Loftus: 'I Don't Have The Utmost Trust In Bruins' To Stay Disciplined At The Bell Centre
BOSTON (CBS) - Before the series began, fans, pundits and the players themselves said in order for the Bruins to advance they would have to exercise restraint and maintain composure against a Canadiens team known for getting under their skin -- which is why it was so surprising in the first two games to see the Bruins lose their cool.
Five-on-five the B's were the better team, but when down a man struggled to stop the lethal power play of Montreal.
Now the series heads north of the border to enemy territory in what will be a hostile Bell Centre crowd Tuesday night. Mike Loftus of The Patriot Ledger joined The Adam Jones Show Monday night to discuss and preview games three and four, and for his money he's not banking on a Bruins team in control of their emotions.
"I don't have the utmost trust in them," said Loftus. "It's hard for [the Bruins] because they do dislike the team so much, and it's such a clash of styles. The Bruins always have to be hitting -- no matter who it is. The Bruins have to be a physical team to be at their best. That riles any other team up. Some teams don't like it and a lot of teams will retaliate. If that retaliation isn't called then sometimes the Bruins are not the best at just walking away from that."
Montreal has converted four of nine power play attempts so far in the series while the Bruins have yet to score in their five opportunities.
For Loftus it's simple: The Bruins must keep the game five-on-five.
"If [the Bruins] can behave relatively well it's to their benefit, because obviously they've talked about Montreal's power play in the series so far, and you'd think they'd take some steps to address it.
"You just want to keep Montreal playing five-on-five. You don't wanna have to keep killing penalties against these guys because they've got a tremendous amount of confidence on the man advantage," said Loftus.
Listen below for the full discussion:
Mike Loftus
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