expressed a healthy respect for the structure and commitment that Claude Julien and the Bruins play with.

"Every line, every player, to a man, plays their system to a T," defenseman Mark Eaton said. "Everyone battles hard and is real sound defensively. They play a structured game that everybody buys into.

"Every team has a structure and a system, but some teams follow it better than others. It's obvious how everybody on their team buys into it."

In their first two postseason series against the New York Islanders and Ottawa Senators, the Penguins' enjoyed several strengths against inexperienced opponents who appeared to be overwhelmed at times. Those advantages will likely be negated against an experienced Bruins squad. The Penguins have retained many of the players that helped them capture the Stanley Cup in 2009. But Boston's roster is almost identical to the one that captured the Cup two years ago.

Another edge Pittsburgh routinely holds over its opponents is its superior depth. Against the Bruins, though, that is mitigated by Boston's fourth line and extra defensemen, all of whom have excelled during this postseason.

"They're a tough team to play against. Real structured, some big D, and they also have skill throughout their lineup," goalie Tomas Vokoun said. "I don't think there's anything left you can look at and say 'We can exploit this or that.' The Bruins are going to make for a tough series."

Boston may be a No. 4 seed, but it finished one point out of the Northeast Division lead and with the fifth-most points in the NHL. Because of that impressive record, many prognosticators envisioned the Bruins and top-seeded Penguins going toe-to-toe in the Eastern Conference Final.

But neither team enjoyed a clear path to the third round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Penguins required two overtime wins to dispatch the Islanders and Boston staged a miraculous turnaround in Game 7 against the Toronto Maple Leafs, coming back from three goals down in the third period before Patrice Bergeron scored in extra time. Following their opening-round struggles, each dispatched of a quality team in the Conference Semifinals in five games.

Now the Penguins and Bruins are both a single step away from playing for the Stanley Cup.

"It's going to be fun, going to be a tough series," defenseman Matt Niskanen said. "They're a very good team, a well-balanced team with a lot of depth, some good players. So it's going to be a good challenge for us.

"Since I've been here, our speed has done well against them and we've had a pretty good record against them in the regular season. But we all know in the playoffs that might not be the story. It can be a whole new ballgame and quite a challenge going against them."

Chiarelli says B's will be motivated against Pittsburgh

Sunday, 05.26.2013 / 3:11 PM / Stanley Cup Playoffs

By Matt Kalman - NHL.com Correspondent

BOSTON – In late March, Boston Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli was explaining how and why he lost out in his efforts to acquire Jarome Iginla from the Calgary Flames.

After it appeared the Bruins had completed a deal with Calgary for the perennial All-Star, Iginla invoked his no-trade clause and instead was dealt to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Asked about the Penguins' ability to add Iginla to an already star-studded roster, Chiarelli couldn't help but crack a little wise.

"They're a lock, right?" he quipped.

There are still two more rounds to go in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but so far the Penguins have made Chiarelli's words look prophetic. After securing the top seed in the Eastern Conference, the Penguins disposed of the New York Islanders and Ottawa Senators in 11 games.

Now it will be up to the Bruins to prove Chiarelli wrong by upending the Penguins' championship drive in the upcoming Eastern Conference Finals. Long after the Iginla affair unfolded, there was still a strong suspicion among people in the game that the Bruins and Penguins would have to settle their differences on the ice at some point down the road

"I always thought you had to go through them [the Penguins] to get to where we want to go at some point," Chiarelli said during a press conference at TD Garden Sunday.

In response to losing out on Iginla, the Bruins eventually acquired Jaromir Jagr from the Dallas Stars. Jagr is a different type of player and he's struggled with four points and no goals through 12 postseason contests. Nonetheless, Chiarelli is pleased with how things worked out.

"It's been well-chronicled, the Iginla stuff and the Jagr stuff, so we're happy with who we got. I know he's been snake-bitten a little bit, but he's had a lot of chances; he's created a lot of chances," Chiarelli said. "But more importantly, in addition to the looks he gives the PP, he wears down the D, and there's always two guys on him. I think we would've been fine with either, but we're very happy with [Jagr]."

The Bruins have made it to the conference finals for the second time in three season without much contribution from Jagr because they've received production from so many different parties, many of them completely unexpected. Like rookie defenseman Torey Krug, who scored four goals in the five-game victory series win against the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. And the fourth line of Gregory Campbell, Daniel Paille and Shawn Thornton, which has combined for 13 points. Altogether, fifteen different players have scored a goal in the postseason for the Bruins.

But the Bruins' depth should be most challenged against Pittsburgh's prominent roster, even as veteran defensemen Andrew Ference and Wade Redden progress toward an eventual return to Boston's defense corps. The Penguins are able to plug Iginla onto their second line and fellow in-season pickup Brenden Morrow, another player the Bruins had interest in, on their fourth line. It's a testament to the overflowing stable of talent on a Penguins teams that has also had 15 different goal-scorers in the playoffs.

"In building teams, you want to be deep and you want to be deep with quality," Chiarelli said. "When you've got depth in your existing lineup, meaning four lines, six D that are all contributing and all playing good, quality minutes, that's a bonus. And when you've got depth beyond that – and you saw that last series with our younger [defensemen] that came in – it's an added bonus. That continues to apply to us.

"With [Pittsburgh] they're deep and they have veterans like us that have been through the wars. They've got some high-end impact players, so they've got all types of depth. It will be a battle of deep teams."

Regardless of how the Penguins are playing, the Bruins might be peaking at the right time. After some lackluster performances that postponed their clinching of their first-round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Bruins have come a long way since rallying from three goals down in the final 10 minutes to clinch Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.

The Rangers series was more indicative of the way the Bruins can play and the way Chiarelli and the coaching staff want the Bruins to perform.

"I like the consistent surges in this series. I really liked the push, the sustained push," Chiarelli said of Boston's play against New York. "I said it last time, you can't have it for the full 60 minutes, but when we had to, we had real good collective pushes by the lines. I talked about it earlier, it's about the surges. And I like that we're more of the same."

More of the same from the Bruins might still not be enough to best the Penguins. Boston will probably have to play even better in order to earn a spot in the Stanley Cup Finals. Chiarelli's banking on there being an uptick in his team's performance, because he knows they can still play better and that there'll be no shortage of motivation.

"I would expect that [motivation] would come natural, just from where we are at this level in the playoffs and with the team that we're playing," Chiarelli said. "I can recall the last time, there was no issues in getting them up for Tampa [Bay in the 2011 conference finals]. Now, this is a tough team we're playing. It's going to be a tough battle and you're going to see ebb and flow with this series, too. I would think that they would be up for it."

Third-round preview: Pens-Bruins

Updated: May 26, 2013, 7:13 PM ET

By Scott Burnside | ESPN.com

It might not be a dream matchup, but when the playoffs started about a month ago, it was hard not to eyeball the prospects of a Pittsburgh-Boston Eastern Conference finals. After the two teams encountered unexpected resistance in the first round, from the New York Islanders and the Toronto Maple Leafs respectively, the Penguins and Bruins found another gear in dispatching the Ottawa Senators and the New York Rangers in five games apiece. The two teams boast deep, talented lineups that are as comfortable playing a crash-and-bang style as they are wide-open offense. In fact, as of Sunday morning, the top six playoff point producers were either Bruins or Penguins. Both teams have won Cups in the past four years, so don't expect jitters, regardless of the circumstances, as the leadership core runs deep on both sides of the ice.

1. Getting Iggy with it

No one in the Bruins' locker room is apt to say they'd like to stick it to former Calgary Flames captain Jarome Iginla, who looked like he was headed to Boston at the trade deadline but changed his mind at the last second to agree to a trade with the Pens. But there must be an underlying element of wanting to prove Iginla wrong, and what better way than to send him home for the summer while the Bruins advance to the Stanley Cup finals? But the dynamic runs both ways. Iginla is a fierce competitor and he understands that he'll have to back up his decision with action in this series. It's been an up-and-down time for the veteran winger as he's bounced around the top two lines during the postseason, playing for a time with the Sidney Crosby trio before settling in with Evgeni Malkin and James Neal for the most part. There's nothing wrong with Iginla's production, however, as he has four goals and eight assists and has settled in as an important part of the Penguins' deadly power-play group with two goals and three assists on the unit.

2. Feeling special

If the Bruins are going to keep pace with the Penguins, it will be important to not take a preponderance of penalties and keep the Penguins' power play at bay when they are in the box. Ottawa, a strong defensive team during the regular season, couldn't do it and it cost them. What about the Bruins? The Penguins have scored 13 goals with the man advantage in 11 postseason games. Seven different players have scored power-play goals. Now, the Bruins have the goods to blunt the Pens' attack. They stifled the New York Rangers' power play, allowing

just two goals on 16 opportunities in the series, including blanking them through the first three games of the series, all Boston victories. They were less effective in the first round against the Maple Leafs, though. With the man advantage, the Bruins were no slouches either, scoring four times on 12 attempts with the man advantage against the Rangers, so that will be something the Penguins will have to deal with. The Senators lacked the firepower that Boston brings, but the Penguins have been very good on the penalty kill through the first two rounds, allowing just four goals on 39 chances -- the third-best penalty kill efficiency in the postseason. Suffice it to say the team that can win the special teams battle will be headed down the right road to advancing.

3. The Vokoun storyline

Seems kind of churlish to be picking apart a goalie who has gone 6-1 and turned in a save percentage of .941, second only to Jonathan Quick in the playoffs, but talk to scouts and executives and they'll point to the goaltending as an area in which the Bruins will hold an advantage. And, to be sure, Tuukka Rask has been very good, allowing just 10 goals in five games in the second round. "Rask is way better but Pittsburgh is capable of going off on anyone," an Eastern Conference-based scout told ESPN.com. The feeling is that the veteran Vokoun, who has never been on an extended playoff run, gives up too many rebounds and could be vulnerable to an aggressive forechecking team like the Bruins. The 36-year-old acknowledged after the Penguins pushed aside the Senators in five games that he still feels like he's on a tryout and that he's not sure what would happen if he stumbled. Indeed, there remains significant debate on the length of Vokoun's leash, given the presence of former starter and Cup winner Marc-Andre Fleury biding his time at the end of the bench. The Bruins would like to bring that storyline into much sharper focus by getting to Vokoun early in the series.

4. Fourth-line magic

The Penguins have scored at least four goals in nine of their 11 postseason games, so even if Boston is able to slow the Pens down at least a little offensively, the pressure is going to be on the Bruins to score goals, and preferably in bunches. That means the big guns will have to keep going. David Krejci leads all playoff producers with 17 points and Nathan Horton has 12 points and five goals, two of which were game-winners as the duo, along with Milan Lucic, has proved to be a dominant force. But it also means the Bruins' formidable fourth line will have to continue to keep adding bonus offense. The trio of Daniel Paille, Shawn Thornton and Gregory Campbell has combined for five goals and 13 points, and they were especially effective against the Rangers, scoring at crucial times to keep the Rangers off-balance. It's interesting to note that the Penguins have also enjoyed production from deep in their forward lineup. Brenden Morrow has played both third- and fourth-line minutes and opened the scoring for the Pens in Game 5 and has two goals and two assists while Tyler Kennedy, who started the playoffs a healthy scratch, has meshed nicely with Brandon Sutter and Matt Cooke on a third-line shutdown unit that also has contributed regularly on the offensive side of things.

5. Blue-line depth

So, who doesn't want to watch goal-scoring leader Sidney Crosby, cleared Sunday to play without a jaw shield after suffering a broken jaw at the end of March, and Zdeno Chara tangle for six or seven games? Talk about a battle of wills. But if Chara plays against Crosby, then what does Boston head coach Claude Julien do about the suddenly potent Evgeni Malkin-James Neal-Jarome Iginla trio? Neal came awake late in the Ottawa series and has five goals and two assists in his past two games. The issue is exacerbated by the injury situation along the Boston blue line. Dennis Seidenberg returned for Game 5 after missing the first four games of the Rangers series with a lower-body injury. He is key to stabilizing the Bruins' blue line, playing almost exclusively with Chara. But Andrew Ference remains out and has been wearing a walking boot. Wade Redden has also been out of the lineup, which has left unproven youngsters Matt Bartkowski, Dougie Hamilton and goal-scoring sensation Torey Krug, who has chipped in four goals and an assist in five games. Krug has been a boon to the Bruins' power play but the issue for the Bruins will be whether these rookie defenders (Hamilton sat when Seidenberg returned) can continue to log important minutes against a team as dynamic as the Penguins. "It's going to come down to how the B's' depth defensemen play," the scout said. "Chara will be fine against anyone. B's centers can play against anyone. D-men can't."

• This should be a dandy and we're expecting more than one twist and turn in the momentum department. But Sidney Crosby and his gang are going too well to be stopped offensively, and the Penguins' blue line and goaltending will hold up long enough to send them back to the finals. Penguins in 6.

Bruins-Penguins has some juice

Eastern Conference finals full of storylines, notably Iginla trade that wasn't Updated: May 26, 2013, 10:29 PM ET

By Joe McDonald | ESPNBoston.com

BOSTON -- Oh, the storylines.

What would an Eastern Conference final between the Boston Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins be without a bunch of juicy storylines for the media to serve up and for the fans to digest while we wait for the puck to drop on the series?

No doubt it would still be good hockey, but there are just so many off-the-ice tidbits to make this series even more interesting.

Before we tackle the most-recent connection between the teams -- you know, the one about star-studded trade chip Jarome Iginla deciding he wanted to play for the Penguins instead of the Bruins at the trade deadline -- there are a few more we can dissect.

Let's start at the top of the management chain. After the 2005-06 season, the Bruins were looking to hire a new general manager to replace Mike O'Connell, who had been fired by the organization. The leading candidate was Nashville Predators assistant GM Ray Shero, but talks between the Bruins and Shero broke down in the 11th hour of negotiations, and the Penguins quickly signed Shero as their GM.

So the Bruins turned their attention to then-Ottawa Senators assistant general manager Peter Chiarelli, who eventually was hired to succeed O'Connell in Boston.

Under Shero, the Penguins have reached the postseason in seven consecutive seasons and won the Stanley Cup in 2009. Under Chiarelli, the Bruins have earned a playoff berth in six of his seven seasons as GM, which include a Stanley Cup title in 2011.

Shero inherited a potent lineup led by budding superstar forwards Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.

Chiarelli and the Bruins were at the ground level of building a championship roster. Defenseman Zdeno Chara signed as a free agent and was immediately named team captain the same season Chiarelli was hired. Patrice Bergeron, who was only 21 at the time, had already played three seasons in the NHL and proven himself to be a true leader on and off the ice. David Krejci was just beginning his career, and goaltender Tim Thomas was thought of as only a backup.

Along the way, both GMs turned their teams into perennial winners, and it's amazing that this season is the first time since 1992 the Bruins and Penguins will face off in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

It's also fitting that this series will decide which team will represent the Eastern Conference in the 2013 Stanley Cup finals.

Which brings us back to Iginla.

The future Hall of Famer had spent his entire career with the Calgary Flames, but the 35-year-old forward has yet to win the Cup. The Flames reached the finals in 2004, but lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning. It was inevitable Iginla would be traded this season to a contender, and he even waived his no-movement clause and gave the Flames a list of teams he would accept a trade to, including Boston, Pittsburgh, the Los Angeles Kings and Chicago Blackhawks.

Around noon on March 28, Flames GM Jay Feaster informed Chiarelli that the Bruins had won the sweepstakes for Iginla. In the deal, the Bruins would send defenseman Matt Bartkowski, prospect Alexander Khokhlachev and a first-round draft pick to Calgary in exchange for Iginla.

Before the deal could be finalized, Feaster needed to get the OK from Iginla. Nearly 12 hours later, the Bruins were informed there would be no deal because Iginla chose the Penguins and Crosby over the Bruins and Bergeron.

The next day at Bruins practice, the players showed no animosity toward Iginla for his decision, but coach Claude Julien had an interesting comment.

"That was his entitlement," Julien said. "He's got a no-trade clause, and when you look at what Pittsburgh's done, you've got to respect the guy's decision. It was his decision to make, and he made that.

"It'll be at the end of the year he'll see whether he made the right decision or not. Certainly, there's no animosity here. We're a good team. If he came here, he would have made us better. He's not here because he went somewhere else. We turn the page because it's about us right now; it's not about him."

Chiarelli turned his attention to Jaromir Jagr and acquired him from the Dallas Stars in exchange for forward Lane MacDermid and Cody Payne, along with a conditional pick in the 2013 draft. Now that the Bruins have reached the conference finals, that pick becomes a first-round selection.

So Jagr and Iginla, two future Hall of Famers, will square off in the conference finals.

"I always thought you had to go through them to get to where we want to go at some point," Chiarelli said of the Penguins. "It's been well chronicled, the Iginla stuff and the Jagr stuff, so we're happy with who we got."

In 11 regular-season games for the Bruins, Jagr scored two goals and added seven assists for nine points. Iginla provided five goals and six assists for 11 points in 13 regular-season games for the Penguins. In the playoffs, Iginla has four goals and eight assists for 12 points in 11 games, while Jagr has only four assists in 12 games.

"I think Jags makes that switch that Claude made, Jags is really compatible with Bergy's line on the strong cycle and the wearing down of the opposition," Chiarelli said Sunday. "I know he's been snakebitten a little bit, but he's had a lot of chances; he's created a lot of chances. But, more importantly, in addition to the looks he gives the power play, he wears down the defense, and there's always two guys on him.

"I think we would've been fine with either, but we're very happy with Jags; and the price to pay, a first-round pick, you've got to pay to get a quality player. We've shown that we've been able

to replace those types of players -- Torey [Krug] wasn't even drafted -- through trade, through draft, through free agents. There's different ways to skin the cat."

Another angle to this storyline is Bartkowski. If the Iginla deal to Boston had been completed, Bartkowski would already be on summer vacation. Instead, he's been a key contributor on the Boston blue line in the playoffs, and now the Pittsburgh native will have an opportunity to play against his hometown Penguins. He actually had posters of Jagr and Mario Lemieux on his wall when he was a kid.

"It's going to be awesome; it's going to be a blast," Bartkowski said. "Growing up there, it was a lot of fun watching them. Now, being able to play against them will probably be even more fun. So I'm pretty excited."

In retrospect, Chiarelli says he's happy with the way the things have worked out with Bartkowski and Jagr.

"If you're asking me am I happy because I kept him instead of getting Iginla, yes. Now, yes. He's helped us. You've seen him emerge. But it also shows you that we're willing to give up good players to try and help the team win now," Chiarelli said.

"We've got a lot of good players now. We didn't want to give up Bart, but that was the case at the time. The depth that you talk about that's helping us now, we had it further on down the line in the organization. That helps us deal for players now, but I'm glad to have him right now."

Storylines aside, it's going to be an intense series on the ice.

Both teams have the ability to roll out four good lines, and the matchups will be interesting. The depth, veteran presence, impact players and experience both teams possess make this a close matchup.

"It will be a battle of deep teams," Chiarelli said.

Second-round highs and lows (so far)

Updated: May 26, 2013, 6:50 PM ET

By Scott Burnside | ESPN.com

And then there were four; or at least soon there will be four. And as the second round of the NHL playoffs reaches the end, here's a look at some highs and lows from the Group of Eight.

HIGHS

Holy Offense, Batman

Whether you're a fan of the Pittsburgh Penguins or not, watching their high-octane offense go high against the Ottawa Senators was a sight to behold for anyone who likes to see creative hockey played at its best.

The Penguins have scored at least four goals in nine of 11 postseason games and scored 22 times in five games against the Senators, prompting Ottawa head coach Paul MacLean to quip after Game 5 that he hoped the Penguins wouldn't bill the Senators for the clinic they just put on.

The Penguins power play is the top-ranked unit in the postseason and seven players have scored with the man advantage. Perhaps most impressive, after being stunned in a Game 3 double overtime loss in which they gave up the tying goal in the last minute while on the power play, the Penguins responded by whipping the Senators 7-3 and 6-2 to close out the series.

Four of the top six playoff point producers are Penguins, and Sidney Crosby, James Neal, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang delivered highlight-reel goals against the Senators.

The Krug Factor

When the Boston Bruins started their second-round series against the New York Rangers, one Eastern Conference scout said he didn't think the Bruins had a chance without defenseman Dennis Seidenberg, who was injured late in the first round against Toronto and returned only for Game 5 against New York.

The Bruins were also without Andrew Ference and still managed to whip the Rangers in five games in large part because of the play of unheralded, untested youngsters on the back end Torey Krug, Dougie Hamilton and Matt Bartkowski.

But it's the diminutive Krug (listed as 5-foot-9, 180 pounds) who has captured the imagination of fans as he's come out of nowhere to score four goals and add an assist in the first five postseason games of his career. The Royal Oak, Mich., native has scored three goals on the power play and was a key contributor to the Bruins' advancement to the Eastern Conference finals for the second time in the past three seasons.

Quick For President (Or Conn Smythe Again)

The reality is that for long stretches of the dynamic San Jose Sharks-Los Angeles Kings series, the Sharks have been the better team. They have pushed the pace and enjoyed a wide margin in terms of shots and scoring chances.

And yet? Well, as of Sunday afternoon, the Kings were one win away from heading back to the Western Conference finals.

You don't have to look too far to identify the catalyst to that achievement, just glance at the Los Angeles Kings goal, where Jonathan Quick has been outstanding. Twice in the first five games of the series, he shut out the Sharks. He helped steal the first two games at home for the Kings and then rebounded after the Sharks evened the series with his second shutout in a crucial Game 5 win at Staples Center.

Through the first five games, Quick has stopped all but seven of the 153 shots the Sharks have pounded at him. Pretty routine stuff, though, for a guy who has proved he's at his best with the money on the table.

Red Wing Rising

It's such a cliché, but the Detroit Red Wings are the perfect example of the power of the collective.

After looking worn out in losing the first game of their second-round series with the powerful Chicago Blackhawks, the Wings battened down the hatches and won three straight. It marked the first time the Blackhawks had lost three in a row all season.

The Wings did it with timely scoring from up and down the lineup; they did it by frustrating the Blackhawks' stars with relentless checking and by getting great goaltending from Jimmy Howard. Although the Blackhawks staved off elimination in Game 5, they still have an uphill battle against a Detroit team that was supposed to have been too fatigued after a first-round win over Anaheim to give the Blackhawks much competition.

LOWS

Brother, Where Art Thou? (An Ode To Rick Nash)

No one player is at fault when a team like the New York Rangers gets spanked in five games as they did against Boston, but it's fair to question the production, or lack thereof, of a player considered one of the game's elite offensive weapons.

Nash, acquired in the offseason in the hopes of taking the Rangers that extra step toward a championship, was a huge disappointment during the playoffs, scoring just once and adding four assists in 12 games.

Against Boston, Nash scored his lone goal and added an assist in five games. He had zero power-play points against the Bruins while averaging just four shots a game in the five-game loss.

In short, the Rangers paid too much in terms of assets to acquire Nash and are paying him too much money for that kind of production or, well, lack thereof.

Brother, Where Art Thou? (An Ode To Brad Richards)

We've known Brad Richards a long time and if there is a more proud, competitive player in the league, we're not sure who it might be.

That said, this season, from the get-go, was a difficult one for Richards and it ended in an embarrassing fashion as Rangers head coach John Tortorella made the former playoff MVP a healthy scratch for the final two games of the Boston series.

In all, Richards had one goal and 18 shots in 10 postseason games. His benching now produces the likelihood he will be bought out just two years after signing a nine-year, $60 million pact with the Rangers.

Raffi, Raffi, Raffi

Proving that some guys just never quite get it, Raffi Torres was suspended for the balance of the second-round series between his San Jose Sharks and the Los Angeles Kings after he nailed Jarret Stoll with a hard, blindside hit in Game 1.

Now, there was a lot of debate about the legality of the hit, but the fact Torres is a serial predator who a year ago was suspended 25 games (later reduced to 21) for sending Marian Hossa to the hospital with a first-round hit, made supplemental discipline a foregone conclusion.

While a player like Matt Cooke, with whom Torres shares some common history of dangerous play, has remade himself, Torres seems not to have learned those lessons.

GM Doug Wilson's press release moaning about the suspension earned him a $100,000 fine and helps explain why the NHL still struggles to eliminate dangerous hits and dangerous players from the game.

Would Wilson have had the same stance had Dustin Brown laid out Logan Couture or Joe Pavelski with the exact same hit? Just asking.

And finally, as always, the decision to suspend Torres for the balance of the series strikes us as yet another attempt by the NHL's office of player safety to find the easiest route.

If this was a dangerous hit (and it was) and Torres is a serial offender (and he is), then why not toss him for the playoffs, as was the case a year ago?

Captain Struggles

After a season in which Jonathan Toews was in the thick of Hart Trophy discussion as the league's most valuable player, the Chicago captain has struggled to find his playoff mojo.

Through the first five games against the pesky Detroit Red Wings, Toews had just one goal and one assist and delivered just 17 shots. More telling, Toews has at times seemed visibly frustrated by the vigorous -- Blackhawks fans would suggest illegal -- checking the Wings have employed on the Blackhawk captain.

In Game 4, a 2-0 loss, Toews uncharacteristically took three minor penalties. He did score his first goal of the postseason on the power play in Game 5's must-win at home, but he knows he'll have to do more if the Blackhawks are going to make good on a regular season that saw them finish with the best record in hockey.

Penguins fall short to Crunch

By Tom Venesky - tvenesky@civitasmedia.com

SYRACUSE, NY – After playing their sixth game in 10 days, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins could’ve used fatigue as an excuse for what happened on Sunday in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Syracuse Crunch.

But they didn’t.

Instead, the Penguins owned up to the fact that the Crunch played better for the majority of the night. They outshot the Penguins 37-18, wont he special teams battle and spent more time in the offensive zone.

That’s why the Penguins lost 3-2 as the Crunch evened the series, 1-1. The loss snaps the Penguins’ five-game winning streak as the series shifts back to Wilkes-Barre for the next two contests.

“We just weren’t good enough in any phase,” said head coach John Hynes. “We were average enough to keep it close, but not good enough to win the game.”

Syracuse came out firing in the first period, outshooting the Penguins 15-1 and taking a 1-0 lead on a power play goal by Dan Sexton at 18:56.

After killing off 21 straight power plays, the Penguins’ penalty kill has now allowed two goals in the last four opportunities they have faced.

The Penguins only shot of the period came at 13:40 as Syracuse kept most of the period in the offensive zone.

Brad Thiessen did a remarkable job preventing a bigger Syracuse lead with several key stops, including a save on a Brendan Mikkelson breakaway midway through the period.

Still, it clearly wasn’t the start the Penguins envisioned.

“Our first period was discouraging not because of the shots against, but the way we played,” said captain Joey Mormina. “For whatever reason we had too many guys that didn’t come ready to play tonight. The definitely got to their game before we did.”

The Penguins did get on the board in the second period – on their second shot of the game, when Mormina sent a slapshot past Cedrick Desjardins on a power play at 8:13.

Other than that, it was Syracuse that kept the pressure by taking advantage of Penguins’ errors and forcing the play while shorthanded.

In the first half of the period, Reid McNeill stopped in the neutral zone to scrum with Richard Panik. While McNeill shoved Panik, the Crunch raced into the zone outnumbering the Penguins on a three-on-two and scored down low with a goal by Matt Taormina.

Hynes said the play wasn’t neccesarily a tactical error, but one the Penguins will address.

“That’s kind of an oddity. It’s something we’ll talk about as a group - how to handle those situations,” he said.

At the midway point, the Penguins went on a four-minute power play but allowed the Crunch to extend their lead when Dmitry Korobov sent a wrister over Thiessen for a shorthanded goal and a 3-1 lead.

“When you’re chasing a team like Syracuse the whole game, you put yourself in a bad position,” Mormina said.

It could’ve been a lot worse.

The Penguins received a scare seven minutes into the third period when top scorer Chad Kolarik collided with Syracuse’s Tyler Johnson knee-on-knee. Both players had to be helped off the ice, but Kolarik returned while Johnson did not.

Kolarik said the collission wasn’t intentional.

“I didn’t see anything. I just turned up ice and I don’t know if he saw me or not,” Kolarik said. “I don’t know what happened to him and I’m not going to talk about what happened to me. I hope he’s alright.”

Crunch head coach Rob Zettler said Johnson suffered a charlie horse on the hit.

“They (Kolarik and Johnson) ran into each other. That’s all I know,” Zettler said. “It (Johnson’s status) is obviously huge.”

The Penguins did close to within one when Riley Holzapfel scored with six minutes left, but Syracuse was able to shut the door after that.

NOTES

-With the series tied 1-1 and headed back to Wilkes-Barre for Games 3 and 4, the Penguins have only sold 2,600 tickets for each game - something Mormina would like to see change. “We really hope when we come home it’s too a sold-out building. We expect our fans to show up and for it to be a loud building.” To order tickets for Game 3 on Wednesday and Game 4 on Friday, call 208-PENS.

- G Scott Darling, D Dylan Reese (injury), C Chris Barton, C Jayson Megna (injury), LW Bobby Farnham (injury), LW Anton Zlobin, LW Steve MacIntyre, D Harrison Ruopp and RW Matia Marcantuoni were scratched for the Penguins.

- Brian Dumoulin (2-6-8) and Joey Mormina (1-7-8) are tied for the AHL lead in playoff scoring among defensemen.

Kolarik had short stint with Crunch

By Jonathan Bombulie (Staff Writer)

Published: May 27, 2013

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - When a visiting player returns to a building where he used to play as a member of the home team, it's often an emotional experience.

But not always.

Winger Chad Kolarik played for the Syracuse Crunch in 2009-10, but the fans at the Onondaga County War Memorial didn't pay him any special attention when he returned to the building as a member of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins this weekend.

There's a good reason for that. Kolarik was only with the Crunch for 17 games, posting nine goals and six assists, after being traded to Columbus by Phoenix for winger Alexandre Picard in March of 2009.

Eight months later, Kolarik was dealt by Columbus to the New York Rangers for winger Dane Byers.

"I don't think the fans will even remember me," Kolarik said before the series. "It was a quick stint. It was a good time, but 17 games. It wasn't much. We didn't make playoffs or anything like that. I'm sure they're not that fond of the memories of the Columbus Blue Jackets."

The Crunch made the playoffs in five of the 10 seasons they were affiliated with Columbus, switching to Anaheim in 2010 and Tampa Bay this year.

It's too bad the Crunch didn't make the playoffs the year they had Kolarik on the roster because he's been a productive postseason scorer throughout his AHL career. Coming into Sunday night, he had 21 points (12 goals-9 assists) in 21 games. This year, he had 10 points (5-5) in his first 11 games and was one of 15 players in the league in double digits in scoring.

Although the fans in Syracuse don't have many memories of Kolarik, he likes the place. He said he was on good terms with Crunch owner Howard Dolgon and his older brother, Tyler Kolarik, played for the Crunch for two seasons from 2004-06.

"I loved playing there," he said. "It's a great city, a good college town."

STAYING LATE

Sunday's game, played on May 26, was the latest calendar date the Syracuse Crunch franchise ever played a game. The Penguins have a way to go to break their calendar record. They once played on June 10, losing to the Chicago Wolves in Game 6 of the 2008 Calder Cup finals.

ROAD TRIP

A loud group of Penguins fans made the 130-mile drive up Interstate 81 and filled a section at the war memorial on Sunday, bringing to mind playoff road games in Hershey in 2001 and Bridgeport in 2004 where visiting Penguins fans out-cheered the home team's fans.

FIGHTING SPIRIT

When winger Christiaan Minella squared off with 6-foot-8 Syracuse D Andrej Sustr in the first period Sunday, it was the Penguins' fifth fighting major of the playoffs. That's the most they've had in any one postseason since they fought eight times in the 2008 playoffs. The team record is 11 fights in the 2004 playoffs.

OUT WEST

Teemu Hartikainen scored twice and Mark Arcobello netted the game winner in the third period as Oklahoma City beat Grand Rapids 2-1 in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals on Saturday. The series is tied 1-1. Game 3 is Wednesday in Oklahoma City.

Crunch get even

By Jonathan Bombulie (Staff Writer)

Published: May 27, 2013

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins lost a one-goal game to the highest-scoring team in the AHL on Sunday night.

They head home for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals with the series tied 1-1 having earned a split of the first two games on the road.

That might sound like a moral victory to some. It doesn't to Penguins captain Joey Mormina.

"We played well the first night," he said. "Tonight, just an absolute no-show by too many guys on our team."

Dan Sexton scored a power-play goal late in the first period to give the Syracuse Crunch a lead it never relinquished in a 3-2 Game 2 victory.

The Penguins twice cut the Syracuse lead to one goal but never tied the score. They were outshot 37-18 in the game and 15-1 in the first period.

"We just weren't really good enough, top to bottom, in any phase," coach John Hynes said. "We were average enough to keep it close and keep us around but we weren't good enough to win the game."

Sexton's goal came on the rebound of a Brett Connolly shot from the left faceoff circle with 1:04 left in the first period.

"Our first period was discouraging not because of the shots against but because of the way we played," Mormina said. "For whatever reason, we had too many guys that didn't come ready to play tonight. When you're chasing a team like Syracuse for the whole game, you put yourself in a bad position."

Syracuse scored twice in the second by getting the Penguins out of their defensive structure.

First, Matt Taormina scored on a three-on-two rush to make it 2-0 Syracuse 7:07 into the second period.

Syracuse's Tyler Johnson took a stick to the face on a neutral-zone faceoff with Brian Gibbons and went to the bench. Richard Panik confronted Gibbons. Reid McNeill confronted Panik. All the while, play continued. Thiessen made the first save on the Syracuse rush, but Taormina shoveled a loose puck over him.

The Penguins, despite being outshot 23-1 at the time, got back into the game when Mormina scored on a power-play one-timer about a minute later.

The Penguins went on another power play about two minutes after that with a chance to tie the score but gave up a shorthanded goal instead.

Dmitry Korobov picked a corner from the top of the left faceoff circle with 9:20 left in the second to give the Crunch a 3-1 lead.

"Might have been a bad change on my part," winger Chad Kolarik said. "They kept it in down low and Korobov had a great shot. Water bottle. That's a great shot. We talked about it. We can't give up shorthanded goals against them. They're a powerful team and they like to score shorthanded."

The Penguins tried to rally in the third period and they closed to within 3-2 when Riley Holzapfel found a loose puck on a rebound of his own shot and scored with 5:58 to play.

"We had a good push in the third period," Holzapfel said. "It was 3-2 with a couple minutes left to tie up but we couldn't get it done."

A potentially series-changing moment occurred in the third period when Kolarik and Johnson, the league MVP, collided with each other in open ice. Both had to be helped to the locker room.

"It looked almost like a scene from Rocky," Sexton said. "They were both crawling off the ice at the same time."

Kolarik returned to the game. Johnson did not, but Syracuse coach Rob Zettler said he thinks it's a charley horse.

"I don't know what happened to him. I'm not going to talk about what happened to me. I just hope he's all right," Kolarik said. "I didn't mean anything by it. I'm sure he didn't mean anything by it. We just kind of collided there."

GM Chiarelli lauds Bruins' organizational depth as difference-maker vs. Rangers

Michael Vega, Globe Staff

May 26, 2013 01:30 PM

The Bruins earned a well-deserved day of rest Sunday after scoring a clinching 3-1 Game 5 victory over the New York Rangers to close out the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series, 4 games to 1. It vaulted the fourth-seeded Bruins to a berth opposite top-seeded Pittsburgh in the Eastern Conference finals.

But Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli knew none of it would've been possible had the team not flexed its organizational might in a revealing show of depth that proved to be the difference-maker against the Rangers.

At the start of the semifinal series, the Bruins turned to a trio of rookie defensemen -- Torey Krug, Matt Bartkowski and Dougie Hamilton -- to help overcome the loss of injured veterans Wade Redden (undisclosed injury), Andrew Ference (lower body) and Dennis Seidenberg, who missed the first four games vs. the Rangers after suffering a lower body injury on his first shift of Game 7 of the conference quarterfinals against the Maple Leafs

Offensively, Bruins coach Claude Julien rolled four lines, getting significant production from his fourth Energy Line of Shawn Thornton-Gregory Campbell-Daniel Paille, who were a combined 2-2--4 in Game 5.

Asked about what the depth said about the organization as a whole, Chiarelli replied, "It speaks volumes.

"I'd need a couple of hours to give credit to everybody,'' said Chiarelli, who met with the media Sunday at TD Garden. "It's part of a successful organization. From the Bruce Cassidys of the world, whose team lost their two best players that we took away from them, to the Wayne Smiths and Scott Bradleys, to those scouts who pound the pavement, to our college free agents staff that Donny Sweeney's heading and Ryan Nadeau, who helped identify Krug, to our coaching staff, beyond the head coach.

"I'd like to give credit to everyone I can," Chiarelli continued. "But you're right, to put together the depth that we like and we're able to us, and to manage it at all levels, at the minor-pro level, at the amateur level, and this level is a hard job and it's a testament to those that I work with."

Pens making best of time off before East finals

Staff report

Sunday, May 26, 2013

PITTSBURGH — Cleared to play without a plastic apparatus protecting his lower face for the first time since returning from a broken jaw, Sidney Crosby said he'll need a few days to adjust.

It appears he'll get just that.

Crosby wore a traditional helmet with no mouth or jaw protection during the Pittsburgh Penguins' practice Sunday. Like his teammates, Crosby figures to have at least a couple more practices before he plays in a game.

The schedule for the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Bruins has yet to be released. The Penguins ultimately will end up with four or more off days after wrapping their series with the Ottawa Senators on Friday night.

After playing a compacted schedule during the lockout-shortened regular season in which off days were scarce, the Penguins strive to make the most of their preparation time in advance of their first appearance in the conference finals since 2009.

"You use the rest to your advantage," Crosby said after practice Sunday. "If we had to start tomorrow, I think we'd be ready and be OK. But in the playoffs you can never have too much rest and preparation before the series starts. So we'll make the most of it."

Just twice since the season began Jan. 19 have the Penguins had more than a two-day layoff between games — April 14-16 during the regular season and April 28-30 just prior to the start of the playoffs. Pittsburgh played 11 times in 24 days in winning in the first two postseason rounds.

Coach Dan Bylsma said he "doesn't have any clue" when the series against the Bruins would start. The NHL traditionally has tended to wait until all of the previous round's series are complete before announcing the schedule for a subsequent round. While the teams in the Eastern Conference finals are set, both second-round series in the Western Conference are heading into Game 6s Sunday and Monday.

"We have schedules, we have plans, but I wish I could tell you this is exactly what we're going to do because we know we're going to start on (for example) Wednesday," Bylsma said.

"We'll go through our preparation and our scout as we normally would for this week — that's not going to change. The schedule for what we get out of practice and how much practice we do, that as might change as we get a better idea."

Bylsma said he will avoid giving the team two consecutive days off the ice. It wasn't until mid-afternoon Sunday he decided the team would practice Monday.

"But staying sharp and staying focused is part of our plans for practice this week and what we do in practice regardless," Bylsma said. "Even today, we wanted to keep that focus and that sharpness in our practice and not just go out for a skatearound."

Wings James Neal and Chris Kunitz were absent from Sunday's practice. As per his playoff policy, Bylsma did not discuss the reasons why. Neal is coming off a hat trick Friday but missed two first-round games because of a lower-body injury. Kunitz has had limited ice time the past two games due to an undisclosed injury.

Crosby missed the final 12 games of the regular season and the playoff opener as he recovered from jaw, mouth and dental injuries sustained when a puck deflected up into him during a March 30 game. He has worn a facemask throughout the 10 games he's played since.

The mask he wore against the Senators in the conference semifinals was smaller than the one he used against the New York Islanders in the first round. Over the weekend, medical personnel cleared him to play without any auxiliary protection going forward.

"He's obviously progressed, and his time period away from the injury has allowed him to even think about doing that," Bylsma said.

Crosby said he could breathe and see the ice better without the extra mask but that he needed some time to adjust after growing accustomed to wearing it over the past three weeks.

"It's pretty typical that it might take a few days before I'll be sticking my head in front of the net as much as maybe I would with a full face on, but after a few practices it should kind of feel back to normal," Crosby said.

Multiple Penguins players said they used Sunday's practice to get back in the swing of the playoffs following a day off Saturday and that Monday's practice would be more of a nuts-and-bolts preparation for the Bruins.

Although eager to get started and curious as to what the schedule will be, the Penguins sounded content in being able to adapt to whenever they're told to play next.

"You can't really control it, so whatever happens, we'll adjust," defenseman Matt Niskanen said. "If you get rest, you've got to take advantage of it and rest your body. Just have that balance of putting the work in when you have practice and take care of yourself. Hopefully heal up a few bumps and bruises guys have and get rested up because it's going to be a tough series coming ahead."

Bruins go off deep end

Monday, May 27, 2013

Mark Daniels

If there’s a time of year when a team needs to rely on depth the most, it’s in the postseason. For the Bruins, it’s been vital this year.

In the Eastern Conference semifinals, big-time contributions from their fourth line and young defensemen helped propel the Bruins past New York.

As they head into the conference finals against Pittsburgh — one of the deepest teams in the league — the battle of depth could be the difference between a solid playoff run and a Stanley Cup finals appearance.

“In building teams, you want to be deep and you want to be deep with quality,” Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli said. “You never know what things get thrown at you in the course of a series and you’re able to get different looks out of necessity or out of desire if things aren’t working.

“When you got depth in your existing lineup — and you saw that with us, four lines and six (defensemen) they’re all contributing and all playing quality minutes — that’s a bonus. Then when you have depth beyond that, and you saw that last series with our younger (defensemen) that came in, it’s an added bonus. That continues to apply to us.”

When Dennis Seidenberg, Andrew Ference and Wade Redden went down before the series against the Rangers, the Bruins defense didn’t skip a beat. Rookies Dougie Hamilton, Torey Krug and Matt Bartkowski stepped into the lineup and stepped up their play when the team needed it most. Krug also provided a much-needed scoring punch from the blue line, netting four goals in five games.

After scoring one goal in the first-round series against Toronto, the fourth line also elevated its game. Gregory Campbell had two goals, including the game-winner, in the Bruins’ 3-1, series-clinching win in Game 5. Daniel Paille netted the game-winning goal in Game 3.

“In every series, there’s got to be a line or a forward or a defenseman that’s got to step up,” Seidenberg said. “In (the last) series, the fourth line did an incredible job of providing offense and playing physical. Just as much as the young (defensemen) coming up, performing the way they have. It’s good and it’s nice to have that depth.”

It’s important for the Bruins to get production from their bottom two lines to take pressure off the David Krejci-led first line and the Patrice Bergeron-led second. It’ll be that much more important against Pittsburgh.

The Pens have a huge 1-2 scoring punch in Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby. But they also get production from the likes of Kris Letang, Jarome Iginla, Pascal Dupuis, Chris Kunitz and James Neal.

“With Pittsburgh, they’re deep and have veterans like us that have been through the wars,” Chiarelli said. “They’ve got some high-impact players, so they’ve got all types of depth. It’ll be a battle of deep teams.”

Notebook: Win series, lose pick

Monday, May 27, 2013

Matt Kalman, Bruins Notebook

Had the Bruins tied the conditional draft pick they traded to the Dallas Stars for Jaromir Jagr to his goal total rather than their postseason success, they might still possess their first-round pick in next month’s draft.

Instead, they’re in the Eastern Conference finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins, and that pick is now property of the Stars. The Bruins also traded forward Lane MacDermid and prospect Cody Payne to the Stars with a pick that would’ve been in the second round had the Bruins not won two playoff rounds.

“A first-round pick, you’ve got to pay to get a quality player,” Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli said during a press conference at TD Garden yesterday. “We’ve shown that we’ve been able to replace those types of players — Torey (Krug) wasn’t even drafted — through trade, through draft, through free agents. There’s different ways to skin the cat.”

The Bruins will get the chance to prove that second prize in the time leading up to the NHL trade deadline was actually first prize. They acquired the 41-year-old Jagr after Jarome Iginla invoked his no-trade clause to steer his trade out of Calgary to Pittsburgh rather than Boston. Now, the Bruins will face Iginla and the Penguins in the Eastern Conference finals.

Jagr has been limited to four assists in 12 postseason games this spring. He was point-less in the five-game, second-round series against the New York Rangers. In the regular season, Jagr posted 2-7-9 totals in 11 games after joining the Bruins.

On the other hand, in 13 regular-season games for Pittsburgh, Iginla posted 5-6-11 totals. In the playoffs, he’s produced 12 points (including four goals) in 11 games.

Chiarelli isn’t measuring Jagr’s worth just on production.

“I know he’s been snake-bitten a little bit, but he’s had a lot of chances; he’s created a lot of chances,” Chiarelli said. “But more importantly, in addition to the looks he gives the (power play), he wears down (defensemen), and there’s always two guys on him. In the context of your question, I think we would’ve been fine with either, but we’re very happy with (Jagr).”

Boost from Bart

Had Iginla accepted a trade to the Bruins, Matt Bartkowski would’ve gone to Calgary. Instead he’s been among the young defensemen who’ve kept the Bruins afloat despite injuries to three veterans on the blue line.

In seven playoff games, Bartkowski has posted 1-1-2 totals and a minus-1 rating while logging 19:46 of ice time, mostly on a second pair with Johnny Boychuk.

“If you’re asking me am I happy because I kept him instead of getting Iginla, yes. Now, yes,” Chiarelli said. “He’s helped us. You’ve seen him emerge. But it also shows you that we’re willing to give up good players to try and help the team win now.”

Getting healthier

The return of defenseman Dennis Seidenberg from injury for the Game 5 win against the Rangers was the first step toward the Bruins becoming whole.

Chiarelli said that Andrew Ference is “making progress” while Wade Redden is “close, if not ready.” Neither defenseman played at all in the series against the Rangers.

Show him the money

With every series win, goaltender Tuukka Rask seems to be adding to his value as a restricted free agent this summer. Chiarelli’s not sweating that deal as of yet.

“I’m happy for him that he’s playing well and he’s helping the team,” Chiarelli said. “It’s always easier to sign these guys after success. He’s showing some resiliency, which I like, and some durability, which I like.”

Rask re-signed with the Bruins for one year last summer.

B’s join elite company

Monday, May 27, 2013

Matt Kalman

How do you define an elite organization?

If it’s based on playoff success, consider that since the start of the 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs, only Detroit and Pittsburgh have won more series than the Bruins’ eight.

The Red Wings and Penguins have won 10 apiece. The other two teams of the five that have made the playoffs every year since 2008 are San Jose with six series wins and Washington with three.

Now that the Bruins are in the Eastern Conference finals for the second time in three seasons, it might be time to consider that general manager Peter Chiarelli’s promise to make the Bruins an elite franchise has come to fruition.

“Yeah, I mean, things change so quickly,” Chiarelli said during a press conference at TD Garden yesterday. “You’ve got to move with the changes and the trends. We’ve got a real good foundation and we’ve had success. Things can change quickly, you’ve got to move quickly to make decisions soundly and quickly. You have to be proud of what we’ve accomplished here.

“But having said that, it’s a demanding town and they expect the best. We try and give it to them.”

Every organization outside of Detroit and Pittsburgh has tried to emulate the Red Wings and Penguins by identifying a core of players to build around for the long term, drafting and developing players to supplement that core, and doing it all within the salary-cap system established in 2005.

Despite the collapse of 2010 and the first-round exit of 2012 that sandwiched the Stanley Cup championship in 2011, Chiarelli has stayed loyal to a core led by Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and Milan Lucic, and again it’s paid off this season.

“Those are decisions that we make, that I make, that you get to know the players,” Chiarelli said. “There’s a fine line between loyalty to these players and making the right decisions, and that’s what I have to do as a manager.

“Two years ago you did what we did, and you see how these guys work and how they will go to the wall for you. The initial premise isn’t difficult. It’s like, ‘Wow, we’ve won.’ Historically, it’s been a difficult exercise for teams that have won and then have tried to keep the core together, and then you make some mistakes. . . . It’s easy to say, let’s just keep everybody and see if we can do it under the cap and all that, but that’s not always the right thing. It’s a challenge.”

Identifying and developing talent isn’t a one-man job. Chiarelli has built a strong team off the ice, both in amateur and pro scouting, and in the coaching staff at the American Hockey League and NHL levels.

“To put together the depth that we like and we’re able to use, and to manage it at all levels, at the minor-pro level, at the amateur level and this level is a hard job, and it’s a testament to those that I work with,” Chiarelli said.

Now it’ll be up to that core group and the supporting cast to up their game in an effort to best the top-seeded Penguins and do something only Detroit and Pittsburgh have done since the 2004-05 lost season: reach the Stanley Cup finals twice.

“I would expect that would come natural, just from where we are at this level in the playoffs and with the team that we’re playing,” Chiarelli said. “There’s some storylines that I’m sure will be highlighted that’ll probably help them a little bit whether they admit it or not. I think it’s just now we’re at a stage where, I can recall the last time, there was no issues in getting them up for Tampa (before the 2011 East finals).

“I think they’re at a stage where that comes natural, and I’d be disappointed if they weren’t. Now, this is a tough team we’re playing. It’s going to be a tough battle and you’re going to see ebb and flow with these series, too. I would think that they would be up for it.”

Claude Julien knows how to win in Boston

Monday, May 27, 2013

Steve Buckley

Did John Tortorella really grow up in the Boston area?

Sure, the resume checks out — born in Boston, was a stud athlete at Concord-Carlisle High School back in the day, etc. But the embattled coach of the vanquished New York Rangers sounded anything but local the other night when he submitted an unasked-for defense of Bruins coach Claude Julien.

During his meet-and-greet with reporters after the Rangers were eliminated from the Eastern Conference semifinals on Saturday, Tortorella had this to say about Julien: “I can’t believe some of the people, how they second-guess him, just being in the city for a couple of days, and the type of job he’s done here.”

What’s even funnier is that, later, when Tortorella’s remarks were brought to Julien’s attention, it was Coach Claude who came across as though he were a fifth-generation kid from the streets of Boston.

What’s that? You thought Claude Julien was born and raised in Canada? Wrong!

Here’s the coach, responding to Tortorella’s comments about being criticized:

“When it comes to that, I know what Boston is all about,” said Julien, who played his first hockey as a 6-year-old at the MDC rink on Somerville Avenue in Somerville.

“They like their championship teams and they want to win every year,” said Julien, who later played for Jackie Parker at Boston University.

“It’s a very demanding place, but at the same time it’s a place where you want to be and I enjoy it very much,” said Julien, who as a 9-year-old in 1969 made his first TV appearance as the sheriff on “Rex Trailer’s Boomtown.”

“If it means taking some criticism, there’s no problem there because that comes with the territory,” said Julien, whose grandfather was fire commissioner under Mayor James Michael Curley, and whose father worked in the Kevin White administration.

“As a coach, you do what you have to do and you take the criticism that comes with it,” said Julien, whose mother was a fifth-grade teacher at the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow School on Broadway in Cambridge.

“One thing you don’t do is dwell on that stuff because you try to avoid it,” said Julien, who was once nearly arrested during a Students for a Democratic Society demonstration on Cambridge Common.

“I know (criticism) is out there, but the biggest thing I do right now is kind of stay away from all that stuff and really focus on the job,” said Julien, who had a brief career as a stand-up comic in the early ’80s, teaming up with the likes of Jay Leno, Lenny Clarke, Jimmy Tingle and Steve Sweeney at Nick’s Comedy Shop.

“I know for a fact that when you win around here, you can’t ask for a better place,” said Julien, who used to work summers running the Cyclone at the Revere Beach amusement park.

“I’d rather be in a city that’s demanding and loves their teams and their sports than being somewhere where nobody cares,” said Julien, a self-confessed movie junkie who credits Frank Avruch, host of Channel 5’s “Great Entertainment,” for turning him on to such classics as “It Happened One Night,” “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy.”

“So, I’m willing to live with all of that,” said Julien, who bought his first car, a used Rambler, from Ernie Boch Sr., because he couldn’t resist the Boch mini-sticker price on the windshield.

It should be noted that after answering questions in English during Saturday night’s postgame press conference, Claude Julien then spent about 15 minutes answering questions in French for the visiting Quebec media.

That’s right, French — something Coach Julien picked up during his days as a top student at Boston Latin.

Boil it all down, and this is where we arrive: Claude Julien gets it. We’re not sure how well he navigates Boston’s tricky rotaries or if he’s tried his hand at candlepin bowling (though it’s a great visual), but he definitely understands the expectations that come with being a coach in this town, and is clearly comfortable with the arrangement.

Now it’s possible he’s sits in the driveway after he gets home at night, listening to the talk shows. Maybe, deep down, it boils his blood to hear, or read, that people sometimes go after him for the way he “rolls out four lines.”

And maybe it keeps him up at night.

Maybe.

But he changes nothing. There’s that great line — Tommy McVie, who coached the New Jersey Devils, Washington Capitals and Winnipeg Jets, used it all the time — about what happens to coaches who succumb to criticism: “If you start listening to the fans, you’ll soon be sitting with them.”

Sounds like Claude Julien is OK with being raked over the coals by the columnists, talk-show hosts and fans, but he will change nothing.

And here we are: His Bruins, in the Eastern Conference finals, for the second time in three years.