For the second straight season, the Bruins are heading into Game 5 of the first round of the NHL playoffs needing to win one time in three games to advance to the second round.
Last year that win never arrived. Florida won three straight to stun and eliminate Boston. Toronto will try to match that feat beginning with Game 5 on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at TD Garden.
How much are the lessons from last year affecting this year’s team?
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“There’s a lot of guys in our room that have gone through it, just a little while ago. It hurt,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said after Saturday’s win. “We’re going to see how much we’ve learned. We’ll see by our start on Tuesday.”
He was asked about it again on Sunday.
“What we can learn is the urgency it takes to finish off a series,” he said. “It’s so hard to end a team’s season. We know that. Everyone that was part of it last year is better off for it.”
Bruins captain Brad Marchand cut off the question.
“I’m going to stop you there. (Last year) has no bearing on our group. We have a different group, a lot of new guys, a different team, a different season,” he said. “Nothing about that has anything to do with this series. We’ve done a great job staying in the moment. You can’t worry about a previous game or previous shift. It’s all about the next moment, the next play.”
David Pastrnak landed somewhere between his coach and his captain.
“You stay in the moment. We are up in the series , but we definitely don’t look at the big picture. We’re taking it day by day. Just like after every single game in this series,” he said. “Obviously, learn from the past, but also don’t get married to it. Kind of move away. We have a different group. It’s a big game. We’ve battled hard to put ourselves in position so we have to remember, but stay in the moment and focus on the next game.”
