Bruins Win Two - Retain Final Playoff Spot

At this point in the season, it's a cliche to say that every win is a big one. But for the Bruins, last night's win over Atlanta, and Sunday afternoon's win over the Rangers, have huge implications for the Bruins' playoff chances.

Not only were the B's able to claim 4 very valuable points (keeping them solidly in 8th, and only one point out of 6th place), they were also able to beat the two teams immediately behind them in the standings.

What alarms me a little is that the scoring is coming from guys like Begin and Satan, instead of Wheeler and Krejci (in Krejci's defense, he's played far better lately). However, given the lack of scoring punch due to the absence of Savard (and Ka$h-Grab Kessel), I guess the B's should take scoring from wherever they can get it. Hell, if Thomas thinks he can pot a couple, put him in the lineup.

The Bruins' next game is against the Lightning on Thursday night. The Lightning obviously have nothing to play for - not even pride - but are still capable of putting pucks in the net. The Bruins need to keep the pressure on every team they play if they expect to make this year's "second season" (which starts in less than a month!).

Bruins Play 3 Minute Hockey Game, Lose to Rangers, Cats Surprised

There were good reasons to watch last night's Bruins - Rangers game. First, there was the chance that the Rangers could lose, which always makes the universe seem like a logical place, following a divine plan.

Also, any chance of the Rangers losing increases the likelihood of watching their coach, John Tortorella, go apoplectic behind their bench. This, as they say in the industry, makes for good TV.

However, it was not meant to be. The Rangers beat the Bruins, Tortorella looked even more like Fonzie and kept his cool, and the universe now seems hazardous, random and prone to crying jags. Or maybe that's just me.

The Bruins, for their part, tried to play a 3 minute hockey game, and (unfortunately) it nearly worked. Being badly outplayed for 50-or-so minutes, the Bruins were unable to string two passes together without a giveaway, let alone generate any offensive pressure, and were down 2-0 deep into the 3rd period.

Sadly, when the Bruins did start skating with 5 minutes left in the game, they were immediately rewarded with 2 quick goals to tie it up. I say "sadly" not because I wanted the Rangers to win (re-read my opening paragraphs) but rather because I hate the idea of the Bruins being rewarded with a win for a game they didn't really ever compete in. Seriously, if you are making millions of dollars a year, the least you could do is try for more than 3 minutes a game. Even I skate hard for longer than 3 minutes a game.

Last night, the B's played like their pre-game meal was everything I ate over the holidays, stacked up and served to them in one sitting. They were lifeless and loose, disinterested and slow. It was a very frustrating game to watch.

My usual companions for Bruins games - our two cats - learned all sorts of new words last night. Ever seen a cat's ears catch fire? Missed Bruins pass - WHOOSH! Soft Bruins backchecking - WHOOSH!

To make matters even worse, one of the few B's who played well - Patrice Bergeron - took a slapshot off the wrist (shot by his own defenseman, of course), and left the game. The extent of his injury is unknown, but it almost certainly marks an end to the Bruins' already dismal offense.

Yes, it was awful all around for the Bruins last night. Fortunately, they have a chance to redeem themselves tonight when they take on the Senators.

It will be interesting to see how the Bruins respond after such a brutal outing. Hopefully, Coach Julien used the post-game briefing to rip into his players, and lit up their ears like a couple of unsuspecting cats.

Maybe that's what it takes to make the Bruins come out motivated tonight. Certainly that pre-game meal didn't do them any favours.

bruins claim eastern conference title, tim thomas inks new deal

Yesterday's 1-0 win over the New York Rangers gave the Bruins enough points to officially claim the Eastern Conference title, effectively guaranteeing the team home-ice advantage for as long as they are in the Eastern portion of the playoff table.

They may, in fact, still be able to leap-frog the Sharks for the President's Trophy (most points in the League), as the Sharks only stand one-point ahead of the B's as of this morning's writing. To do so would give the B's home-ice advantage in every round of the playoffs, including the Finals. While it makes it hard to type, my fingers are crossed that they can reach the Finals to take advantage of this.

Yesterday's win was remarkable on a few fronts. The shut-out was Tim Thomas' 5th of the year, and his first since inking a 4-year, $20 million dollar deal with the Bruins on Thursday. Thomas was set to become an Unrestricted Free Agent this summer, and there was a lot of talk about whether he would test the open market as this may be his last opportunity to find that giant payday that every UFA desires. Instead he chose a fair deal with the one NHL team that has given him the chance to prove himself at the highest level, and he rewarded the team with his loyalty.

For his part, Thomas is currently the NHL leader in goals-against average and save percentage, and this year enjoyed his second consecutive first-team All-Star appearance. To my mind, he is on that short list of players on the Bruins' squad that could have been born to be Bruins: he's the ultimate underdog, remaining signed (by Colorado) but not playing in the bigs before being cut, then posting League MVP rankings in other professional leagues before being given another shot at the NHL (ridiculous in the face of so many porous goalies who are still kicking around the league – particularly in Colorado), his style (and gear!) is unorthodox but ridiculously effective, and he he's a tremendous competitor, never giving up on a play and always playing with pride, even when the odds seem stacked against him.

That last point was especially evident in yesterday's match up against the Rangers. During a routine stoppage in play, Thomas was in front of his crease, stretching, when Uber-Douche Sean Avery skated by and clocked Thomas in the back of the head with his stick. In typical Avery fashion, he then just skated away like it was completely unintentional, obviously expecting no retribution for his bullshit.

Thomas, who clearly has no fear of mixing it up with anyone, got up and charged Avery, punching him in the back of the head, and drilling Frederik Sjostrom in the face when he came in to Avery's defense (surely an unpalatable situation for any of Avery's teammates), as other players went to work on Avery. In the typical form of NHL justice, Avery and Thomas were both given minor penalties on the play.

After the game, Thomas explained that he actually enjoys competing against Avery's tenacity during the game, but in being clubbed in the back of the head with a stick, intentionally, during a stoppage in play, Avery once again shows that he has trouble understanding what everyone else sees as the normal boundaries of competition in the NHL.

Personally, I don't want to spend any of my time thinking or writing about Avery, who is little more than Steve Downie with a Vogue subscription, but I will say that I hope someone fills him in (and smartens him up) in a manner not dissimilar to what Jordan Tootoon recently experienced. If there's any lesson the NHL seems to teach again and again, it's that what goes around, comes around.

And that lesson (in a positive sense) was just reiterated to Thomas, whose commitment to the every shot on every play for the Bruins was recently rewarded with a new contract. Just in time for a nice, long playoff run. Fingers crossed.

Of Note: The B's have not registered 50 wins since the 1992-93 season; if the playoffs started today, the Bruins would face these same Rangers in the first round; by re-signing Thomas the Bruins have slotted in one piece of the UFA puzzle – questions remain about whether Fernandez will be re-signed in the off-season, or whether Tuuka Rask will be brought up from Providence to back up Thomas; the Bruins' next game is on Tuesday, against the Senators in Ottawa.

bruins 1 - rangers 0

Bruins goaltending prospect, Tuuka Rask (who also rocks a solid Jedi name), got the start against the Rangers in yesterday's afternoon affair.

This was Rask's first start in over a year, and I think intended to be a barometer to assess where his level of play has come since his last start. And Rask did not disappoint, turning away 35 shots to earn his first NHL shutout.

More importantly, as a former first-round pick of the Maple Leafs (acquired from Toronto in the Andrew Raycroft deal), Rask has been "the goalie of the future" for a few years now, and yesterday's game suggests the future could be now.

Rask is a tall lanky geek (to quote from Spinal Tap) and looks like he'll need to bulk up a bit before being an NHL-regular, but perhaps the B's are trying to determine which goalies get the nod next season.

If Rask is in a position to be a suitable backup to Thomas, he'll gain experience while also keeping Timmy's feet to the fire with the knowledge that the Next One is waiting in the wings - generally considered a good way to keep your number one goalie performing at his highest level.

In yesterday's game, Marc Savard got the lone goal, tipping home a Dennis Wideman point shot. Milan Lucic started the play by hammering a Rangers forward into the glass, giving Wideman enough time to set up the shot that won the game.

Coach Julien had the following to say about Rask's performance:

"Obviously, when you can get a shutout, it’s a real good sign. I thought he was very good. Again, I thought our team did a pretty good job in front of him, and sometimes that’s a normal situation; you want to give him the best chance possible, but when he had to make the big saves, he made them. He was good, so I think it was a great first game for him this year with us, and certainly it gives us an idea of what he’s capable of doing, in the future."

The Bruins play this afternoon against the Habs....

rangers 3 - bruins 2 (SO)

The Bruins jumped out to a 2-0 lead against the Rangers last night, and played a hard fought game, only to have their lead eroded late in the third period. When Marcus Naslund scored with 53 seconds left in the game, the Rangers gave ample evidence of why they retain first place in the Eastern Conference - simply stated, they find ways to win.

After an overtime that saw Marc Savard ring one off the post, the game went to a shoot-out - which is often the Bruins nemesis, having gathered 5 losses in 6 attempts in shootout situations.

Finally, it was Chris Drury who sealed the Bruins fate, beating (a visibly frustrated) Tim Thomas in the one-on-one showdown.

The B's should probably feel pretty good about gaining at least a point against the Blue Shirts, but obviously, giving up the lead could suggest larger problems. If it were not for the team's overall effort against the Rangers, and their hard play this season, this breakdown could perhaps be seen as an ominous portent of a slide. But there's something resilient about this team, and for the first time in many seasons, the players, coaches and management all seem to be pulling in the same direction, even in losses.

The Bruins are going to lose some games, but if they can do so while still playing well, and continue to win more games than they lose, then I believe the club to still be in solid running for a hard-found Eastern playoff birth. Which, at this point in the Bruins team-development, is still the aim each year.

The Bruins are back on the ice on Monday evening, against the Maple Leafs.