bruins 3 - lightning 1

The Bruins rolled out their fourth-straight win tonight against the Lightning, and Manny Fernandez recorded his first respectable win in a while for the Black, White and Gold.

Zdeno Chara registered a Gordie Howe hat-trick (fight, goal and assist) in a larger than life performance, and players like Lucic, Wheeler and Bergeron showed themselves in fine playoff form.

While it may not feel like a major accomplishment to dominate a team so far outside the playoff picture (Tampa Bay currently has 24 wins in 76 games this season), it is very important for the Bruins to come out flying in every game as the playoffs approach.

While I admit that tonight I was also watching the Panthers / Senators and the Blackhawks / Canadiens games in an effort to see who the B's may play if they lock up the first place in the Eastern Conference, I feel more comfortable with the Bruins simply playing well enough to decide their own fate.

And other sports cliches.

Either way, it was great to see the Bruins (and Fernandez) play such an impressive game - especially after the two wins this weekend.

The Bruins welcome the Senators to Boston on Thursday night.

bruins go two-for-two through the weekend

Last night's shoot-em-up in Toronto was blocked for us Bruins fans in Montreal; we were left to watch the Canadiens and Sabres as the rest of the country watched the Festival of Red Lights in TO.

In Saturday night's game, neither goalie was particularly effective, as Pogge and Joseph let in 7 goals, and Manny Fernandez - still struggling to find his form - let in 5. However, despite the porous goaltending, the Bruins' firepower won the night, which was a welcomed change given how hard it has been for the team to score lately. As the adage says, the team that scores more goals wins, and the Bruins won, 7-5.

Tonight's match against the Flyers was carried nationwide on NHL Network, and was a very entertaining game. The Flyers scored first, but the B's roared back after a fight between Montador and Carcillo, and potted three unanswered goals - two by Lucic. They added another in the third period, and the game remained 4-2 until inside the final 2 minutes, when Philly scored and drew to within one goal. However, despite some scary moments, the B's were able to hold on and win the game 4-3.

Tim Thomas was, as usual, unorthodox and unbelievable, making at least two saves by diving across the open goal-mouth and deflecting the puck aside - in one instance losing his helmet, stick and blocker in the process. Totally awesome.

Mark Recchi (who, according to my Toronto correspondents, is "kind of hot") continued his strong play of late, registering the winning goal in tonight's match-up, and Dennis Wideman had shifts that were some of the best I've seen any defender play this year.

On the whole, a couple of solid games with crisp passing, powerplay execution, and good overall team chemistry...and not a moment too soon. The Bruins have seven games remaining before the playoffs, and are starting to show the form necessary to succeed in the post-season.

The Bruins' next game is Tuesday, at home, against the Lightning.

bruins go one-and-one in weekend games

The Bruins were able to claw their way back into their matinee against the Rangers this afternoon, having come from 3-1 to tie it up in the third period, but alas, they could not hold off the Ranger offense, and lost 4-3.

Manny Fernandez got the start, and from the highlights, looked confused on at least two of the Ranger goals (one of which he put into his own net). This brings his current losing streak to 5 games, after having posted a 10-1 record for a good part of the season.

Coach Julien was told of Fernandez accepting blame for today's loss and had the following to say in his defense:

''He's hard on himself, that's the way he is....if everyone is (as) hard on themselves like that, and then they go out to correct, we'll be okay.''

Yesterday's match-up between the Bruins and Blackhawks had the Bruins up 4-1 before Chicago mounted a comeback, bringing the game to 4-3 before Alexsson's empty net goal sealed the deal for the B's. Tim Thomas registered the win, and was especially heroic in the final 6 minutes of the match.

Mark Recchi (seen above in the danger zone) scored his first two goals as a Bruin in yesterday's game (and looked great doing it), whereas ex-Maple Leaf Nik Antropov scored for the Rangers in today's match, showing the impact of the trade deadline in concrete results.

The Bruins actually played better over the last two games than they have played lately, but neither game resulted in wins I would call confident. The B's are still unable to play a full 60 minutes of their uptempo style of attack, and whenever they take their foot off the gas, their opponents gain the upper hand.

With the current rush from New Jersey and Washington, I think the Bruins will be hard-pressed to maintain their current first-place in the East position; however, this is a situation where I am sure every Bruin would be comfortable with just entering the playoffs on a competitive streak, putting wins together with a consistent effort.

bruins trade rumours - the way forward (so to speak)

Given how voracious the hockey-gossip mill can be, and all the names being floated out there as possible trades to any team before the looming NHL trade deadline (seemingly every player on every team is available, if you listen to the media), I thought it may be a good time to stop and comment on what the Bruins may do.

As has been pointed out by Fluto Shinzawa at the Boston Globe, the B's face off-season challenges where both goalies (Thomas and Fernandez) are becoming Unrestricted Free-Agents (UFA) this summer; where Krejci, Kessel (pictured above), Hunwick, Lashoff, Karsums, and Soderberg are all becoming Restricted Free Agents (RFA) this summer; and where Wheeler, Lucic, Nokelainen, Stuart, and (goalie prospect) Rask are becoming RFA's in 2010-2011. Given the restrictions of the NHL salary-cap, there is simply no way that the Bruins team we see this year will be the same one next year, and it may be remarkably different the following year. There is not enough money in the pot to keep them all.

Also, HockeyBuzz inside-man Eklund has been regularly reporting on the hot coals under the Erik Cole trade rumours. It seems Edmonton has been unimpressed with Cole's lack of productivity, and the Bruins are looking for a left-handed shot on the top 6 forward lines - to replace the firepower of the injured Marco Sturm. There are also recurring rumours about Chris Pronger joining the B's, or Keith Tkatchuk coming back to his hometown of Boston (something I, for one, am not advocating).

Given Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli's savvy management thus far, I think it behooves the team to move one of the UFAs or RFAs coming up this year, to try and better the team for this season's playoff run. With a few exceptions, this Bruins club is VERY young, but in today's NHL, there is not the luxury of "waiting til next year" for a legitimate shot at a deep playoff ride - there is no guarantee that the prospects and restricted free agents you've amassed will be there for you in the coming years, or that the chemistry in the room will work out to your advantage (look no further than the Senators or Penguins for a magical combo of crazy talent + lack-of-chemistry = total nightmare seasons).

While it pains me to think of some of my favourite B's being moved before their contract expires, it frankly is the smartest option in a marketplace where a team's future depends on maximizing the returns on players for years to come.

If the Bruins were to let any of their hotshot youngsters depart in the off-season - either to test the market as UFAs, or by being offered ridiculous contract-sheets that the Bruins would have to match (hello Dustin Penner!) - I'd feel a lot worse than if they moved whichever players they most risked losing to get some returns.

In this way you are losing the immediate future of a familiar lineup, but reducing the chances of getting caught in an off-season without these players, or the return they could offer.

On the Cole rumours specifically - I have a hard time believing that ANY player's numbers would not benefit if they are partnered with Marc Savard or David Krejci - two players gifted with an unparalleled ability to dish the puck to a sniper. In that sense, he's a good player to consider in the Black White and Gold.

bruins all-star selections

While every professional and amateur media outlet is busy complaining about the All-Star Game and its flawed selection system, I merely want to post to acknowledge those Bruins that were selected.

The Bruins boast three players that will be playing in the main portion of the All-Star Game - Marc Savard, Zdeno Chara and Tim Thomas were all selected.

In the young-stars portion of the event, Blake Wheeler and Milan Lucic will be representing the rookie- and sophomore-level Bruins.

Joining these five players will be Bruins Coach, Claude Julien, who is automatically selected by being the number one coach in the Eastern Conference at the half-way point of the season. I am especially pleased for Julien, who has brought a consistent work ethic (and results!) to this squad, and, after being shuttled out of two clubs despite having winning records, is finally getting the respect he deserves as one of the League's best coaches.

That the Bruins are sending six individuals who boast the Black, White and Gold is wonderful. The All-Star Game is meant to be a showcase of the best talent in the league, and while the NHL's policy of including at least one player from every team counteracts this idea, the Bruins are having enough of a breakout year to warrant these six selections.

Not included in the game -- David Krejci or Phil Kessel -- both of whom have put up numbers far in excess of other players who are attending (and yes, Alexei Kovalev, I am looking at you) -- or Manny Fernandez, who is second overall in goals-against-average, and fourth overall in save percentage.

bruins 6 - senators 4

The Bruins came out of the gates last night like a team that deserves to be in first place overall, however, by the end of the second period, they looked like a team merely hoping to stave off a third consecutive loss.

The first ten minutes of the match were absolutely dominated by the Bruins - they potted two goals in four minutes and controlled the play in the Senators zone by forechecking like mad, hitting anything that moved, and wearing down the Senators defense. They created chances and looked like a team playing with purpose.

But the Senators, to their credit, then began to play more like the team they seem to be on paper, using their speed and puck control to open up the play, and the Sens were able to tie it up at 2-all.

The second period shifted radically for the Bruins - for while they started the game in firm control, the momentum had clearly changed in the Senators' favour - mostly after a very even fight between Chris Neil and Shawn Thornton. Despite an equal number of jabs and hooks from each pugilist, the Senators really seemed to get a spark from the fight, and the Bruins continued to look sluggish. If not for some great saves from Manny Fernandez, the Bruins would have left the second period in a deficit. As it happened, they were able to get out of it locked at 3 goals apiece.

However, despite some tense moments in the third period, the B's were far more in control of their play. The sloppy passes, giveaways and choppy clearing attempts, while not as crisp and exact, more closely resembled the first period's play, and the Bruins were able to create a bit of distance between themselves and the Senators, going up 5-3.

But even then, the Bruins could not maintain their composure. The Senators kept buzzing around the net, and scored another goal with 30-ish seconds remaining. The Bruins potted an empty-net goal, but they would have looked stronger in the win had they not taken their foot off the gas.

Coach Julien offered the following after the game:
"I guess the win itself was important. The way we won it wasn’t so good. I think we’ve got a lot of things here that are challenging us. We’ve talked about some of them the other day. We certainly have some of our better players that are really struggling, finding their groove again. With the amount of injuries you have and some of your better players not playing as well as you’re used to seeing them certainly makes for a struggle."

Julien continued, "I thought our first six minutes or so of the game, the first half of the first [period] was pretty good and I thought after the fight [Thornton vs. Neil], Thornie [Thornton] stood in there and did a great job for us. Where I was disappointed is that we didn’t respond, (and) they did. That’s something that was disappointing and they kind of took the rest of the period over and came into the second and [there were] a lot of bad mistakes. If you look at the [turnover by Dennis] Wideman [that led to a Senators] goal; just forcing plays and turning pucks over. And tonight our fourth line struggled at times and gave up two goals that they should have been able to prevent. Those kinds of things put together made for a struggle."

The Bruins, it would appear, while retaining first in the League, are not yet out of the woods.

The B's next game is Saturday afternoon, at home, against the Hurricanes.

wild 1 - bruins 0

The Bruins suffered their second-straight loss, and first shutout of the season, in a game against the Wild last night. Jacques Lamaire's defense-first strategy kept the Bruins - boasting the NHL's best offense - goalless and earned the Wild their second-straight shutout victory.

The highlights I saw showed many a Bruin with shots on net and valid scoring chances, however, a hot Backstrom and a completely clogged neutral zone, kept the Black, White and Gold at bay.

Media focus is now on whether two straight losses equal a skid, and Coach Julien is expected to rip his team, promoting a harder work ethic to create more offensive success.

I find the loss to the Wild a little ironic, given that the Bruins have been labeled a "defense-first" team for the last couple of years. Now that this same team outscores more opponents than any other team in the league, they are seen as susceptible to the same stalwart defending that every other team faces against Minnesota.

Either way, the Bruins are back on home-ice on Thursday against the Senators. If the B's merely roll out of bed and don't even compete, I think we can expect some lineup changes as Coach Julien tries to light a spark under his squad.

bruins 4 - penguins 2

The Bruins continued their winning ways last night, beating the Penguins in the second half of a home-and-home series, and pushing their current win-streak to 10 games. This is the Bruins longest streak since 1973 (the '73 Bruins featuring Bruins greats Orr, Esposito, and Bucyk).

Manny Fernandez got the start in nets, remaining undefeated at home, and the win gave the Bruins possession of first-place overall in the League.

Bruins goals were scored by Krejci, Alexsson, Lucic and Savard, and despite a more than tw0-minute period where the Bruins were pinned in their own zone, the team came out skating and hitting hard. One notable moment came when 5'9" Vladmir Sobotka leveled 6'3" Jordan Staal at the Bruins blueline -- perhaps a tangible example of every Bruin playing larger than his frame suggests.

I am a little surprised that this Bruins club, despite nightly lip-service about how "hot" or "surprising" they are, still largely remains under the radar of the media and most sports fans. In the hockey-obsessed country I live in, it is far easier to find detailed information about several teams that are under-500 (Senators, Leafs, Oilers), or playing in a baseball stadium.

But perhaps this is a good thing; it is far easier for the Bruins to retain some underdog element of surprise if the media continues to ignore them. I just hope when the hardware is passed out at the end of the season, the efforts of Bruins like Chara, Kessel, Savard, Wheeler, Fernandez, Thomas, Wideman and, most importantly, Claude Julien, are recognized with individual awards -- and the most coveted team-wide award the League can offer.

The Bruins' next game is an afternoon match on Saturday against the Sabres.

bruins 2 - thrashers 1

Manny Fernandez got the start against the Thrashers last night, and once again, the goaltender kept the Black, White and Gold in the game.

The Bruins were largely outpaced for most of the match, and probably didn't deserve the win. It was one of those games where the goalie kept making miracles happen, and / or the Thrasher forwards had weird bounces or unlucky deflectiions spoil their chances to pot a few. In short, the game could have gone either way.

In these sorts of games, I always think about what the result would be if the B's were playing a more formidable foe. For instance, would a Shark or Red Wing forward have capitalized on chances that a Thrasher forward missed?

The argument is moot, of course, given that the Bruins have beaten the Red Wings this season and have yet to play the Sharks, and also that the Bruins may slightly change their game against the Sharks when they finally play them (and let's hope it is in the Finals).

For last night's game, the Bruins saw goals scored by Phil Kessel (perhaps beginning his next 18-game point streak?) and the winner deflected home by Michael Ryder on a pass from David Krejci.

As an aside to all those Canadiens fans who gave me grief about the Bruins signing Michael Ryder in the off-season to a $4 million contract, or to any of the Bruins faithful who felt that Glen Murray would have done a comparable job if he was retained through this year, I point out one statistic: Ryder now leads the league in game-winning goals with 7 tallies, and more importantly, he's a Plus 15.

Not that you can break down a team by their statistics, but a few others jump out at me about this Bruins squad.

They currently retain the top Four of Five leaders in Plus / Minus (Savard, Wideman, Wheeler, Krejci) and with Lucic and Kessel, the Bruins have 6 Plus / Minus leaders in the Top Ten.

The Bruins also boast both goalies in the League's Top Five for goals-against-average.

Final statistic to ponder on this Sunday afternoon: The Bruins come through December with their second consecutive 11-win month.

So much for the December skid that I've been predicting since September. I am very pleased to be wrong.

bruins 6 - st. louis 3

The Bruins rolled into St. Louis last night and rolled right over the Blues.

The match was hard-fought, and saw the Blues tying it at 2-2, and 3-3 before the Bruins finally broke it open in the third period. The difference could be the result of the Bruins' years of incompetance / draft picks finally coming to fruition. Which is to say, given another couple of years, the Blues may be as competitive as the Bruins this season -- all the key elements are there.

Blake Wheeler had an impressive night, scoring twice in the first 5 minutes (one, a highlight-of-the-season thus far, where he stickhandled through four Blues players to score shorthanded), and David Krejci continued his impressive play with three assists on the night.

Michael Ryder scored the go-ahead goal on a beautiful cross-ice pass from Axelsson, and Dennis Wideman and Marc Savard rounded out the scoring for the Black, White and Gold.

With the win, Manny Fernandez improves to 11-1-1, giving Coach Julien good reason to keep returning The MF to the nets instead of Tim Thomas. We Bruins faithful hope that when Thomas does get another start he continues his dominant play from earlier this season. The ideal situation would be two strong goaltenders pushing each other toward excellence (think 1989-90 Bruins, with the Reggie Lemelin and Andy Moog combo), rather than consuming each other like distinct cancers (think 2007-8 Senators with Ray Emery and Martin Gerber).

Of Note: Phil Kessel's point streak is now at 18 games; Patrice Bergeron's outlook after receiving another concussion this weekend looks better than expected, and the Bruins' training staff is optimistic; the Bruins are off to their best start since the 1929-30 seaon.

bruins 4 - hurricanes 2

Amidst an East-Coast-wide snowstorm yesterday afternoon, the Bruins faced some Hurricanes at home. The B's were hoping to advance an impressive 12-game home-win streak against the hot-and-cold 'Canes, and keep their feet firmly entrenched in the Eastern Conference lead.

The news of the game, however, was the loss of Patrice Bergeron to what looks to be another concussion. Bergeron tried to pick off Dennis Seidenberg coming through the neutral zone, only to have his jaw make contact with Seidenberg's shoulder. Bergeron was down for several minutes before leaving the ice under his own steam (with a little help from his teammates). Doctors are evaluating the damage, and while the injury is not as severe as the one Bergeron experienced last season, it is last season's injury that makes this one so much of a concern.

The rest of the Bruins were in fine form, however, with Phil Kessel extending his point-streak to 17 games -- the longest since Adam Oates' 20-game streak in 1997-98 -- and David Krejci extending his production to 24 points in 14 games.

The game winner came from Shawn Thornton (see image above, from his role as a cop in "Superbad"), who picked off a sloppy Joe Corvo pass behind the Carolina net and walked out front to score short-side. With the win, the Bruins extend their home win streak to 13 games, surpassing the 1983 Bruins' streak of 12 games, and now set their sites on breaking the Bruins 16-game home-win streak of the 1976 season.

Of Note: Manny Fernandez is now 10-1-1 in his last 12 starts; Marco Sturm, who returned to action briefly in the Bruins tilt against the Maple Leafs, has been placed on long-term (ie: 30 day) IR; Patrice Bergeron was walking around and talking to teammates in the intermission between the second- and third-periods, but there is no word yet on his condition.

The Bruins play in St. Louis tonight.

bruins 8 - leafs 5

The Bruins continued their home-win streak last night in a wild affair against their Division rivals, the Maple Leafs.

Over the course of the game, four different goalies took to the nets, causing a revolving door scenario that suggested that a revolving door might have actually been a better choice as Starter.

Vesa Toskala got the hook after two goals on four shots, only to be returned to the nets later in the game when Curtis Joseph proved that as a backup goalie, he's an excellent choice for a front-office position (seriously - CuJo is a great guy, and a phenomenal community benefactor, but he has not looked good in nets in recent years and it's hard to watch).

Tim Thomas got the start for the B's and looked pretty good early on, but after letting the Leafs claw their way back into the game (at one point the Bruins led 5-1 in the second period, but finished the period up only 6-5), Thomas' night ended in the second intermission. Fernandez came out for the third period and shut the Leafs out on 13 shots, allowing the Bruins to put some breathing room into the score.

David Krejci had his first career hat-trick, making a case that he stay with "the big team" and not be sent back to Providence this year. Phil Kessel extended his (NHL-leading) point-streak to 16 games, tying Bruins great (and fellow number 16) Rick "Nifty" Middleton's record in the 1983-84 season. The Bruins home-win streak improves to 12 games. Marc Savard had a 4-point night, helping me in my hockey pool.

bruins 4 - thrashers 2

The Bruins completed their home-and-home stand against the Thrashers last night, in front of a surprising loud and populous TD Banknorth Centre.

Michael Ryder had two goals and Phil Kessel extended his league-best point streak to 15 games in the victory.

Manny Fernandez got the start (winning his 8th straight and improving to 9-2-1) as the Bruins enjoyed their 11th consecutive home win.

Phil Kessel's emergence as a bona fide offensive threat has begun to get the attention of the sports media as well as the opposition. While it's good to see Kessel get the credit he deserves, there's a down side as well: Thrashers defender Boris Valabik got his stick into Kessel's face, cross-checking and highsticking the young sniper. Zdeno Chara rushed to Kessel's defense, scrapping with Valabik and drawing 17 minutes in penalties.
It seems to me that Kessel's emergence has happened directly after being benched by Claude Julien in last year's playoffs. After riding the pine for two games, he's played with more grit and determination in every game.

After the game, Coach Julien had this to say of Kessel's emergence

And the key word is that it’s always been about confidence. But right now he’s got the confidence in the offensive zone and creating some good scoring chances. And he’s doing a great job at scoring goals. You know, the way he’s scoring them and tonight was one of those (nights). He took a shot and the rebound came right back at him and he shot again. He stood there and got rewarded for it. He’s been hot with the stick and definitely something that we’ve been looking for, for a long time -- somebody who can be a threat every night.

The Bruins do not play again until Thursday, earning some well-deserved rest.

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.

bruins 4 - redwings 1

Manny Fernandez got the start (maybe a surprise, given that he'd played the previous game) as the Bruins battled the reigning Stanley Cup champions last night. The Bruins were outplayed for the half of the first period, but took advantage of some shaky goaltending to gain momentum and draw first blood.

Michael Ryder set up Blake Wheeler on a two-on-one at the twelve minute mark, and four minutes later Phil Kessel doubled the lead.

In the second period, when Patrice Bergeron rushed the Redwings' defenseman, stripped the puck and set up Kobasew for the third goal, Ty Conklin's night was over. He was pulled and Chris Osgood took over, with similar results. David Krejci beat him for the Bruins' fourth goal and the Bruins were able to cruise to their ninth straight home win. This is the second straight game where the Bruins chased the opposing teams' goalie.

This game was a particular test for the Bruins, as it featured the second-place team in the East against the second-place team in the Western Conference, and with the win, the Bruins finish November with a 11-1-1 record, their best month since December, 1978.

Of Note: Phil Kessel's point streak extends to 9 games; Fernandez's win streak extends to 6 games; Matt Hunwick's 6 game streak comes to an end.

bruins 7 - islanders 2

Last night's game was a very interesting one, and satisfying for Bruins fans.

Despite the very cool third jerseys the Bruins were rocking (see image), things in last night's game looked a little dismal to start - the Bruins gave up a goal less than 2 minutes into the game, when a wrister beat Manny "MF" Fernandez on his glove side. However, it is the no-quit attitude of this B's club that differentiates from Bruins teams of recent years, and Boston kept bringing their hard pressure game to the Islanders, eventually pulling themselves back into the game. The Bruins took a 2-1 lead into the third period before opening the gates of Hell on the Islanders.

Manny Fernandez stopped a breakaway from (former Bruin) Bill Guerin, and the B's immediately rushed down the ice and scored. 10 seconds later, they scored again, creating some distance between the two teams. The Bruins never really looked back from there, scoring 5 goals in the final frame.

Michael Ryder scored twice, and Phil Kessel, David Krejci, Blake Wheeler, and Dennis Wideman all had a goal and an assist for the cause. Marc Savard drew two assists, placing him second in the league for assists, and tying (with three other players) for second in the league for overall points (in both cases, behind Evgeni Malkin).

Of Note: Last night was Milan Lucic's 100th NHL game; Phil Kessel's point streak extends to 8 games; Matt Hunwick's point streak extends to 6 games; Manny Fernandez's win streak extends to 5 straight games; and finally, the Bruins home-win-streak extends to 8 games...their longest home-win-streak since 2002.

The Bruins play again tonight against the Detroit Redwings.

bruins 7 - sabres 4

Like many Bruins fans, I'm fair chuffed about the team's winning streak, but I am also wary of any signs that a calamitous slide may be on its way. Last night's game against the Sabres certainly started in a way that suggested that the wheels may be loosening, en route to falling off completely.

Starter Manny Fernandez (henceforth known simply as the MF) allowed 3 goals on 6 shots, and the Bruins found themselves down 4-2 early in the match. However, the MF was able to regain his focus, and the team was able to staunch the bleeding and mount a comeback.

The comeback was pretty monumental. Savard and Chara each potted a goal to even the score, and then continued to produce. Chara added a second goal, and Savard ended the night with 4 points, bringing him to 600 points in his career, while simultaneously saving my ass in the hockey pool. After being down 4-2, the Bruins scored 5 unanswered goals and came out with the win.

The Bruins are now 7-0-1 in their last eight games, and have enjoyed their longest winning streak since 2002. As I say, like all prudent Bruins fans, I'm cautious about this streak, but when a team can fall behind and keep battling as they have, finding ways to win as they go, it's hard to not feel good about their effort.

Note: Chuck Kobasew is back from his "lower body" injury, and in 7 games this year, he has had four multiple-point nights. The Bruins have killed off 33 of 35 penalties in the last 8 games (94.3% on the PK). They retain first place in the NE Divsion, and are two points out of First in the Eastern Conference.

bruins 6 - canadiens 1

The Bruins faced their oldest and bitterest rivals last night, in a game that showed just how motivated this young squad can be. Having lost all regular season match-ups against the Canadiens last season, and finally falling to the Habs in the seventh (heartbreaking) game in last year’s playoffs, the B's had ample reason to bring their best effort to last night's match.

And their best effort was indeed impressive.

This Bruins team is at their best when they use their speed and grit on the forecheck to create opportunities from their opposition's mistakes. It may read like a sports cliche, but it really is true - the Bruins created their own success last night by aggressively bringing their own game to the Canadiens.

The B's took advantage of errant passes, defensive breakdowns, and in one case, a "brain-cramp" from Hab goalie Cary Price (who played the puck in the no-go-zone behind the net) to jump out to an early lead. Coupled with their strong play the Bruins also had timely luck - they scored with only a few seconds left in the first period - to really break the back of the Canadiens' offense. From there the Bruins were able to keep their energy up, and give the hometown fans something to cheer (and jeer) about.

Manny Fernandez was solid in nets, improving to 4-0-1 in his last five starts. The Bruins retain sole possession of first place in the NE Division, and have won 8 of their last 9 games.

Of note: I have heard precious little from the millions of Canadiens fans I am surrounded by here in Montreal...the opposite of what I had to deal with all last year.

Also of note: Mike Komiserak has a lot less to say with Milan Lucic's fists in his mouth (see image above).

It is extremely satisfying to see the Bruins so completely dominate a game, especially against their long-time rivals.

There are some highlights here.

bruins 3 - sabres 1

In the late 80s, I hated the Buffalo Sabres.

When the Bruins were unrolling a team with top stars that would reach the Finals in 1987-1988 and again in 1990-91, they seemed to always be losing to the Sabres during the season.

And while the Bruins ended up vaulting over the Sabres in both the playoff rounds for the seasons mentioned above, I still grew to use the Sabres as a barometer of how good the Bruins really were. The Sabres provided a guage of whether the Bruins were "the real deal" or not (I still do this the Bruins play the Thrashers or Canadiens).

And though the game has changed and the Sabres are no longer a specific measurement of Bruins success for me, last night's 3-1 win was significant for showing what the Bruins are capable of:

• With the win, the Bruins pulled themselves into a tie with Buffalo for 1st place in the Eastern Conference;
• The Bruins improve to 7-3-3, and have won 3 straight at home;
• Manny Fernandez got the start and proved himself to be a more-than-reliable 1a or 1b keeper in tandem with Tim Thomas;
• Chuck Kobasew returned to the Bruins lineup, after missing every game since the opener with a broken leg. He immediately made an impact, registering a goal and an assist.

The Bruins have, over the course of their most recent run, been competitive in every game and been fun to watch. Given how effort has brought the wins for this team, I just hope that the effort continues.

The Bruins play Chicago on Wednesday.

The image above is of PJ Axelson and Manny Fernandez, photo by Lisa Hornak.

bruins 8 - canadiens 3

There are no sweeter victories than those over the Habs. While pre-season scores don't count in the standings, they certainly count in the hearts of Bruins fans when it pertains to the Canadiens.

I looked around for coverage of last night's game, with no success, so I have to rely on the reports by the media.

The significant things for B's fans to remember from last night's game are that Fernandez played (letting in two goals on ten shots....sigh...), Patrice Bergeron took to the ice again (gaining a goal and two assists, and the game's first star) and youngster Vladimir Sobotka had a good outing for the Black, White and Gold netting two goals.

It's a good start for the Bruins, who frankly should be playing the Canadiens with a chip on their shoulder, given recent history against the Habs.