WILMINGTON, Mass. – At one end of the ice, playoff MVP Tim Thomas will be in goal for the defending champion Boston Bruins. At the other end, Braden Holtby will make his NHL playoff debut in the Washington Capitals’ net.

That should give Boston a big advantage in tonight’s playoff opener.

It also could be a trap if the Bruins are overconfident.

“Timmy’s a great goalie,” Boston forward Chris Kelly said Wednesday, “but the minute you start thinking you have advantages over teams, I think you’re setting yourself up for trouble. We need to be at our best in order to have success, regardless of who they have.”

The Bruins are seeded second in the Eastern Conference but were just 1-2-1 against the seventh-seeded Capitals this season. Holtby, a veteran of just 21 NHL games, played in none of those four. But he almost certainly will start tonight because of injuries to Tomas Vokoun (groin) and Michal Neuvirth (left leg). Vokoun didn’t even make the trip to Boston.

The Bruins say they must remain patient and play their game but want to test Holtby early.

“We know he doesn’t have a wealth of experience,” center David Krejci said. “We’re going to put lots of pucks on him and try to make him nervous.”

It may not work.

“He’s a calm guy,” Washington defenseman Karl Alzner said. “We just tell him that it’s the same game, same as the regular season, and not to worry about it.”

Holtby, a fourth-round draft choice by the Capitals in 2008, started five of their last 10 games. He played in seven games this season, going 4-2-1 with a 2.48 goals-against average. He made his NHL debut last season, playing 14 games with a 1.79 goals-against average.

So he has reason to be confident.

“I’m just ready to go out there and do what I can to be successful,” Holtby said. “I’m not here just to wear a jersey. This is my goal to show that I can win games here, especially in the playoffs. And it’s unfortunate with the injuries that we’ve had.”

That confidence extends to his teammates.

“I don’t think he’s too scared of anybody,” left wing Jason Chimera said. “He can handle his own.”

Holtby is just 21 years old. Thomas turns 38 on Sunday.

But Thomas hasn’t changed much from last season when he had a 2.00 goals-against average and played in all 25 postseason games. He posted a 2.36 clip this season and started 55 games, the same number as last season.

“I don’t think he’s changed at all,” Bruins Coach Claude Julien said. “He’s a guy who still continues to thrive on challenges, and always takes the negatives and turns it into a positive, and loves to prove people wrong. So he hasn’t changed.”

Nor have the Bruins. Their approach to the postseason after winning the Stanley Cup is the same.

“I know we’re the defending champs,” Kelly said, “but this is a new year and one thing I’ve learned is people quickly forget what’s happened in the past. By no means do we think we’re the heavy favorites.”

BRUINS FIRST-LINE forward Nathan Horton will miss the Stanley Cup playoffs because of concussion-related symptoms.

GM Peter Chiarelli said “we’ve made the determination to shut him down for the remainder of the playoffs,” after setbacks in his recovery. “We felt it just wasn’t in the long-term interests of Nathan to be having the specter hanging over him of trying to come back.”

He said Horton agreed with the decision and seemed “relieved.”

Horton suffered the injury Jan. 22 in a game against the Philadelphia Flyers and has not played since.

The 26-year-old left wing played in a career-low 46 games this season, and had 17 goals and 15 assists.

He had 26 goals and 27 assists last season.