And I had the privilege of being there to witness it.
But, the boys did make a good comeback, and taking a point out of this game is
something to be proud of. However, this team never should have let itself get
in that big of a hole to begin with.
There really isn't much to write about this game, but to me this game set this
team apart from last year's version, which is why I disagreed with Kevin Paul
Dupont's Globe article (see Game 32's post) in the first place. This isn't last
year's team, this team has some pride and has a coach who will not let his team
show him up with a stinking performance.
A loss is a loss, but this team showed that it had some pride and some fight in
them by stealing a point from the Penguins.
Hopefully, the B's can learn something from their performance tonight, and put
together a good performance on Saturday, when I'll be there to witness the
return of old friend Brad Boyes, who scored his 20th goal tonight and is on
pace for 50+.
Tying this game up after being down 4-0 makes me feel good about this team, and
this was one point that was certainly hard earned.
Also, credit Zdeno Chara for attempting to light a fire under his team with two "fights" against Penguins' enforcer and league-renowned tough guy, Georges Laraque. While neither of the two bouts were much in the way of fights, Chara showed that he is able to take control of his team and do something to get them going, even if it means putting one's health on the line. Kudos to Chara for trying to get his team to show some "fight".
Speaking of fights, the Crosby-Ference fight was decent. It's ridiculous that Ference got the additional two minutes for roughing, considering that Crosby was punching at him before the fight began too. Of course, Crosby is the Golden Child, and can do no wrong. Ference got cut from the visor on his own helmet, not from a Crosby punch. Both TSN and ESPN are saying he fought to "at least a draw", which I guess I could agree with. I'm glad Ference fought him, and Chara threw some hits against him. I actually like the Penguins, and like Crosby and Malkin, just not when they're playing the Bruins.
Speaking of Malkin, he really is an amazing player. He is an incredibly strong skater, and seems to have some serious chemistry with his linemate Crosby. I remember first hearing of Malkin in the Olympics a few years back, and it's been great to see him develop into such a talented player. Again, however, not against the Bruins.
Go B's Go.
GOALS
Boston- Marco Sturm (11), PJ Axelsson (5), Petteri Nokelainen (3),
Dennis Wideman (4)
Pittsburgh- Evgeni Malkin (12,13), Sidney Crosby (16), Erik Christensen
(4)
SAVES
Boston- Tim Thomas, 25 saves on 29 shots
Pittsburgh- Ty Conklin, 37 saves on 41 shots
NEXT GAME: Saturday, December 22 vs. St. Louis Blues, 1:00 PM EST
While I hadn't realized the eerie similarities between these past two seasons, I don't think I'll take Dupont's doomsday approach. He seems to smell a giant collapse coming, while I won't go that far. This team certainly is in trouble, as they cannot seem to string together much offense on a nightly basis. Their defense is strong, but they sometimes rely too much on defense, and let offense fall by the wayside. The team needs some offensive help, that much is certain. Where has Peter Schaefer been? Marco Sturm? Glen Murray, one of the hottest scorers as of late, has fallen off of the map as well. The B's need these guys to step up, and better pray that Chuck Kobasew and Marc Savard continue to produce. If not, it'll be "deja vu all over again".
As far as this game goes, the B's looked OK, but seemed to be one step behind the Sens all night. The 4 minute power play was the nail in the coffin, and the B's actually did a fairly respectable job killing it. However, it takes a lot more energy to kill a penalty than to run a power-play, and eventually, something's got to give. In this case, it was a goal for the Senators' Jason Spezza, who got two chances to smack it home after a laser of a pass from Daniel Alfredsson.
Alex Auld didn't play all that poorly, either, though he will likely get a rest against the Penguins on Thursday. The 3rd goal came as he had lost his stick in a desperate dive to cover the puck, trying to get the B's a much needed line change. Who knows, if he has his stick, maybe he can poke check the puck before Spezza gets that second whack at it. The first goal was a rocket from about 10 feet away, with the puck on edge. No goalie can be faulted for not stopping a 90 mile an hour knucklepuck. The middle goal may have some room for blame, as Auld got himself out of position, allowing Luke Richardson the easy tap-in. Overall, however, Auld made some spectacular saves and was generally solid. However, with Tim Thomas healthy again, it appears that the dream-run of Auld the Bald may be on hold for a while.
Other than that, what else can be said? This was a disappointing showing all around: the defense was lacking, the offense was, to say the VERY least, lacking, and the goaltending was less than stellar. A lackluster effort isn't going to get the job done against the defending Eastern Conference champions. It's back to the drawing board for the B's, who must now look for new ways to produce goals while staying strong defensively.
If not, it could be (as it continues to snow here in Boston) another loooooooooooooooong winter.
GOALS
Boston- Chuck Kobasew (13), Milan Lucic (3)
Ottawa- Jason Spezza (9,10), Luke Richardson (1)
SAVES
Boston- Alex Auld, 24 saves on 27 shots
Ottawa- Martin Gerber, 26 saves on 28 shots
NEXT GAME: Thursday, December 20 vs. Pittsburgh Penguins, 7:00 PM EST
The Bruins welcomed an "unusual" opponent to the Garden on Saturday in the form of the Columbus Blue Jackets, a team who hadn't visited since 2003. Thankfully, the Bruins were less than hospitable, and used their stifling defense and the stellar goaltending of Auld the Bald to keep their streak alive, that streak being the only team in the NHL yet to suffer back to back regulation losses.
I only managed to catch the third period of this game because of work, but I've heard it was a pretty slow game, some even called it boring. The first bit of excitement came 2:18 in, when Milan Lucic dropped the gloves against the Jackets' Jared Boll. Apparently, there is some history between these two, as Lucic destroyed Boll with one punch in last year's Memorial Cup Semifinals. Lucic said something to the effect of that Boll grabbed his legs on the way down and flipped him backwards (this was in the Boston Globe). I couldn't find video of that fight, but even though Boll lasted a bit longer this time, Lucic still gave him a good pounding.
Shortly after, the Bruins got all of the offense they needed from an unlikely source: Jeremy Reich, who potted his first NHL goal. It's good to see Reich rewarded for his hard work of late, as he, along with Petteri Nokelainen and Vladimir Sobotka, have been true spark plugs for the B's on the fourth line.
After this, the game seemed to go into lockdown mode, with Auld the Bald having to make a few big saves, including a breakaway stop on the Jackets' best player, Rick Nash. It was good to see Sir Bald bounce back from his first loss as a Bruin, and he definitely did play well again.
Another great play in this game again involved Rick Nash, except this time it didn't result in a shot on goal. Late in the third, Nash took a great pass from his own defensive zone off of the boards and rushed in on net. The play was broken up by a diving Aaron Ward, who managed to knock the puck off of Nash's stick before he tripped over him, negating what could have been a tripping call.
Also, the line of Schaefer-Kessel-Lucic played well again in this game, coming out with two straight momentum killing shifts in the middle of the third. They put forth the kind of effort that it takes to hold on to leads in this league, and hopefully Claude Julien keeps that line together.
Coming up next for the B's is a true test, one that I consider a must win: the Ottawa Senators. When the B's played them earlier this season, they, like every other team that faced the early season Senators, looked horribly overmatched. However, this time should be closer, and the B's need to start proving that they can beat quality opponents, having lost frequently to the Montreal's and New Jersey's of the league.
Go B's Go.
GOALS
Boston- Jeremy Reich (1), Marco Sturm ENG (10)
Columbus- None
SAVES
Boston- Alex Auld, 32 saves on 32 shots
Columbus- Fredrik Norrena, 16 saves on 17 shots
NEXT GAME: Tuesday, December 18 vs. Ottawa Senators, 7:00 PM EST (On Versus)
This was honestly probably the happiest I've ever been after a Bruins loss. Sure, they lost the game, but they handed Montreal a beating as well. "Ehhhhh, ze penalty minutes vill not get you into ze playoffs!" Shut it, Frenchie. I don't care. The Bruins beat the #### out of the Canadiens, and showed that they wouldn't go down without a fight. Or two. Or three.
As far as the game itself went, it was pretty obvious that the Canadiens were the more skilled team. They have smaller, faster players who are more skilled with the puck. Does this mean that they are a better team than the Bruins? Not necessarily, just that they are a different kind of team. To their credit, they kept up the pressure even after allowing the Bruins to tie the game on three separate occasions. However, the Bruins were also able to come back, which speaks to the character of their team as well.
It was good to see Glen Murray get his offense going, as in the last game against the Leafs, he had about 2 or 3 chances that just hopped over his stick or were just wide. It must have been getting pretty frustrating for him, so let's hope he can keep the production going, and get the offense going in the right direction. As far as the offense goes, the B's were able to put up 4 goals again, so hopefully whatever Claude's been telling them is going to stick, as they have 9 goals in the last two games.
Defensively, this team is still somewhat suspect. Andrew Ference missed this game with another injury, but Matt Hunwick filled in admirably, playing a pretty solid game. Dennis Wideman had a bit of a rough game, making a few turnovers or ill-advised passes, but he has been the B's best defenseman for the past three weeks. Everyone's going to have "one of those games". Speaking of "good to see them getting on the board", Zdeno Chara got his first goal of the season on a laser from just beyond the faceoff dot. He needs to start using that powerful shot of his more, as it's going to take some real courage from the opponent to get down and block that missile.
Tim Thomas played fairly well again, but I thought the goal by "Gui Unit", Guillaume Latendresse, was a little soft. Unfortunately, that got the momentum going for Montreal, and they never looked back. Timmy may need a night off, so hopefully they get him one soon. Tuukka Rask will likely be back up, but Providence needs him as well. P.B's starting goalie Jordan Sigalet, who has multiple sclerosis, had an MS related episode during a game last week, and was face down on the ice and taken off on a stretcher. Needless to say, it was a scary episode, and best wishes to Jordan on a quick recovery.
However, my main interest in this game was the fight that the Bruins showed towards the end. After Montreal went up 6-3, my friend Billy, who is one of the biggest Bruins fans out there, and I both agreed that this game was all but salted away, and that we just wanted to see this team show some fight. Show some pride that they were losing. To put it plainly, we were looking for some balls from this team. Something to show us that they actually cared that they were losing.
Well, needless to say, we got it. Andrew Alberts, who is big but doesn't usually fight, took down Tom Kostopoulos it what was honestly probably the closest to an even fight that night. About a minute later, Mark Stuart, who is quickly becoming a fan favorite because of his willingness to take the body, beat the #### out of Andrei Kostitsyn. I'm sick of hearing people say how Stuart baited him into it, and how Kostitsyn isn't a fighter. Bull. If you don't want to fight a guy, don't slash and spear him a few seconds prior. This fight was one of the most lopsided I've seen in a while, and was just a complete beatdown for Kostitsyn. Needless to say, it'll be a while before he fights again.
Then, the head turtle of them all, Montreal coach Guy Carbonneau, started yelling at Claude Julien through the glass. Claude didn't back down, and Carbonneau ended up walking the other way, or supposedly being "restrained" by his assistant coach. Please. If there were ever coach fights, Guy Carbonneau vs. Anyone would be a pretty easy fight for the "Anyone" coach.
After this fight, we saw what a little fighting momentum can do, as Murray wired home his second of the night off of a faceoff to make it 6-4. Suddenly, it seemed like the B's may still have a chance, but Montreal was able to hold on, mainly because of Zdeno Chara's penalties. He took an elbowing penalty after he hit Alexei Kovalev, who is one of my least favorite players, after Mike Ribeiro, then charged right after Guillaume Latendresse and quickly dropped him with three right hands to the face. I'm honestly not quite sure why this fight occurred, but it was good to see Chara show some anger. However, the Habs scored easily on the ensuing 5-3, which isn't a surprise considering they have arguably the best power play in the league, and that was the end of the game for all intents and purposes.
However, Tom Kostopoulos decided he hadn't had enough of a beating yet, and decided to go after Mark Stuart. Thankfully for the B's, Kostopoulos started the fight, so he got the instigator, the suspension, and Carbonneau got the fine of $10,000. Oh, and Kostopoulos got another beat down. Good choice, Tom.
Overall, as I said at the beginning, I was thrilled with the result of this game, and it only could have been better if they had won. If any hockey fans actually came on these blogs, I'd expect plenty of backlash from Habs fans, who say that this was goonery and has no place in the league. However, I'm pretty sure I speak for most hockey fans, especially American ones, when I say that this is what the league needs. It needs the Bruins-Canadiens rivalry to be intense again, and needs some rough stuff to bring fans back. I'm in no way that disappointed with how the league is now, but I wouldn't be opposed to more roughhousing.
Needless to say, I'm all ready to go get my tickets to the B's-Habs game at the Garden on December 6th. It should be a good one.
GOALS:
Boston- Glen Murray (2,3), Zdeno Chara (1), Marco Sturm (9)
Montreal- Saku Koivu (5), Tom Kostopoulos (2), Andrei Kostitsyn (3), Guillaume Latendresse (3), Roman Hamrlik (2), Mike Komisarek (3), Alexei Kovalev (10)
SAVES:
Boston- Tim Thomas, 45 saves on 52 shots
Montreal- Cary Price, 32 saves on 36 shots
NEXT GAME: Tuesday, November 20 @ Toronto, 7:00 PM EST
After this game, the phrase "a win is a win" seems fitting. Yes, the Bruins won, but they were outplayed for most of the game. Tim Thomas had to make 45 saves to win this one, and he was up to the task. As is true in most sports, momentum can change very quickly, and we saw that firsthand in this game. Buffalo turned the puck over at the attacking blue line, and compounded that problem with a bad line change. This led to a two on one with Marc Savard and Marco Sturm, and Savard put a fantastic pass right on Sturm's tape. All he had to do was flick it past Ryan Miller, and he had his 7th goal of the season.
So just like that, after all of the pressure Buffalo applied, the Bruins had the lead. They kept their heads above the water, but let up another shorthanded goal to tie the game. The way the Sabres scored that goal made it seem like THEY were on the power play, not the penalty kill. However, the Bruins kept up just enough of an offensive attack to take the lead on a highlight reel goal by Chuck Kobasew. Kobasew called it a "fluke", but he did a great job of deflecting the puck past Miller to give the B's the lead for good.
The Sabres kept up the pressure, however, and Tim Thomas was good enough to hold off the charge. The Bruins still need to tighten up their defense big time, as 46 shots is way too many to allow. Thankfully, they got the win, and were able to get back on the right track after such a horrible game against Montreal.
I fell behind in these game stories, which explains why many of them are short and not very insightful. Hopefully, I can keep up with the games now, and have more to say about them.
Thanks for stopping by.
GOALS:
Boston- Marco Sturm (7), Chuck Kobasew (7)
Buffalo- Daniel Paille (3)
SAVES:
B oston- Tim Thomas, 45 saves on 46 shots
Buffalo- Ryan Miller, 20 saves on 22 shots
NEXT GAME: Thursday, November 15 vs. Toronto, 7:00 PM EST
I was at this game, and needless to say, it wasn't exactly a great
time. This was the most down I had been on this team since the end of
last season, and it's made worse by the fact that I paid money to
witness it. After getting blown out by Montreal last time around, I was
hoping to see the B's come out hitting, setting a physical tone early.
No such luck. They had no offense in the first period, and tested Habs
rookie Cary Price MAYBE once or twice. To compound the problem, Tim
Thomas, who has been the B's backbone with his stellar play, let up a
soft goal to Alexei Kovalev that turned all of the momentum Montreal's
way. He should have made that save, no question about it. Thomas has
kept the B's in games all season, and it's a shame that they couldn't
have bailed out their goalie on this one.
Plekanec's goal wasn't
as soft, and it gave the Habs what seemed to be an insurmountable 2-0,
considering the momentum of the game and the way the Bruins were
playing. They had 29 shots, but many of them were point shots or slap
shots of which Price had a clear view.
The B's also came up horribly short when the game was on the line. They had 1:57 of a 5-3 power play in the late third, and really didn't challenge Price much. They had a few point shots, but they were through way too much traffic to be of any danger. To make matters worse, the B's lost Aaron Ward to a questionable elbow right as the power play ended. I didn't see what happened, and neither did any of the friends I was with. I just saw Ward laying motionless on the ice, and saw one of the Bruins' players motion for a stretcher. Ward ended up skating off of the ice with some help, but he had been a great player for the Bruins as of late, so losing him is especially damaging. I haven't seen replays of the hit yet, so I won't comment on how dirty it was or wasn't. If anyone saw it and has an opinion, feel free to leave it in a comment.
This game was one of the most frustrating I've ever been to. Brandon Bochenksi played like he WANTED to get sent down to Providence. Peter Schaefer played like he didn't know he was on the ice. He would have been as effective had he gotten on the plane back to Ottawa with his old team on Sunday night. On a brighter note, Phil Kessel, Milan Lucic, Petteri Nokelainen and Glen Metropolit played well, as did Ward before he was injured.
After this game, I just wanted the team to get back on the ice as soon as possible. It was just a horrible game, and one that was hard to watch without getting angry.
Before I end this, I should say that I think Cary Price actually did play a good game. No, he wasn't challenged all that often, but I think some of that had to do with his style of play. He had fantastic control of his rebounds, often steering pucks into the corners or away from any oncoming traffic. His puckhandling skills were a little shaky, as he came close to making a few bad turnovers. Overall, he seems like he will be a solid goalie for the Habs. I was actually hoping Tim Thomas would get a night off after starting 6 games in a row. That way, we would see the rivalry of the future: Tuukka Rask vs. Cary Price. The future should be verrrrrrrrry intersting.
GOALS:
Boston- Marco Sturm (6)
Montreal- Alexei Kovalev (8), Tomas Plekanec (5)
SAVES:
Boston- Tim Thomas, 30 saves on 32 shots
Montreal- Cary Price, 28 saves on 29 shots
NEXT GAME: Saturday, November 10 vs. Buffalo, 7:00 PM EST
In the first game after Patrice Bergeron's injury, the Bruins began a stretch of 9 straight games against Northeast division rivals by hosting the Buffalo Sabres at the Garden. The Bruins started off strongly in this game, taking a 2-0 on goals by Glen Metropolit and Phil Kessel. The B's were playing a strong game, and seemed to have the game under control. I missed some of the last half of the second and most of the third period, and was surprised to see that the game had been tied. As had happened so many times last year, the Sabres were able to come back against the Bruins, and came just as close to taking this game as they did many of last season's. However, this Bruins team continued to distance itself from last year's, and came out strong in overtime. They won the game on a bit of a fluky goal, as Aaron Ward "waffled" a shot from near the blue line that Marco Sturm tipped past Sabres' goalie Ryan Miller to give the B's a win. Fluky as it may have been, a win is a win, and the Bruins got the job done in that regard.
It was important for the B's to start off this crucial stretch of games with a win, especially in the aftermath of Patrice Bergeron's injury. There were some good points in this game, as the Bruins came out strong and played well initially, but they weren't able to keep up the pace. They began to play sloppily, and twice blew 2 goal leads. All in all it was a success, but the20 defense needs to tighten up. It's not often that a 2 goal lead can be blown on 2 separate occasions and the team still gets a win.
GOALS:
Boston: Glen Metropolit (2), Phil Kessel (6), Marc Savard (2), Marco Sturm (5)
Buffalo: Maxim Afinogenov (3), Brian Campbell (2), Paul Gaustad (4)
SAVES:
Boston: Tim Thomas, 27 saves on 30 shots
Buffalo: Ryan Miller, 20 saves on 24 shots
NEXT GAME: Saturday, November 3 vs. Ottawa Senators, 7:00 PM EST
*****For anyone who hasn't seen the hit yet, you can see it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xAEetam6HQ
I didn't see this game at all, and am almost glad I didn't. I got calls and text messages telling me that the Bruins best young player, and my personal favorite player, was taken off of the ice on a stretcher, and may have had a broken neck or worse. In Washington DC, I couldn't get any updates on Patrice Bergeron's condition, as ESPNNews wasn't reporting much, just that he was taken from the ice on a stretcher. Thankfully, Bergeron suffered only a concussion and a broken nose. Yes, that's how severe this hit was, only a broken nose and only a Grade 3 concussion. I finally saw the highlights, and it was hard to watch. Bergeron was prone when Randy Jones hit him, and his head went directly into the dasher on the boards. Bergeron crumpled to the ice, and wasn't moving much. He did twitch a few times, which I suppose could have been taken for good news, meaning he may not have been paralyzed. It still makes me sick to my stomach to see those pictures of Bergeron lying on the ice not moving, or being strapped onto a backboard and taken off of the ice on a stretcher. It doesn't matter what player for what team, a hockey fan or human being in general never wants to see an injury like that.
My friend told me on the phone that Bergeron was "hurt bad", and seemed to be fearing the worst, as was my brother. It turns out that Bergeron emerged in the best possible condition, having had no neck injuries or brain damage. Hopefully, he'll be back on the ice soon, though it remains to see how this injury will affect his play. It'll be hard to blame Patrice if he's somewhat skittish about going into corners after loose pucks now. Also, concussions aren't an easy thing to come back from for a hockey player, due to all of the bumping and jostling that occurs during a normal hockey game. Keith Primeau, Eric Lindros and Peter Forsberg are all proof of this, and that's just in recent years. Right now, the Bruins need to play their game on their own, but thoughts of their teammate certainly won't be far from their minds.
As far as the hit itself, my first thought upon seeing the highlights was that it was a dirty hit, and Randy Jones should be suspended for 20+ games. However, after seeing it a few more times, it seems like it was just a collision of bad, bad circumstances. Bergeron was in a horribly vulnerable position when he went into the corner by no fault of his own. Jones shouldn't have hit Bergeron from behind. That's an unwritten (and perhaps even written) rule in the NHL, that if you can see the numbers, it's time to pull up and put on the breaks. Jones' hit wasn't malicious, it wasn't meant to injure, it was just ill-advised.
Should he have stopped? Yes, but it's hard to not make a check when your job is to get the puck.
Was it a dirty hit? Yes it was, but I don't believe Jones had dirty intentions when he made the play?
Should he have been suspended? Honestly, I went back and forth on this one. Yes, it was a bad hit, and he deserves to be punished. However, similar hits have occurred in the NHL and no suspensions were dished out. I think it may have simply been the terrifying way Bergeron fell and was carted off the ice that cemented the suspension. Anytime a player is hurt like that, a suspension is going to be given out. I really think the best punishment for Jones would have been to have his game misconduct taken away, and to have had to go back out on the ice after that hit. Trust me, he would have had his hit settled the "old time hockey" way, and that would have been the end of it. At this point, there is going to be more bad blood next time these two teams play, and one can only hope no one else gets hurt.
On YouTube, there are other videos, including one from the Flyers broadcast of the game. Don't watch that one, unless you want commentary from complete idiots. One of them actually suggests that Bergeron put himself in a vulnerable position on purpose, and that they do it all of the time. Another suggested that the hit didn't even look like it deserved a penalty, that it wasn't boring. Please. Watch the video, it was a hit from behind, and shut up. I can't stand when announcers can't find fault with their own team.
As you may have guessed, I didn't really care who won or lost this game, and still don't. What matters from this game is that Patrice Bergeron was seriously injured. It doesn't even matter that the Bruins will be without one of their best players for at least a month, because a 23 year old man was almost paralyzed or worse. Hopefully the B's can bounce back and win some for their teammate, as their upcoming schedule is a tough one.
GOALS:
Boston- Marco Sturm (4)
Philadelphia- Mike Richards (6), Joffrey Lupul (4)
SAVES:
Boston- Tim Thomas, 26 saves on 28 shots
Philadelphia- Martin Biron, 38 saves on 39 shots
NEXT GAME: Thursday, November 1 vs. Buffalo Sabres @ 7:00 PM EST
After a 5 game season opening road trip, the Bruins finally returned home on Thursday night, set to open a 2 game home stand against Tampa Bay and New York. I went to the home opener, and had definitely been looking forward to it for quite some time.
The build up to the game was pretty good, though it was fairly similar to what it was last year. Most of the music seemed to be the same, and there were some new video clips added to the highlight reels. The player introductions were cool, as a youth hockey player from New England skated onto the ice with each player. The loudest ovations were for Patrice Bergeron, Phil Kessel, Marc Savard, and Milan Lucic, who is already becoming a fan favorite due to his rough and tumble playing style.
Finally, it was time for the game to start, and the B's did not disappoint. The opening minutes were exciting and fast paced, culminating in a fight between Lucic and Tampa's tough guy Nick Tarnasky. Lucic definitely took this bout home, landing more than a few solid rights to Tarnasky's face before he even knew what hit him.
As if on cue, the B's responded to the fight with a quick goal, as Peter Schaefer redirected an Andrew Ference slap shot past Johan Holmqvist for a 1-0 lead. The Bruins kept up the pressure in what as a lively first period. Shawn Thornton dropped the gloves for the B's second fight of the period (anyone remember when the last time something like that happened was?) against Andre Roy, but it wasn't much of a fight, as neither could get positioning to land any solid punches. However, the B's seemed to respond again, scoring on another deflection with 10 seconds to go in the period. This time, Marco Sturm deflected one of Ference's lasers, giving the B's a two goal lead heading into the first intermission.
Tampa would not stay down for long, however, as they dominated play in the second frame. Brad Richards broke through for the Bolts, scoring around 2 minutes into the period. The Lightning kept up the pressure, controlling the game through the end of the first and most of the third, held off only by the strong goaltending of Tim Thomas.
However, the Bruins seized their opportunities when they came, as Mark Stuart scored on a 2-on-1 break after taking a great pass from Marc Savard to stem the Lightning's momentum and give the B's the 2 goal lead back. The lead wouldn't be two for long though, as Patrice Bergeron set up Marco Sturm beautifully 7 minutes later, giving the Bruins a 4-1 lead and essentially ending the game.
Tim Thomas played very well in this game, making both the routine and difficult saves, and controlling his rebounds pretty well. Though Milan Lucic had a good fight, he played sloppy at times, losing the puck twice in the defensive zone on one shift. Mark Stuart's ability to jump up into the offensive rush was great to see, as the Bruins of last year rarely had anyone defensemen on the attack. Patrice Bergeron and Marc Savard continue to play well, and it was good to see Marco Sturm get his offense going.
The Rangers are up next for the Bruins, and they are going to be a handful. They are very talented, and were last year as well even before the additions of Chris Drury and Scott Gomez. I'd like to see Thomas get another start, but, having written this after the game ended, know that that isn't going to be the case. The B's will need to play tight defense to hold back the Rangers high powered attack, and to extend their winning streak to 4 games.
GOALS
>Boston- Peter Schaefer (1), Marco Sturm (2,3), Mark Stuart (1)
Tampa Bay- Brad Richards (3)
SAVES
Bo ston- Tim Thomas, 35 saves on 36 shots
Tampa Bay- Johan Holmqvist, 20 saves on 24 shots
NEXT GAME: Saturday, October 20 vs. New York Rangers, 4:00 PM EST
I'm a 20 year old kid from Dorchester, MA, who one day hopes to be a sportswriter for a big time newspaper, and figure this is a good place to start. I'm in college at Suffolk in downtown Boston now, and it's awesome. I love all sports, with the Bruins and Red Sox being my favorite teams, thought I'm also a big Patriots and Celtics fan. I think it's ridiculous how no one in this town cares about the Bruins anymore. I like college sports too, no particular teams, especially any big bowl games and March Madness. I hate fairweather fans, especially everyone who jumped on the Sox bandwagon in 2004. The "pink hats" and "OMG Varitek's so hot!!" drive me crazy, just like anyone else who's a real baseball fan. Pick a team, know the players, stay loyal and be a real fan- in good times and in bad.
