Smith's Status for Game 2 in Question

BOSTON - Bruins winger Craig Smith stayed off the ice - as did most of his teammates - on Sunday after leaving Game 1 of Boston's second-round series against the New York Islanders with a lower-body injury. Smith's status for Game 2 remains in question with Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy saying the team should know more on Monday morning.
"He's here today getting treatment, so we won't know," said Cassidy. "It's an optional today, so I think most people are going to exercise their option. We'll give him a shot in the morning if he's able to. I'll have a better update then. Right now, not much for you until we see him on the ice [on Monday]."

Kevan Miller also remained off the ice on Sunday as he continues to deal with an undisclosed ailment that has forced him to miss the last two games. He will not be available for Game 2.
Cassidy also said that Matt Grzelcyk "was in for treatment" after briefly leaving Game 2 with what appeared to be a leg injury following a heavy hit into the end boards from Leo Komarov.

Unstoppable Force

The Bruins top line rarely disappoints. And in Game 1 they were virtually unstoppable.
David Pastrnak picked up his second career postseason hat trick, Patrice Bergeron had two assists and a game-high eight shots on goal, and Brad Marchand picked up a helper and four shots on goal as the Islanders struggled to find an answer for the dynamic trio.
"In the third, Bergeron's line did all the damage," said Islanders coach Barry Trotz. "One of the questions was, you did a good job against [Sidney] Crosby's line [in the Pittsburgh series], what's the difference between Crosby and Bergeron? I can answer that probably a little bit better - with Crosby, there's a great player and two very good players.
"On this line, there's probably three great players at different points in their careers. That's what makes that line so good. And [Saturday] night, they were on. And they were very difficult to stop. To me, they were the difference in the game."
Cassidy praised Pastrnak for his ability to dictate play in Game 1, particularly when it came to his patience with the puck on two of his three goals. On both tallies, he waited briefly before shifting slightly to throw off Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin.
"Sorokin, I think he's been very good, but he's probably walking away saying, 'I've got to tip my cap to Pastrnak, he's a Rocket Richard winner, he's going to score some goals,'" said Cassidy. "I think that's the case…he did wait a couple shots out - especially the first power-play goal. I think early this year he was trying to jam that in quicker than maybe he needed to. Some of that is because he hadn't scored in a while and you're pressed, it's human nature.
"Nothing's going in, you're thinking, 'OK, now I've got to get it off even quicker.' When sometimes it's the opposite, take a little bit more and get your head up and try to get it where you need to get it, as opposed to as hard as you can. It's a little more accurate. I think that's what he did on both of those, the first and third goal."
Dating back to Game 4 against the Capitals, Pastrnak now has five goals and seven points over his last three contests.
"Good for us," said Cassidy. "When goal scorers get hot, that's what happens a lot of the time, they're in the right spot. Obviously, you have to be when you're one of those gifted guys where you create space to find your own spot. Good for Pasta, it was his night and his line's night. Worked out very well for us and for him."

Fashion Forward

Pastrnak caused quite a stir with his Game 1 attire as he arrived at the rink donning a white suit with a blue flower-like pattern running up the sides of his pants and jacket. He also wore a blue rimmed top hat that acted as a harbinger of things to come.
"More like motivation, right? You need to play good," Pastrnak said when asked if he was making a statement with his fashion choice. "Obviously, I like fashion…still have a couple crazy ones in the closet and hopefully bold enough to wear them. I love fashion and as long as I feel good, I don't really care what other people think."
The winger's hat wasn't the only one making headlines on Saturday night as the TD Garden crowd pelted the ice with their caps following his second career postseason hat trick.
"It felt amazing," said Pastrnak. "It's obviously nice to see hats. Anytime you see anybody score a hat trick, it's been tradition. It's always fun, especially when it's your team. Let's score the hat trick.
"Overall, I can't really explain how much we enjoyed it, especially the win. [The fans] been outstanding, they've been really loud and hopefully they keep going to be loud and we get more wins for them."

Moving Fourth

Cassidy was also quite pleased with the performance of his fourth line of Sean Kuraly, Curtis Lazar, and Chris Wagner, which has been together since Game 2 of the first round against Washington. While the trio has not yet found its way onto the scoresheet, their physicality and energy is paying dividends for the Bruins.
"I liked what they did," Cassidy said of the line's Game 1 performance. "They were physical when they needed to be. Better O-zone puck possession. A little better than they have been in the past. They're finding that part of the game in the playoffs, just really can wear teams down and benefit us. If they can generate a little from that, that's great. Hopefully they do.
"They did have a couple of looks around the net, so, again, good, solid night from them. We're going to need everybody and they're going to need to play against good players. If they can get a little bit of confidence here at home, once we go to New York, it won't be an issue worrying about matchups. Bodes well for them if they can replicate that type of game."
Lazar believes the chemistry between the three is "trending in the right direction" and "building each and every game" as they gain a better understanding of what to expect of each other. Their success will be crucial to the Bruins as they battle against the Islanders' heralded fourth-line of Matt Martin, Cal Clutterbuck, and Casey Cizikas.
"When you go into a series, you want to look across at the other team and you want to win your battles, win your matchups," said Lazar. "That seems like it's the lien we're going to be up against. It's a great challenge. They're one of the best fourth lines in the league, they've been playing together for years. For Kurls, Wags, and myself, we accept that with open arms."
Part of their job is bringing some jam and brawn each time they hit the ice, an aspect of the game that plays quite well before what is now a full house at TD Garden.
"I've never experienced anything like that before," Lazar said of his first experience as a Bruin in a packed building. "There's nothing more exciting for myself than when I go in on the forecheck, hit a guy, and hear the fans road and appreciate it.
"It was absolutely incredible, just to have the building rocking, full. It's exciting from a standpoint knowing the year and a bit that we've gone through in society, fighting through COVID. To have a little bit of freedom, it's great."

Finding the Light

The mantra surrounding Charlie McAvoy has always been that he embraces the moments when the lights are shining the brightest. Saturday night was one of those, as the blue liner struck for the winning goal in the third period with a blast from the point, while also playing his typical role as all-around blue line beast, leading the Bruins in power-play time (2:01), ranking second in overall time on the ice (22:21), and second among B's blue liners in shorthanded ice time (2:14).
"He's a Long Island boy, gets the winner against his old team, probably feels special to him," said Cassidy. "Rub it in to a few of his buddies back home and at the end of the day. Huge goal for us. Not surprised. Charlie's coming around offensively. Making plays, the point totals are going up.
"He's playing more, he's more confident with his shot versus distributing ratio now. Shooting the puck a little more. It's good to see, and that one happened to have eyes so it was good timing for us."