Someone's parents are in a bit of a packing pickle as they prepare to travel between Boston and Detroit.
- Reilly Smith and his brother are wondering what their parents will wear to the games. [DetroitFreePress]
- Torey Krug 's family will forego travel to Boston, but will anchor the Bruins' cheering section in Detroit. [NESN]
- Dougie Hamilton is preparing for big responsibility, and will have big help. [WEEI]
- The Bruins are spending this down-time fighting the flu. [TheBostonGlobe]
- Here are ten notable things about this year's playoffs... [BostonHerald]
- ...and ten storylines to watch. Narrative! [HamiltonSpectator]
- Take a break and enjoy life with the Bruins as Episode #13 of "Behind the B" is available for viewing. Tuukka Rask and his young protégé take to the ice and then enjoy pizza afterward with the team. (Video, 21:26) [Bruins.NHL]
- Rask has since gifted the girl with a custom mask modeled after his own, personalized to suit her. [Bostinno]
- Detroit will be working around a big obstacle in Zdeno Chara, who nevertheless demonstrated sportsmanship and courtesy to some Red Wings players during the Olympics. [DetroitFreePress]
- Sometimes, it's all about having the stud goalie. [WashingtonPost]
- Here's the Bruins' season condensed into in 60 seconds. (Video, 0:60) [NHL]
- Playoff predictions, and an observation that having lost in the finals is also valuable experience in the playoffs, and may effectively drive the Bruins cup run. [USAToday]
- The Masters of the Universe have weighed in on the playoff odds. [TheWallStreetJournal]
- The Rangers will be the Bruins' biggest playoff challenge. Consider the source. [NYDailyNews]
- Counterpoint- the Bruins will run into a "monkey wrench" team, and with too little experience in their defensive corps, it'll be CURTAINS! [SouthCoastToday]
- In great detail, the NHL 14 Stanley Cup playoffs simulation has the Bruins beating the Rangers in the third round on a Patrice Bergeron game seven overtime goal. [TheLeafsNation]
elsewhere around the rink:
- Scotty Bowman created success with anchor pairings of a center and forward, Claude Julien has adopted this successfully with the Bruins. [TheNewYorkTimes]
- The Red Wings found a way to the playoffs, and hope is alive in Detroit. [Grantland]
- This Stanley Cup Playoffs, Round #1 manicure is one-of-a-kind. [Sports-Kings]
- In the down time before Friday, you may enjoy browsing these 121 (or so) things to love about hockey. [Grantland]
- The Panthers edged out the Sabres for top draft pick. Doesn't that just figure? [TheSportingNews]
- Which states and provinces predominantly favor which NHL teams on Facebook? [TheSportingNews]
- The numbers say Canada could support more NHL teams (but would they make the playoffs?!?!) [OttawaCitizen]
- Guess what today is? [@DownGoesBrown]