The Boston Bruins top line of David Krejci, Nathan Horton and Milan Lucic had a relatively quiet first round playoff stat sheet, save for Horton’s crucial overtime goals. However, on Saturday afternoon in their opening game matchup with the Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern Conference semifinals, they poured it on from beginning to end.

Krejci registered two goals and two assists, Horton chipped in with a goal and an assist, and Brad Marchand also scored two goals, as the Bruins manhandled the Flyers on their home ice, 7-3.

The Bruins came out firing right away, and were able to capitalize within the first two minutes of the game, with Krejci netting a backhander off a rebound at 1:52.

Danny Briere tied it at one with his NHL-leading seventh goal of the playoffs, but Horton quickly answered with his own to put the Bruins back up to stay.

Flyers’ starting goalie Brian Boucher was lifted after Marchand potted the first of his two to make it 5-1 for the Bruins. Boucher was replaced by rookie Sergei Bobrovsky, marking the fourth time in eight playoff games that the Flyers have used two goalies in a game.

Four of the first goals scored by the Bruins were scored off rebounds, and Flyers’ defensemen were unable to keep the Bruins forwards away from the slot, making for easy scoring chances in front.

The Bruins struggled once again on the power play, going 0-5. However, on this day, their even-strength play was more than good enough.

What was thought to be a strength for the Boston Red Sox has turned out to be its Achilles heel for the month of April.

The bullpen, which went through an extreme makeover during the offseason, once again failed the Sox in the first game of the series with the Seattle Mariners.

In the top of the fifth inning, when Daisuke Matsuzaka left the game with an apparent elbow issue, Matt Albers came on in relief with Mariners right fielder Ichiro Suzuki on first. Albers gave up a single to Chone Figgins, and then allowed Suzuki to score when he couldn’t field a low throw from shortstop Jed Lowrie to complete a possible double play.

However, the Sox were still leading 4-3 when reliever Bobby Jenks entered the fray. Jenks gave up two runs in the inning, and was booed by the 37,845 fans in attendance as he left the field.

Jenks, who signed a two-year $12 million contract to help bolster the Sox bullpen and serve as one of the setup men for closer Jonathan Papelbon, has been abysmal of late. Jenks started off the season with four perfect innings, but has been rocked since. Jenks now has a 1-2 record with an 8.64 ERA.

Asked if transitioning from closer to setup man had anything to do with his issues, Jenks was honest in his answer.

“I don’t know where I’m at right now. Something’s off. I’ve got to fix it and fix it now,’’ he said.

The Sox will look to get back on track tonight as they send John Lackey (2-2, 6.35 ERA) to the mound, looking for his third consecutive quality start. The Mariners will counter with Doug Fister (1-3, 3.19).

For continuing coverage of the Boston Red Sox, follow us on Twitter @chowdaheadz.

The Boston Bruins will be up for revenge when they face off against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday afternoon at the Wells Fargo arena.

This is the sixth meeting of the two teams in the playoffs, including last year when the Flyers came back from a 3-0 deficit to deal the Bruins a shocking defeat in the conference semifinals.

The Bruins were 3-0-1 in the regular season against Flyers, but in the second season, all of that can be thrown out the window. These are two very evenly matched teams that promise to grind out every single play.

Last season, the Flyers were able to figure out Bruins netminder Tuuku Rask, however this year they’ll be dealing with Vezina Trophy candidate Tim Thomas, who was instrumental in leading the Bruins to their victory over the Montreal Canadiens in the first round.

One thing that the Bruins absolutely MUST do is figure out their woeful power play situation. They were shut out in 21 man-advantage opportunities against Les Habitants, and the Flyers have an excellent penalty-killing unit.

David Krejci, who led the Bruins in scoring during the regular season, will also need to step up against the Flyers, notching only one point in the first round against the Canadiens. And Thomas Kablerle will need to morph back into the offensive-minded force on defense that the Bruins traded for last March.

My bold prediction for this series? Bruins in six. I believe that the Bruins are reenergized from their series with the Canadiens, and they are looking to erase the memories of last year’s devastating at the hands of the Flyers.

For continuing coverage of the Boston Bruins, follow us on Twitter @chowdaheadz.

The Boston Red Sox pitching staff may have just taken a major hit.

Daisuke Matsuzaka, who had pitched brilliantly in his last two starts before Friday night’s game with the Seattle Mariners, was forced to leave the game in the top of the fifth inning after experiencing tightness in his right elbow.

Dice-K, who had given up three runs on two hits in his four innings of work, was working to Seattle hitter Ichiro Suzuki. After giving up a single on an 87 MPH fastball, catcher Jason Varitek immediately went to the mound. Shortly thereafter, manager Terry Francona came out from the dugout, with two trainers in tow.

It was clear that something was wrong, as Matsuzaka hadn’t thrown a fastball beyond 88 MPH during the Suzuki at-bat.

No further information was available, as the Red Sox only indicated that Matsuzaka was experiencing elbow discomfort.

Chowdaheadz will continue updating as more news becomes available.

For continuing coverage of the Boston Red Sox, follow us on Twitter @chowdaheadz.

Now that the Miami Heat have dispatched the Philadelphia 76ers, the Eastern Conference semifinal schedule has been released for the Celtics-Heat series:

Game 1, Boston at Miami: Sun., May 1, 3:30 p.m.
Game 2, Boston at Miami: Tues., May 3, TBD
Game 3: Miami at Boston: Sat., May 7, 8 p.m.
Game 4: Miami at Boston: Mon., May 9, TBD
Game 5: Boston at Miami: Weds., May 11, TBD
Game 6: Miami at Boston: Fri., May 13, TBD
Game 7: Boston at Miami: Mon, May 16, 8 p.m.

Someone is going to have to explain to me why there are three days between Games 2 and 3. Miami is a three hour plane ride to Boston, do they REALLY need that much travel time?

I suppose we shouldn’t complain too much, given the fact that Boston’s starters are older than Miami, so the extra rest certainly doesn’t hurt.

Heat forward LeBron James added a little fuel to the fire after his Heat took out the 76es in five games, saying last night’s win over the 76ers was like “finishing our breakfast.”

He then added, “It was good. Now we’re preparing for lunch.”

On a more serious note however, James knew all along the road to the championship would head through Boston.

“I think we always felt that it would happen at some point,” James said. “Didn’t know if it was going to be in the first round, second round, Eastern Conference finals. We just always felt that at some point we would have to go through Boston and play Boston to get where we wanted to get. So it’s here now, and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”

That challenge gets underway Sunday afternoon.

If you’re looking to really root your Celtics on to victory over Miami, say it loud and proud with your Chowdaheadz t-shirt! Be one of the many fans who will be bleeding green as the Celtics continue their march through the playoffs!

Boston Bruins’ winger Nathan Horton had never even had a sniff of the playoffs during his first six years with the Florida Panthers. Now, after one series, he’s a playoff stud.

Horton scored his second overtime goal of the series, this time netting the game winner on a pass from Milan Lucic at 5:34 of the extra period, sending the Bruins off with a 4-3 victory and to a date with the Philadelphia Flyers.

Horton, who also scored the game winner in Saturday night’s Game 5 double overtime thriller, was caught in a collective bear hug by his appreciative teammates, while a celebration was going on in the stands.

“Just getting to the playoffs is all I was really thinking about. This has been a dream come true,” Horton told the Boston Globe. “I’m really enjoying it. I’m enjoying it more every day.”

The Bruins will have a couple days off to rest and think about their upcoming series with the Flyers, who came back last year from a 3-0 series deficit to eliminate the Bruins in the conference semifinals, becoming only the third team in NHL history to do so (1975 New York Islanders, 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs).

For Bruins coach Claude Julien, he couldn’t have been happier with Horton’s performance.

“He’s been saving it for seven years, right?” Julien said. “So he had a lot of game-winning goals in him.”

Julien certainly hopes that Horton has a few still left in the tank.

For continuing coverage of the Boston Bruins, follow us on Twitter @chowdaheadz.

The Boston Red Sox had their five-game winning streak ended last night by the Baltimore Orioles, and also their streak of nine consecutive games in which starters went five innings while allowing three runs or less.

Clay Buchholz, saddled with last night’s loss, pitched into the seventh, however he allowed four runs on twelve hits, the most hits ever given up in his career. If not for the Orioles’ inability to plate more runs, the outcome could have been much worse.

However, one of the league’s hottest pitchers, Josh Beckett, will be on the mound tonight to start a new streak for the Sox. Beckett, 2-1 with a 1.93 ERA, has been outstanding in his last three efforts. Beckett will be up against hard-luck hurler Jeremy Guthrie, who despite a 3.12 ERA has a record of 1-3.

Last night, Baltimore rookie pitcher Zach Britton held the Sox to just five hits, working his sinker to induce 13 groundball outs on the night. The victory for Britton marks the first time in franchise history a rookie has won four games in the month of April.

Beckett will look to make that a distant memory tonight.

For continuing coverage of the Boston Red Sox, follow us on Twitter @chowdaheadz.

The Boston Bruins and Monteal Canadiens will meet in a deciding seventh game on Wednesday night at the TD Garden for the right to move on to the NHL Eastern Conference semifinals, and the desperation will no doubt be palpable on both sides.

For the Bruins, it could very well mean the future of coach Claude Julien. After last year’s embarrassing playoff exit at the hands of the Philadelphia Flyers, losing the series after being up 3-0, this year’s playoff loss would be a major disappointment for a team expected to do so much more.

The Canadiens have nothing to lose. Their surprising run to the conference finals last year solidified that status of coach Jacques Martin, and they were the decided underdogs coming into this playoff matchup as well.

Julien’s record in the playoffs during his tenure with the Bruins is not one that would be impressive on a resume. The Bruins are 2-8 in series clinchers, and 0-3 in seventh games. However, none of that really matters tonight. What matters is how the Bruins will respond to adversity.

The Bruins will also need to keep themselves from committing mindless errors. Last night in Montreal, a too many men on the ice penalty was shortly followed by a slashing call, leading to a five-on-three situation that created the opportunity for Montreal’s first goal.

Ditto the second Montreal goal. Milan Lucic committed a major blunder with his boarding call, followed by Patrice Bergeron firing the puck into the crowd on a clearing attempt. Delay of game, another five-on-three situation, another goal for Montreal.

That type of play will have the Bruins golfing on Thursday morning if it’s repeated on Wednesday night at TD Garden.

And that type of play could have Julien on the unemployment line as well.

For continuing coverage of the Boston Bruins, follow us on Twitter @chowdaheadz.

Spent Easter watching the Red Sox complete their sweep of the Angels. Drizzely and cold. Couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day. It’s always a great game when the Red Sox fans drowned out the home team fans! “Let’s go, Red Sox!!!”

Charlie came with me to Cleveland Browns game this past November against the NE Patriots! It was brutal…not the game, the fans. Such haters! Glad I had Charlie with me for support,however, I think the experience was enough for me. Next time Charlie and I will watch the game from my living room!