Brad Marchand

TORONTO — On Tuesday, Maple Leafs players stayed away from questions about the “Toronto Stronger” sign that was held up — complete with blue and white ribbon — by a fan prior to and during the Bruins’ Game 3 victory in Toronto. The players said they hadn’t seen the sign, though James van Riemsdyk (a New Jersey native who played college hockey at UNH) said that it isn’t “the best idea” to make a joke about such an issue as sensitive as the Boston Marathon bombings.

Brad Marchand has made a career of saying things that get under players’ skin, but he felt that the sign crossed the line, as it didn’t hurt the Bruins, but a city that has been through a lot.

“I think sometimes fans overreact with things and sometimes go places maybe they don’t need to go. Obviously it’s a very tragic thing that happened. I don’t think anyone should ever take it lightly or make a joke out of it,” Marchand said. “Obviously, people can be very disrespectful, but Boston went though a lot and you saw the respect that every team that we played against after that gave to our city. It’s not about going about going after our guys, our team and putting the team down. It’s more about the city and the people. Everyone reacted the right way about it and gave their respect. If fans want to go the other way then that’s up to them, but it’s not really necessary.”

Claude Julien also found the sign insensitive but pointed out that fans can be that way during the playoffs, noting that a fan in a Leafs jersey was knocked out at TD Garden after Toronto’s Game 2 win.

“Playoffs bring a lot of passion to the fans and rightfully so, and those things are things that happen,” Julien said. “There was an incident in Boston that unfortunately happened to a Leaf fan, and last night’s sign, to me, had nothing to do with hockey. ‘Boston Strong’ is about something that struck our city, not our team and maybe it’s a little sensitive for the Boston people. Those kind of things happen in the playoffs and the best and sometimes the worst comes out of the passion of our game. That’s all I can say about that situation. It’s maybe a little sensitive for the city of Boston more than it is for our hockey club.”

For more on the Bruins, visit weei.com/bruins.

Claude Julien (AP)

TORONTO — It came a little earlier than it did two years ago, but the coaches have officially begun a war of words through the media. In 2011, it was then-Lightning coach Guy Boucher and Claude Julien going back and forth regarding penalties being called. This year, it’s Leafs coach Randy Carlyle and Julien over who’s doing what on faceoffs.

The Maple Leafs and center Tyler Bozak (who went 7-for-23 on Monday) vented their frustrations with the how often Leafs players were getting tossed from the faceoff circle, also claiming that Bruins centers didn’t put their stick down first, as the road team should. Carlyle said the team has watched video of the faceoffs and feel the B’s have an unfair advantage.

“Faceoffs are always a big part of any hockey game,” Carlyle said. “When you’re at home, you think you would be afforded some of the staples of the opposition having to be down first and stop. In our review, there were things going on out there that we don’t agree with.

“It’s supposed to be visitor down, home team down, puck down. That clearly was not happening as per video.”

The Bruins held a 45-30 edge on faceoffs Monday, thanks largely to having one of the better faceoff men in the league in Patrice Bergeron (who won 12 of 20) and having third-liners Rich Peverley and Chris Kelly combine to go 22-of-26. Julien responded to Carlyle’s comments by saying the Leafs are looking for calls from the officials in Game 4, a cry he hopes isn’t heard.

“I’ve heard a lot about the faceoff issue,” Julien said. “I’ve looked at the video too and it is what it is — guys getting kicked out, not getting kicked out. When you lobby for something it’s because you’re looking for a bit of a break next game and that’s what Randy’s doing right now. He’s lobbying for some breaks on the faceoffs.

“It’s going to be interesting to see whether the referees and the linesmen just do their job next game and not worry about who’s crying wolf.”

For more on the Bruins, visit weei.com/bruins.

Brad Marchand

TORONTO – Brad Marchand dropped one glove when he was tied up with Maple Leafs forward Phil Kessel in the third period of Boston’s 5-2 Game 3 win, and he said Tuesday that he it was to gauge whether Kessel would stick to his word.

“We kind of came together there and I wasn’t really sure what was going on,” Marchand explained. “He was shoving and he told me before he’d go with me any time, so I wasn’t really sure what was going to happen, but I just wanted to be prepared.”

Kessel has one career fight in the NHL, which came against Columbus’ Kris Russell during the 2009-10 season. Marchand has four in his career, with his lone fight this season coming against Washington’s Mike Ribeiro.

Asked Tuesday about the scuffle, which landed both players in the box in an exchange the B’s would gladly take, Kessel said he doesn’t feel Marchand is getting him off his game or drawing him into anything that would put the Leafs in a tight spot.

“I don’t think it’s a big deal,” Kessel said, adding: “It’s just battling hard out there, and it gets heated.”

Added Kessel: “I mean, he’s a good hockey player and he battles hard out there.”

The good news for Kessel is that he’s finally finding some offensive success against the Bruins. After scoring just three goals in his first 22 career games against his former club, Kessel has two goals in three games this series. If he’s happy about that, he sure isn’t showing it.

“It doesn’t really matter when you’re not winning games,” Kessel said. “Obviously last night we didn’t win, and we’re going to have to come out harder Wednesday.”

For more on the Bruins, visit weei.com/bruins.

Don Cherry

Legendary Hockey Night in Canada commentator and former Bruins coach Don Cherry joined Mut & Merloni on Tuesday morning to talk about the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The Bruins took a 2-1 lead on the Maple Leafs in their first-round series with a 5-2 victory in Toronto on Monday night, but Cherry said now that the Leafs have gotten past the first home game, they should be more comfortable.

“I think for the first half of the game they had the jitters,” Cherry said. “You couldn’t believe the crowd outside. There was about 10,000 people with a monstrous [TV] screen in a square here. It was unbelievable. This is the first time they’ve been in the playoffs in nine years. And what I think happened was they were very, very nervous. The kids were very, very nervous the first half of the game, anyhow. Then they said, Hey, what the heck, we’ve got to turn it on. And they did. So, I said the opening game [that] last night you’re going to see a different Bruins. I’m going to predict you’re going to see a different Toronto Maple Leafs tomorrow night.”

Tyler Seguin has no points in the Bruins’ three playoff games, but Cherry predicts the young forward will break through at some point.

“Maybe he’s just a little frustrated right now, but he’s going to come through,” Cherry said.

Cherry, no stranger to controversy, recently came under fire when he offered support for Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith after Keith made a condescending comment to a female reporter. Cherry, who is credited with being the first NHL coach to allow a female reporter in the locker room (while coaching the Bruins in 1975), explained his view.

Said Cherry: “It’s not that I don’t think they’re qualified, it’s not that I think they shouldn’t do the interviews. I just don’t think they should be subject to some of the guys, the way they act. The guys take advantage of it. That’s what I meant. Again, it was taken all out of context.”

Cherry also touched on his relationship with former Bruins general manager and president Harry Sinden. The two had a falling out after Cherry was not retained as B’s coach in 1979, but Cherry said they’re finally back on speaking terms.

“Harry and I have [made up],” Cherry said. “We’ve been awful enemies for some reason. I don’t know what happened — something. But in the last hurrah, Harry and I shook hands. It was me that started the whole thing, I think. I was a little vindictive, because I didn’t want to leave the Bruins and all that sort of stuff. But Harry and I have made up, and good for it, because life’s too short to go through with arguments all the time.”

To hear the interview, go to the Mut & Merloni audio on demand page. For more Bruins news, visit the team page at weei.com/bruins.

Daniel Paille

TORONTO — There have been few better stories with this Bruins team than Daniel Paille, a former first-round pick (and one of the nicer guys in the game) who never became a big star, carving out an important role with Boston. It isn’t glamorous, but Paille has a job as a fourth line left winger and penalty-killer, and he does it exceptionally.

Paille had his best campaign with the Bruins in the regular season, scoring 10 goals — two of which were shorthanded — and adding seven assists for 17 points. That point total is two less than his previous Boston best set in 2009-10, but he did it in 28 less games.

The Bruins value their penalty-killers, but Paille, like Brad Marchand, is more than a penalty-killer. His ability to create shorthanded scoring opportunities semi-regularly can be a game-changer, and he proved it once again on Monday when he intercepted a Phil Kessel pass intended for Dion Phaneuf and raced to the net before beating James Reimer with a backhander to make it a 4-1 game.

It’s easy to see why Paille is capable of creating as many scoring opportunities on the penalty kill — he’s smart and he’s fast — but this season it seems that he’s done had more chances on the PK than ever before.

“I think I’m a lot more confident with the puck in knowing what I need to do on breakaways and trying to find out certain weaknesses,” Paille said. “I like when there’s pressure on me and then I’m not thinking about it. It makes it a lot easier for me to just react instead of think.”

As for the issue of finishing, which has plagued him throughout his career, Paille said that taking a calmer approach has allowed him to capitalize once he does have a scoring opportunities. He remembers trying to shoot as hard as he could in the past, but now he focus on placement above all else. That was apparent on his backhander to beat Reimer in the second.

Zdeno Chara praised Paille’s positioning and use of his speed in noting what makes the 29-year-old such a threat on the penalty kill. You can’t count out Paille’s smarts either.

“I just try to read plays at the same time,” Paille said. “Honestly, I try not to over-commit, but at the same time I want to have my stick there where they can’t pass it. In that situation I was able to get a piece of it and it stopped dead for me. That’s where I have to use my speed to get ahead of the other guy.”

Bruins coach Claude Julien showed Monday night that he had the backs of his players. (AP)

Everyone knew Jaromir Jagr was due to break out.

He picked a very good time to do exactly that as Claude Julien had his patience in the 41-year-old superstar rewarded in Monday’s 5-2 win over the Leafs in Game 3 of their first-round series at Air Canada Centre.

Heading into Game 3, the line of Jagr, Rich Peverley and Chris Kelly hadn’t done much. They were struggling to find a rhythm in the first two games. Jagr was weakened heading into the playoffs by flu-like symptoms, cutting down on the amount of time he could spend generating any type of chemistry with teammates.

That changed 5:57 into the second period when he stripped the puck behind the Leafs net and found Peverley all alone in front of James Reimer for the goal that made it 2-0 Bruins.

“It’s my job to make the excuses, and I made the excuses for them because I felt it was right,” Julien said. “Jags hasn’t been feeling that great and he had to turn a corner here and, at the same time, he had new line mates that hadn’t played much together so it’s just a matter of giving him some time. Sometimes, you have to be patient and I’m more of a patient guy that I am someone who’s going to panic, and tonight it paid off because I thought they were a real good line for us.

“It speaks a lot to Jags. It doesn’t matter how old he is or how long he’s been in the league. It doesn’t matter how much he’s accomplished. He’s a real proud competitor and he takes everything at heart. And the fact that he hadn’t been doing as much as he would’ve like to because of circumstances, he was determined to be a difference-maker tonight and help our team. I thought he did a great job. And the other two guys were a lot more comfortable with him tonight. And again, talking and practicing together certainly helped. He’s strong on the puck, and I know every time he has it, they need one or two guys on him to take it away and that means somebody’s open. He does a great job of that and I thought he was on top of his game tonight.” Read the rest of this entry »

Jaromir Jagr got his team going Monday night in Game 3. (AP file)

Courtesy Boston Bruins media relations, here are some postgame notes from the Bruins’ 5-2 win over the Leafs in Game 3.

• The Bruins now have an 18-16 lifetime record in game threes of best-of-seven series in which they entered with the series tied at 1-1.

• The B’s Game 4 record when leading a best-of-seven series 2-1 is 12-15 and they are 19-8 overall in best-of-seven series in which they have led 2-1.

• The Maple Leafs now have a 13-22 lifetime record in game threes of best-of-seven series in which they entered with the series tied at 1-1.

• The Leafs’ Game 4 record when trailing a best-of-seven series 1-2 is 18-11 and they are 10-19 overall in best-of-seven series in which they have trailed 1-2.

MILESTONES REACHED

Jaromir Jagr had an assist on Boston’s second goal which was his 190th career NHL playoff point. That ties him with Brett Hull for sixth place on the league’s all-time playoff points list. Adam McQuaid scored his first career NHL playoff goal with Monday night’s opening score. Toronto’s Jake Gardiner scored his first career NHL playoff goal.

THIS AND THAT

• The Maple Leafs outshot the Bruins by a 48-38 margin. That was the most shots allowed by the Bruins in a playoff game since Montreal had 51 on April 23, 2011, which was a 2-1 Boston win in double overtime. It was the most shots allowed by the Bruins in a non-overtime playoff game since April 11, 1975, when Chicago had 56 in a 6-4 Blackhawks win.

• Monday night’s game was the first of this series in which the team that scored first also won the game.

• There have been four goals scored in the first two minutes of a period in the three games of this series, with Toronto netting three and Boston one.

• McQuaid’s goal was the fourth by a Boston defenseman of the 10 scored by the Bruins in this series.

Read the rest of this entry »