So, who saw this coming?
After two games of the Eastern Conference finals, the Boston Bruins find themselves up on the heavily favored Pittsburgh Penguins by a series of almost unbelievable numbers:
-- Two games to none
-- Nine goals to one
-- Six power plays conceded, zero PP goals allowed
Add it all up and you’ve got one of the most stunning storylines of this postseason.
Even the Bruins themselves are having a hard time wrapping their heads around it.
“I probably wouldn’t have believed you,” Milan Lucic told CSNNE.com when asked what he would’ve said if someone told him the Bruins would be in this position.
“We’re just trying to create opportunities, and bear down when we do get them. It was what was lacking most during the season for us. It has thankfully come at the right time.”
The Bruins have imposed their will on the Penguins though, to be fair, they’ve really been imposing their will on all comers since the third period of that fateful Game 7 against Toronto in the opening round.
Boston has outscored opponents 31-11 since then, winning seven of eight playoff games with its lone loss coming in overtime.
But in this series, that dominance has been on display more than ever before.
Nobody has overpowered Penguins like this at any point during the regular season and/or playoffs -- Pittsburgh hadn’t been shut out in 96 games prior to Game 1’s 3-0 loss and their star players have been completely shut down.
According to NHL.com, Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin, James Neal, Pascal Dupuis, Chris Kunitz and Jarome Iginla combined for 88 points in the first 11 games of the playoffs.
They have combined for no points and a minus-25 rating in the past two games.
As such, the Bruins have now completely stolen home-ice advantage from the Penguins and head back to Boston with a chance to close out the series at TD Garden.
If they can do that, they’ll be on their way to a second Stanley Cup finals appearance in the last three years.
Who’da thunk it?