Bruins Could Psychologically Eliminate Themselves With Loss To Red Wings
By Matt Dolloff, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Boston Bruins essentially play for their playoff lives Thursday night against the Detroit Red Wings, with a spot in the top-three of the Atlantic Division (and a Stanley Cup Playoff seed) at stake. The Bruins will be coming off a disappointing shootout loss while the Red Wings shut out the Philadelphia Flyers, who suddenly factor even more into the Bruins' playoff hopes than before.
The silver lining for the Bruins is that they cannot be mathematically eliminated from the playoffs Thursday night, no matter the outcome against the Red Wings. But that is, ostensibly, a euphemism for "If the Bruins lose the Red Wings clinch and they have to hope the Flyers lose out." They may not be eliminated by arithmetic, but psychologically, the mental anguish of a loss to Detroit would be a monolithic obstacle to overcome in their final regular season game against the Ottawa Senators while hoping the Flyers, who have a game at hand on the Bruins, lose out.
The Bruins and Flyers are currently tied with 91 points, and should they both lose all of their remaining games, the Bruins would own the tiebreaker with the advantage in regulation and overtime wins (ROW). If the Flyers manage to tie them in that category, they would own the head-to-head tiebreaker. Essentially, both the Bruins and Flyers need each other to lose as much as possible.
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It's hard to believe that the Flyers would end the season on a five-game losing streak, facing the lowly Toronto Maple Leafs at home and closing the season against the New York Islanders, who have already clinched a playoff spot and could be resting key players. So, while a Bruins loss Thursday night to the Red Wings wouldn't officially bury them, the team would certainly feel dead.
If the Bruins can't take care of business against the Red Wings - and who honestly feels confident that they can, considering their 25th-ranked home record (16-17-5) and the Red Wings' momentum from Wednesday potentially carrying over - anyone would be hard-pressed to emerge from the loss optimistic that they could get two points out of the Ottawa game.
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This sentiment is already percolating for those who watched the Bruins' uneven, discouraging effort against Carolina in a must-win-all-the-points situation. With a loss to Detroit, the heat would crank past 10. The pot would boil over. Is that sinking feeling of impending doom a demon that the Bruins could vanquish within 48 hours, with a team that has a history of beating them in devastating fashion (the Flyers) breathing down their necks with a game at hand?
Although Thursday's tilt with Detroit isn't technically a do-or-die situation, it might as well be. But if the Bruins can't escape TD Garden picking up two points on the Wings (that is, beating them in regulation), they'll be on life support. And it may already be time to pull the plug.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. His opinions do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Have a news tip or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
