According to Sportsnet, the Bruins play zone defense.
I think it's a symptom of Florida's shoot-from-everywhere game plan. The bounces, rebounds, loose pucks, etc. pull Bruins out of position and the longer Florida remains in the zone, the more and more out of position the Bruins are.
Which defensive zone systems win Stanley Cups, and which have had less playoff success? Justin Bourne, with help from Andrew Brewer, looks at recent trends, what it means for this year's playoffs, and which teams may be most vulnerable.
www.sportsnet.ca
I do find it interesting that there are only two teams listed here who play man-to-man, NYR and Carolina. The Bruins are a combined 1-5 vs. them this season and the last time the Bruins played the Rangers, their man-to-man D smothered the Bruin players. If the Bruins find a way to pull this series out of a hat, it doesn't bode well that the one of the two teams who play man-to-man will be waiting for them. Although the article does point out that some GMs believe it's very difficult to win a cup with a man-to-man defensive system as it requires a lot of energy and less positioning. Meanwhile, a well-executed zone is considered the hardest to beat.