Bruins Not Focused On War Of Words With Canadiens
BOSTON (CBS) -- As much as the NHL playoffs are about the hits delivered on the ice, there are plenty of shots being taken off of it as each side plays a little gamesmanship.
That was the case with the Bruins and Canadiens over the last few days, following Boston's 5-3 win in Game 2. After the victory, Boston head coach Claude Julien was proud of his team for pulling off a dramatic win and tying up the series, despite putting up with "a lot of crap" on the ice.
That led Montreal's Michel Therrien to fire back on Monday, saying the Bruins and Julien are just trying to influence referees, which he said is "the way they are."
But with a game to be played Tuesday night, Julien wasn't about to keep the war of words going.
"Everybody's entitled to their comments," Julien said Tuesday in Montreal. "People are trying to make more out of this on-ice rivalry, trying to turn it into an off-ice rivalry. Everybody's entitled to their comments. Some of it can be gamesmanship; whatever it is doesn't really matter. Right now I'm focusing on my team and what we need to do. That's what both teams are trying to do, I think."
Like their coach, Bruins players aren't putting too much focus into words spoken by the opposition, but rather what they'll be doing Tuesday night on the ice.
"It's just the press and the media trying to create arguments and create banter," said Bruins forward Reilly Smith. "We stay away from that kind of stuff, and if that's the way the media wants to portray the series and talk between the teams, that's what they'll do.
"People are going to say what they're going to say. It creates headlines. We're just going to try to control what we can control," said Smith.
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