Gentlemen,
Both great players but I think Boston needs Bergeron more than Chicago needs Toews.
Toews may be terrific, but he's not the key that Bergeron is to the team.
Boston had the momentum and lost it in game 4.
True.
IMHO, Chara is responsible of the lost of this momentum, conceding 5goals in this game 4 and the 2 goals they conceded in game 2 ! Not sure if the bruins who had half of the Cup in their hands after game 3 will be able to recover...
A few other things Chara is also responsible for:
1. Ebola Virus
2. Beiber Fever
3. 911
4. Housing Market Collapse.
5. Arab-Israeli conflict.
It looks like you want to turn Chara into the anti-Chuck Norris. It's funny. Unless you really believe one player is responsible for
"conceding 5goals in this game 4 and the 2 goals they conceded in game 2 !" Maybe a little less than objective.
BERGERON:
http://bostonherald.com/sports/bruins_nhl/boston_bruins/2013/06/patrice_bergeron_injury_so_painful
CHICAGO — The impact of losing a player like Patrice Bergeron is far more devastating than it would be with a lesser player. It isn’t like losing just one guy. More like three or four.
Bergeron was sent to an area hospital with an unidentified injury in the second period of last night’s Game 5, and did not return. Without him, the B’s lost, 3-1, and face a do-or-die Game 6 tomorrow night at the Garden.
If Bergeron can’t make a miraculous return — which seems pretty improbable given the fact that he left the United Center last night in an ambulance — it makes a tough challenge against a very strong opponent so much more difficult.
Because with no Bergeron the Bruins would be minus their top goalscorer in the series, the No. 1 faceoff man in the postseason, one of the strongest shutdown defensive forwards in the NHL, and a top penalty-killer.
Generally speaking, this is just a guy with a magic knack for doing big things at big moments. If the B’s hope to stay alive and come back here for a Game 7, that’s the kind of magic they’re going to need.
“You can’t replace a guy like that,” said Bruin Rich Peverley. “He’s one of the best players in the league at what he does.”
Bruins coach Claude Julien was predictably uninformative about Bergeron’s status. But presumably, the B’s would use the same plan tomorrow night that went into effect when he stiffly left the ice last night. That meant taking Carl Soderberg, who was making his NHL playoff debut as a fourth-line winger — and turning him into a second-line center.
Soderberg’s relative lack of speed makes it tough for him against an extremely fast team like the Blackhawks, but he did a pretty decent job last night — especially considering that he hadn’t played in months. The big Swede was 4-5 on faceoffs, had three hits and two shots, and showed a good stick on two backchecks to steal pucks.
“Hopefully I’m on the wing the next game, so Bergy is back,” Soderberg said.
If not, perhaps Julien would consider a broad remake of his lines. The B’s haven’t gotten much in this series from Brad Marchand (no points in five games), and Nathan Horton, believed to be playing with a painful and/or heavily braced shoulder, has just six shots and two assists. Tyler Seguin and Jaromir Jagr are still trying to break long goalscoring droughts.
This is hardly the time of year — or the back-against-the-wall predicament — that makes big changes very attractive. But desperate times do call for desperate measures. The B’s had a hard time generating a lot of top-notch scoring chances vs. a very hard-working and sound Chicago team defense.
Minus Bergeron, the task may become hopeless.
“I don’t know his status or anything, but hopefully we can get him back,” said rookie defenseman Torey Krug. “He’s a big part of our team. When you lose a guy like that, you’ve got to find a way to fill holes.”
The one area in which the loss of Bergeron clearly hurts is the faceoff circle, where the B’s were soundly whipped last night, going 24-33. David Krejci had a dreadful night, winning two and losing 11. And the Krejci line, matched all night against the No. 1 Chicago line centered by Jonathan Toews — until he, too, was knocked from the game in the second period — was on the ice for all three goals.
“Every line wants to go out and create something for your team,” said Krejci. “The last thing you want is to get scored on. Our line, we were scored on. I’m not going to say bad or good goals; it happened, and we want to get it back.”
Krejci knows he has to be better — a whole lot better — if Bergeron is done.
“Obviously it’s tough,” said Krejci. “You don’t want to see one of your best players go down, especially at this time of the year. We definitely missed him, especially at the end of the game when we needed to score a goal. But you know what? It is what it is. I don’t know how he feels right now. I don’t know if he’ll play. But we really need him. If not, we’re going to fight, we’re going to (do) everything we can to try and force a Game 7.”
Krejci was candid last night in talking about the departure of Bergeron and Toews, and the various other players who limped off the ice but were able to continue.
“It’s not just this series, it’s also the series before,” said Krejci. “Guys are banged up. It’s been a short season, 48 games, but there was no break. We basically played every other day.
“At the end of the season it’s catching up to you. You can see guys struggling a little bit. Once you’re in the final you’re trying to leave everything on the ice. There is nothing to save any energy for.”
The Bruins certainly will need an all-out effort tomorrow night in Game 6. Problem is, with one very vital piece missing from their picture, that might not be enough.
Along with Campbell, that's the second good penalty killer lost. As I said, he's a BIG loss.
Merlot
