Bruins Lose to Caps, Gain Critical Point in Standings

Former Bruin, Brooks Laich, got Washington’s overtime goal against the B’s last night, scoring on a 4-on-3 powerplay.

By getting to overtime the Bruins were able to gain a single point, bumping them into 7^th spot - ahead of the Flyers and just behind the Canadiens – but not able to grab the two points that a win would’ve given them.

While the Bruins really needed those two points, I was really pleased with how they played.

Given that the Capitals have such a massive point advantage (31 points over the B’s, as of this morning), I was impressed by how the Bruins dominated most of the play and kept the pressure on the Caps throughout the game. Jose Theodore is absolutely beatable in nets for the Caps, and they play like 5 forwards on the ice.

Last night’s match-up is a likely possibility for the first round of the playoffs (providing the Bruins even make it in) and while the B’s will be hard-pressed to beat anyone with such lacklustre scoring power, their hard-forecheck / defensive system clearly caused problems for the Capitals.

The Bruins play Buffalo on Thursday (which should be brutal), the Hurricanes on Saturday, and then the Caps again on Sunday to finish out the Season. It is likely that they’ll need all three games to determine their post-season fate.

Back on the Regular Season Horse

After blowing their first game of the Regular Season (a 4-1 loss to the Capitals on Thursday night), the Bruins will try to right the ship tonight against the Hurricanes. Which is a hell of a metaphor.

This is obviously the first game between the two teams since the 'Canes sent the Bruins home in Game Seven of the Conference Semi-Finals, last season.

The Capitals and the Hurricanes represent a pretty significant challenge for the Bruins this year - the Caps were one of the few teams (perhaps the only team, in the East) to have a winning record against the Bruins last year, and they're even stronger this season. The 'Canes, of course, showed how tough an opponent they can be, and, Aaron Ward or no, they will bring the ghosts of last season with them into tonight's game.

None of this is news, of course. But given that the new Season is upon us, and the B's schedule starts out so rough, I think it's important to view the Bruins' opponents clearly - they'll pretty much all be tough in the East this year (more on that, in later posts).

The Bruins and 'Canes play tonight at 7pm, in Boston.

bruins 3 - capitals 4 (OT)

The Bruins repeatedly played catch-up in yesterday's matinee affair against the Caps, going down 1-0, 2-1, 3-2, and ultimately 4-3 in Overtime.

However, Zdeno Chara's 100th career goal with only 4 minutes left in the 3rd period salvaged a point for the Bruins, who maintain an 8 point lead over Washington for first in the Eastern Conference.

The Capitals have won 3 of the 4 meetings between the two clubs this year - the only team in the NHL to have such a record - and added more fuel to an already impressive run of late.

Tim Thomas played a solid game, despite letting in a TERRIBLE game-winner (Alexander Semin's slapshot came from at least centre, catching Thomas unprepared through the wickets), and in all honesty, I liked the fact the Bruins were tenacious enough to keep tying the game up after each Washington goal.

Matt Hunwick potted another goal for the Bruins, making a legitimate case for staying with the big club rather than going back to the minors (particularly with recent injuries to the younger core), and Marc Savard had three assists in the loss.

Note that despite how the NHL chooses to view such Overtime losses (ie: awarding a point) these are still losses! The B's would not get a point in the playoffs, and while it may be hardline, I think this simple win / loss dichotomy is the only one that matters as we bank into the final 20 games of the Season.

The B's next match will be a challenge as well, facing the Flyers in Boston, on Tuesday.

bruins 3 - capitals 2 (OT)

The Bruins spent tonight trying to find a rhythm while still shutting down Alexander Ovechkin.

Drawing a penalty seven seconds into the first, and giving up the first goal on the subsequent powerplay, the B's found themselves down early in the game. This seems to be a recurring theme in recent games.

Mid-way through the period, Shawn Thornton picked off an errant Ovechkin pass and dangled Theodore down, before roofing the puck of the goalie's right shoulder. Thornton showed remarkably soft hands for such a hard-faced man; this is the energy player's 4th goal of the season. 1-1 far past the midway part of the first period.

However, in a situation that I think summarized the game, the Bruins' soft defensive coverage allowed the Capitals to score with 20-something seconds left in the period. I'll return to this idea later, but it seems obvious that bonehead defensive coverage will eventually lead to goals-against, and sometimes losses. 2-1 Caps at the end of the first.

Patrice Bergeron made his return to the lineup (as did Ference and Lucic), and played a solid two-way game, as is his style. He showed no ill effects from his second concussion, and it was his play that led to the tying goal.

With about 5 minutes left in the period, Bergeron dove to tip a puck past Alexander Semin, and keep the play in the offensive zone. He then fired a pass through two defenders to Marc Savard, who feined a cross-crease pass and wristed it over Theodore's glove. 2-2 through the end of the second and through the third period.

As the first minute of the game suggested, the Bruins had penalty trouble all night, but it was Washington that drew the haunting whistle.

WoOoOooOo....!

Just as overtime got underway, Niklas Backstrom was called for hooking and the Bruins held a 4-on-3 advantage. It did not take long for the Bruins foursome to find passing lanes and push the Caps players in tight toward Theodore, but it was ultimately just a strange deflection off the leg of Capitals' defenseman Shaone Morrisonn that potted the winner.

The goal was credited to David Krejci, who looked to be trying to thread a pass through to Marc Savard on the far post. But the Bruins get a lucky bounce and take the win in OT.

This game marks the 20th time in 48 games that the Bruins have allowed the first goal. For a team with the record they have, this should not be the case. However it is precisely because they keep winning that they seem to get away with what is often scrambly, undiscliplined play. Case in point, they are now 14-4-2 when allowing the first goal, but they often look shaky for stretches in every game (especially recently).

As a recent post about Dennis Wideman suggests, the Bruins need all their players at full potential to really dominate a game. Without this the Bruins often show traits that a premier team in the league -- say in the Playoffs -- would fatally take advantage of.

If you give a team like Detroit or San Jose the first goal in each game, goals within the last or first minute of any period (the Bruins gave the Caps one of each tonight), regularly allow 30 or more shots a game, and put a long string of players into the penalty box, the best teams will beat you. Especially over a seven-game series.

Playoff runs are fickle things, as many teams can testify, and Bruins' history is littered with grand teams that scuttle in the first round. The Bruins need a return to the hard-hitting, actively forechecking game of early this season because it is their primary tool in dictating the game. By doing so, they'll be in a better position to control the puck, cut down on lazy errors and ponderous high-risk decisions that have littered their game since early December.

capitals 2 - bruins 1

Last night's game was a battle between the two top-placed team in the Eastern conference, and the Bruins, despite some solid play and end-to-end action, came out on the losing end.

Ultimately, a single turn-over, and subsequent break going the other way, became the difference in last night's affair between the two clubs.

With the score deadlocked at 1 goal apiece, Alexander Semin was able to toe-drag the puck past Martin St-Pierre, and advance into the Bruins zone far enough to blast a shot past Tim Thomas.

With the loss, the Bruins have 70 points with 37 games left, and still retain first place in the Eastern Conference. But it is safe to say that injuries to a few key players (Bergeron, Ward, Kessel) are beginning to take their toll on the young squad.

The B's play again on Monday, in an afternoon affair against the St-Louis Blues.

capitals 3 - bruins 1

The Bruins rolled into Washington last night to take on the player tandem of Alexander-Ovechkin-and-everybody-else. Manny Fernandez got the start and played a decent game for the B's, but his counterpart at the other end of the ice, Brent Johnson, put on a goaltending clinic that few in the league could parallel.

In a 33-save performance, Johnson robbed players with point blank shots, breakaways, post-side-tips and screened point shots. He was, simply, spectacular.

The Bruins trailed 2-0 heading into the third before Phil Kessel set up Milan Lucic at the far post. It was as close as the Bruins could get, battling until the final moments, when Washington potted an empty net goal.

The loss breaks the Bruins 5-game win streak. They have won 14 of their last 16 games and this is their first loss in December.

Of Note: Phil Kessel's point streak continues to 13 straight games, the longest point-per-game-streak in the league, presently; The Bruins retain first place in the Eastern Conference.