NHL Playoffs 2012: Are Boston Bruins in Trouble After Losing Game 2?

With the series deadlocked at one win apiece and the cumulative goals even at 2-2, there is one telling individual statistic in the Boston Bruins-Washington Capitals playoff matchup.

Alexander Ovechkin, the Capitals’ most leaned-on point-getter, has one point. That is, one more point than the Bruins' top six forwards Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, Tyler Seguin, David Krejci, Milan Lucic and Rich Peverley combined.

If there is no other reason for Bruins buffs to feel a little daunted as the scene of the series shuffles to Washington for the next two games, that fact would have to be the exception.

Want another? Well, you’re getting it whether you want it or not.

Another noted Capitals striker, Nicklas Backstrom, is also outscoring the entire top half of Boston’s depth chart. His overtime goal finalized a 2-1 triumph in Saturday’s Game 2 at TD Garden.

On more than one occasion Saturday, Capitals coach Dale Hunter helped Ovechkin find a way around the insufferably stifling likes of Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg. As it happened, one of those fortunate occurrences amounted to his first point as well as his team’s first goal of the series.

With a mere 2:03 remaining in the second period, Ovechkin mustered a pass out of a congested scrum along the far wall of the Bruins zone. Teammate Troy Brouwer would use that centering feed to poke home a hard-earned strike, which effectively allowed the Caps to subsist through regulation, surviving Benoit Pouliot’s third-period equalizer for Boston.

In the second stanza of the subsequent overtime, Backstrom―who was second behind Ovechkin on the Capitals’ leaderboard with 65 points last year―watched a close-range bid bank off backchecker Johnny Boychuk and out of play.

Within five seconds of winning the resultant offensive-zone draw, he converted linemate Marcus Johansson’s feed with a crisp sail over goaltender Tim Thomas’ right shoulder.

And remember, other than Jay Beagle, Backstrom missed more games in the regular season than any of Washington’s other offensive regulars. His concussion confined him to only 42 appearances, although he still mustered a 14-30-44 scoring log to place fifth on his team chart.

Translation: Backstrom’s absence was a blatant contributing factor to the four-time Southeast Division champions’ underachievement en route to a seventh-place finish in 2011-12. By the same token, his return is proving how deceptive the seeding could be in this matchup.

And he’s making at splash on the home front as well. Backstrom blocked three of Boston’s shots Saturday to help his team accumulate a total of 27 in that column.

The Bruins led the Capitals in the registered shooting gallery, 44-39, but ran up a gaping 86-55 advantage in terms of attempted shots. Hunter’s pupils are suddenly looking like John Tortorella’s New York Rangers and playing the way they need to play in front of green goaltender Braden Holtby.

Granted, a slim majority (14) of those blocked Bruin shots were off the twigs of defensemen. But another three were issued by Seguin, three by Marchand, two by Bergeron and one by Lucic.

Only three Boston players have any points to speak of in this series. Those would be Pouliot and fellow third-liners Chris Kelly and Brian Rolston.

As rewarding as that extra wave of offense was in Thursday night’s 1-0 sudden-death victory in Game 1 and the third period of Saturday’s tilt, the rest of the Bruins need to find a way around Hunter’s laser-beamed defensive corps.

Secondary scoring should not replace primary scoring outright any more than daily consumption of Vitamin C should replace an at-risk person’s flu shot, especially not now in the postseason.

And all the more now that the Caps have usurped home-ice advantage in more ways than one. Ovechkin helped his team raise its first upper hand of the series Saturday by circumventing Boston’s last-change privilege, and Washington never trailed at any point in the matinee.

In the coming week, the Caps will have that last-change and, with it, a chance to give Ovechkin more frequent shifts with Chara and Seidenberg off duty. And with that comes a radiant opportunity to raise a 2-1 and maybe 3-1 upper hand in the series.

To avert that, nearly every Bruin will have to emulate his Capital counterpart over the next two games down at the Verizon Center. Julien will need to find ways to match Hunter’s slickness in their ongoing chess match, while the top six forwards will need to match, or preferably exceed, the output of Ovechkin and Backstrom.