May 8, 2013; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs players celebrate a goal by left wing Clarke MacArthur (16) in the second period against the Boston Bruins during game four of the first round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs at the Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

The first thing I wanted to see was already changed going into game 4. Clarke MacArthur was put back in the lineup and Ryan Hamilton was the healthy scratch. I do not understand why Hamilton played in the last 2 games and MacArthur didn’t. As much as I adore Hamilton the playoffs are not the time to give the kid from the AHL a shot, you are always better to go with the guy who has been with the team all season, but I think MacArthur’s goal said all that for me.

Secondly, Phil Kessel should not be on the first line. Yes, I said it, again. I know I’m probably starting to sound like a broken record but he isn’t a first line guy. Kessel cannot pass, a failed pass cost a goal in game 3 and there were many more in that game and game 4 that cost the Leafs puck possession. The difference between the passing between the Joffrey Lupul, Tyler Bozak, Matt Frattin line and any line involving Kessel is remarkable. The second thing about Kessel is that he is a one-trick pony and Tuukka Rask has figured out the trick. Rask knows he is going to try to go high glove side so every time Kessel is gunning for the net Rask takes it away leaving the whole blocker side completely open. Rather than shoot at the open net Kessel shoots wide causing a rebound off the boards which usually results in Bruins puck possession.

May 8, 2013; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Gardiner (51) skates out with the puck against the Boston Bruins during game four of the first round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs at the Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

Lastly, something needs to be done about the amount of times I shouted this name at the television in frustration: Dion Phaneuf. Phaneuf should not be playing 31 minutes a game.  He gets tired and thinks he’s better than he is, which causes him to try and make hits in overtime that cost goals. Jake Gardiner should have been the one to pick up the slack when Mark Fraser was injured. Gardiner was on fire last night, he was the Jake that I know and love. I had the privilege of watching him play at the beginning of the season, during the lock-out, pre-concussion and it was unbelievable.  He was a man playing with the boys. He has this calmness and intuition that makes it so he knows when to stay back and when to join in on the play. Phaneuf doesn’t have that, Gardiner should be playing more minutes than him.

So that is my rant for the day. I know you are going to disagree so share your thoughts in the comment box below, on facebook, on twitter (@kcapp22 or @TMMotS), or by email (tmmots@yahoo.ca).

May 4, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs center Mikhail Grabovski (84) celebrates a goal by Toronto Maple Leafs left wing James van Riemsdyk (not pictured) during the third period in game two of the first round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Alright before I get into the strengths and weaknesses and what needs to happen I have a bone to pick. Last night after the win I was very disappointed in the Toronto Maple Leafs twitter account. They tweeted #ThankYouKessel. I know you all know about my feelings about Phil Kessel and this honestly has nothing to do with that. Hockey is a team sport you  don’t give credit for a win to a single player no matter who it is. If you want to put credit on one player Joffrey Lupul scored twice and James van Riemsdyk scored an amazing goal that had everyone in my house out of their seat. But that’s the end of my rant for the day.

In game one the Boston Bruins pounded the Leafs, it may not have been a blowout score but the Bruins came out swinging and Leafs just couldn’t out play them physically. In game two the Leafs decided they weren’t going to worry about playing physical they were going to use their speed, the Bruins just could not keep up resulting in a 4-2 win for the Leafs.

As the series continue both teams will need to make adjustments if they want to be the ones moving on. The Bruins will need to force the Leafs to play a physical game and solve James Reimer. The Bruins have out shot the Leafs by a huge margin in both  games and if they can find Reimer’s holes they will be able to win. The Leafs need to keep up an offensive game. They need to keep their speedy players out and blowing past the Boston defense.

At this point it really could go either way. I’m still a Leafs fan and have to go with them to win but the Bruins really do have a chance at this as well. Who do you think takes the series? Share your thoughts in the comment box below, on facebook, on twitter (@kcapp22 or @TMMotS), or by email (tmmots@yahoo.ca).

There are a few keys to success in this playoff series and the first will be goal tending  This is usually what most series boil down to. The team with the best goaltender usually wins the cup, for the last two years the Conn Smythe Trophy has gone to a goalie (Jonathan Quick and Tim Thomas). In this series we have James Reimer and Tuukka Rask. These two are very similar when it comes to stats. They both have 19 wins, Reimer has a goals against average of 2.46 while Rask’s is 2.00, Reimer’s save percentage is 0.924 and Rask’s is 0.929. When it comes to goaltending it is really anyone’s game.

Another huge part of this series is going to be physical play. Boston is a physical team which means they are going to come out swinging, but the Leafs have become a very physical team this season. Leo Komarov leads the team in hits with 176 he is also fifth in the league in hits. Mark Fraser is second on the team with 153 and Dion Phaneuf is third with 131. Colton Orr leads the league in penalty minutes with 155. I think the Leafs will hold their own physically just fine.

The players to watch are the same as every Leafs and Bruins game Phil Kessel, Tyler Seguin, and Dougie Hamilton. The reasoning behind this is that the picks that allowed Boston to draft Seguin and Hamilton were acquired from Toronto for Kessel and ever since (especially now that Brian Burke is no longer GM of the Leafs) everyone has been trying to figure out who the winner of the trade was. I don’t know about anyone else but Tyler Seguin’s Stanley Cup ring tells me the Leafs lost big time. It also  doesn’t help the Leafs case that Kessel checks under his bed for Zdeno Chara every night.A couple of other players to watch on the Leafs would definitely be Nazem Kadri and Joffrey Lupul. Kadri has been hot all season and I expect him to bring all that and more to the playoffs. When he has been healthy this season Lupul has been on fire and he can be considered a playoff veteran on this young team. On The Bruins I would be keeping an eye on Carl Soderberg. With all of the anticipation regarding his signing in Boston it will be interesting to see if he will live up to all the hype.

In the end I’m a Leafs fan, so I have to pick them to come out of this one, but I want to hear what you all think. Who will win the series? Who should we be keeping an eye on? What does each team need to do to win? Share your thoughts in the comment box below, on facebook, on twitter (@kcapp22 or @TMMotS), or by email (tmmots@yahoo.ca).