EASTERN SEMI-FINALS
GAME DAY PREVIEWS
GAME 1:
#4 TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS vs #8 PITTSBURGH PENGUINS
Series Tied 0-0
Game time: Friday May 7th, 1999 7pm at Toronto
There will be plenty of offensive skill on disply tonight as the Pittsburgh Penguins and Toronto Maple Leafs open their Eastern Conference semifinal series at the Air Canada Centre.
The Penguins were just minutes away from elimination before rallying to win Game Six against New Jersey at home on Sunday. Pittsburgh pulled out a 4-2 victory on the road in Game Seven on Tuesday as the Penguins won a first-round playoff series for the first time since 1996.
The Maple Leafs, who did not make the playoffs last season, needed six games to eliminate Philadelphia in the quarterfinals. Toronto won four of the final five contests, including a 1-0 victory in Game Six on Sunday.
Despite leading the league with 268 goals during the regular season, the Leafs relied on defense and stellar goaltending from Curtis Joseph in the opening round. They scored just nine goals against the Flyers but "Cujo" posted a .952 save percentage.
With star right wing Jaromir Jagr injured, center Martin Straka picked up the slack, collecting a league-leading six goals and 11 points for the Pens. But Jagr returned for the final two games of the opening-round series and is expected to play tonight.
Right wing Alexei Kovalev also played very well against the Devils, tallying four goals and six assists.
The Penguins were able to survive against New Jersey, despite getting outshot, 197-140. They will not be as fortunate against Toronto, which features a handful of highly-skilled players, including captain Mats Sundin, Sergei Berezin, Steve Thomas, Steve Sullivan, Bryan Berard and Mike Johnson. Berard led the Leafs with five points in the quarterfinals.
Both teams were unspectacular on the power play in the first round, but Toronto ranked fourth in penalty-killing at nearly 89 percent.
These teams have met twice in the postseason, with the Maple Leafs winning best-of-three preliminary round series in 1976 and 1977. The only constant since then is Pittsburgh's Civic Arena, where Toronto has won only twice in its last 10 trips.
Game Two is Sunday at Toronto.
#6 BOSTON BRUINS vs #7 BUFFALO SABRES
Series Tied 0-0
Game time: Thursday May 6th, 1999 7:30pm at Boston
The Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres square off in Game One of their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series tonight at the FleetCenter.
The Bruins, who are coming off a four games to two victory over the Carolina Hurricanes, have taken five of six previous playoff matchups from the Sabres.
Buffalo won four of five regular-season meetings with Boston this season, yielding just seven goals in those contests. Four-time Vezina Trophy winner Dominik Hasek was 3-1 against the Bruins this year. He yielded just six goals during the Sabres' sweep of the second-seeded Ottawa Senators in their opening series.
Buffalo advanced to the Eastern Conference finals last season before being eliminated by the Washington Capitals.
The Bruins boast a Vezina contender of their own in Byron Dafoe, who along with Hasek is one of three finalists for the award. Dafoe's 10 shutouts were two more than "the Dominator" recorded this season. Dafoe blanked the Hurricanes twice in the opening round.
Boston defenseman Ray Bourque, a five-time Norris Trophy winner, is still in search of his first Stanley Cup ring in his 20th NHL season.
Bruins left wing Anson Carter had three goals and two assists against Carolina after scoring eight goals in the season's final month.
Michael Peca held Ottawa superstar Alexei Yashin in check while registering a goal and five assists for the Sabres in the opening round. Miroslav Satan, Buffalo's leading scorer during the regular season, missed Game Four of the opening-round series with a foot injury but should be healthy after an eight-day layoff.