Eastern Conference Finals after two games

The first two games of the NHL Conference Finals have been played and both series have had their share of drama.

Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals will take place tonight in Tampa and I wanted to break down a couple storylines that are shaping up this series.

1. Tyler Seguin is making the most of his opportunity.

Seguin had been a healthy scratch for the Bruins in their 1st two playoff series. Inserted into the lineup in place of Patrice Bergeron the kid has made the most of his opportunity to play.

Seguin scored his 1st playoff goal and had an assist in game one. He had a 2nd period to remember in Game 2 scoring two goals & two assists.

Most importantly Seguin seems to have provided a spark that the Bruins needed. The puck is finding his stick & his teammates are finding ways to contribute. Good things seem to happen for Boston when he is on the ice.

Which leaves the question, what do the Bruins do when Bergeron returns?

They can't take out Seguin. He has been the Bruins best player this series. But Bergeron needs to play as Boston is much better with him than without him. The odds on favorite to sit out when Bergeron returns is Shawn Thornton but that is a decision Bruins coach Claude Julien will have to make.

2. The Bruins are lucky the series is 1-1.

So far Boston has played one good period of hockey in two games. Tampa got the jump on the Bruins in Game 1 scoring 3 goals in 85 seconds en route to a 5-2 win.

In Game 2 Tampa scored 13 seconds into the game thanks to a goal by Adam Hall. Boston was able to fight back and take a 6-3 lead into the 3rd period. What caught my attention was how Tampa came out to start the 3rd period.

The Lightning could have just gone through the motions and been happy with a split going back to Tampa for Game 3. Instead they scored twice in the 3rd period & were pressing for the game tying goal before time ran out, setting the tone for Game 3.

The Lightning are relentless. An effort like that is one of many reasons why I picked Tampa to win this series.

3. Tampa's players are better than Boston's players right now.

The big three of Martin St. Louis, Vinny Lecavalier, & Steven Stamkos each found the back of the net in Game 2. However the role players that have helped carry Tampa this far have also contributed.

Sean Bergenheim continues to produce beyond anyone expectations scoring the 1st goal in Game 1 & adding an assist in Game 2.

Role players Brett Clark & Teddy Purcell scored goals in Game 1 that gave Tampa the win while Dominic Moore added a goal in Game 2.

For Boston the only player other than Seguin that has had an impact is Michael Ryder who scored two goals in Game 2.

Zdeno Chara has yet to be on the scoresheet while David Krecji & Nathan Horton haven't made an impact like they did against Philadelphia & Montreal.

Tomas Kaberle did have two assists in Game 2 but he has been mainly a bust for the Bruins this post-season.

The most disappointing thing has to be the play of Tim Thomas in goal. Thomas was a wall against Philadelphia allowing only seven goals in four games. In two games he has already allowed ten goals to Tampa. Some of those are due to bad defense but a couple of the goals have been soft.

His counterpart in net, Dwayne Roloson, has played only one bad game since the playoffs started. If Thomas can't outplay Roloson & Boston's best players don't step up I don't see anyway the Bruins win this series.

I like how Tampa finished in Game 2 and I believe that it carries over into tonight with the Lightning winning at home.

If the Bruins want to win this series they better get a split in Tampa otherwise the Lightning will win this series in six games. We'll find out who has the momentum tonight.

Puck drops at 7 PM tonight on Versus.

Thanks for reading & enjoy the hockey.