AT

For this game against the Leafs, a friend and I were able to walk down to the Garden 10 minutes before the game and grab two tickets off of a scalper for face value. I guess that’s one of the perks of little interest in a team. I was actually pretty surprised with this game’s attendance, as there were probably around 15-16,000 people there. 

The Bruins came out flying in this game, with 2 shots in the first nine seconds of the game on “old friend” Andrew Raycroft. They then scored 19 seconds in, on a nice one-timer off of the faceoff. It was nice to see the offense finally come to life in this game, even though a few of the goals that Raycroft let in were suspect at best.

Apparently Peter Schaefer and Brandon Bochenski read this blog, because they certainly have been playing better since being invisible against Montreal. Schaefer contributed 2 goals and an assist, while Bochenski added 2 assists. The Bochenski-Metropolit-Schaefer line proved to be the best on the ice all night, so it's good to see the two of them are coming around. Maybe I should call players out more often?

As far as other aspects of this game, it was good to see the B's overcome some adversity. They twice allowed the Leafs to get within a goal, even after starting so strongly. However, they kept calm, and eventually just outplayed and overpowered Toronto.

Other quick notes from the game:

• Tim Thomas continued to play well, as he was big in holding off late Toronto rushes. He made a few great saves, and the first Toronto goal was a little fluky, as it came off of a weird deflection over the back of the net. It was a good goal by Kyle Wellwood, but the deflection that led to it was kind of fluky. There was one save later in the game on the power play where Jason Blake whirled and fired a shot from the faceoff dot that Thomas was right in front of, positioning himself perfectly. He seems to have better instincts this year, and isn't out of position as much. Let's hope this kind of play continues.
• The penalty kill was strong in this game, as the Leafs were able to set up their umbrella pretty well, but couldn't do much else. They had their five men set up well in the zone, but the Bruins settled into their box around the net and blocked all passing lanes. The Leafs got some shots on goal, but very rarely had a good opportunity to score.
• Milan Lucic's fight with Mark Bell was one of the more lopsided I've seen this year. Bell seemed to be looking to the refs to stop the fight at one point, after Lucic connected with a strong right hand to his face. I don't know Bell as a fighter, and he may have been in over his head in this one.

                AT

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

             
     AT

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

                     
     AT

Looking to avoid losing back to back games to the Senators, the Bruins put forth another decent effort. This time, part of the blame for the loss lies on the B's themselves, not a better effort by the other team. They took an early lead on a goal by Chuck Kobasew in the first period, and seemed to be controlling play fairly well. The lead held until the third period, when the B's gave up a shorthanded goal in a scene that must have felt eerily familiar to B's fans (hint: see last season, where shorthanded goals were often a nightly thing). The B's never really recovered from this, and neither team came all that close to scoring for the rest of the game or in overtime.

In the shootout, Tim Thomas got beaten by two straight Senators, on two nice moves. Down the other end, Martin Gerber did his job, making a fantastic save on Phil Kessel to end the game before the Sens even got to their third shooter.

Tim Thomas continues to play excellent in net, but he isn't getting much offensive help. He "only" faced 36 shots tonight (that "only" is compared to the barrage he faced Saturday night), and held his ground on all but one of them. The B's need to tighten up defensively and get more going on offense, or Thomas' play is going to end up being all for naught.

GOALS:

u>Boston- Chuck Kobasew (6)

Ottawa- Antoine Vermette (3)

SAVES:

Boston- Tim Thomas, 35 saves on 36 shots

Ottawa- Martin Gerber, 21 saves on 22 shots

NEXT GAME: Thursday, November 8 vs. Montreal, 7:30 PM EST
 

                
               AT

The Bruins traveled to Ottawa for the first time this season to face the NHL's best team in the first game of a home and home series. This was a series that I figured the Bruins could use as a benchmark, to see how good their team really is or isn't. I must admit I was skeptical that they could beat this team, as Ottawa has looked like a true juggernaut early this season, even without Ray Emery in net.

They stuck with the Sens through the early part of the game, and even took a 2-1 lead in the second, mostly due to the play of Tim Thomas. However, as usually happens, the better team distanced itself, this time with special teams. The Bruins took six penalties in the second and third periods, leading to the two Ottawa goals that cost them the game. The Senators, on the other hand, only had one penalty in the same span.

It was promising to see this team hang with the Sens, but they can't be content just to be in the same arena as them. Hopefully, the B's will come out with a similar effort tomorrow, and if they're more disciplined, perhaps they can pull out a victory.

GOALS:
 

Boston- Chuck Kobasew (4,5)

Ottawa- Mike Fisher (4,5), Dany Heatley (8)

SAVES:

Boston- Tim Thomas, 42 saves on 45 shots

Ottawa- Martin Gerber, 17 saves on 19 shots

NEXT GAME: Sunday, November 4 vs. Ottawa Senators, 7:00 PM EST

              AT

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

            VS

 *****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

                     
       VS.

 
This was another game, along with the Philadelphia one on Saturday that I didn't see at all, due to being out of town. The clear "highlight reel" moment of this game was the heavyweight bout between Zdeno Chara and Chicago's David Koci. From the get-go, this was a one-sided fight. Chara caught Koci early with a punch directly to the face, and that was about it. Koci already had a broken nose, which accounted for the massive amounts of blood that followed. I was pleased to see Chara finally show some intensity, but I also have to give Koci credit. He took 3 or 4 solid shots while having a broken nose and still bleeding profusely, and continued to fight. He didn't win, but he certainly earned some respect by not simply falling to the ice after the fight. A good bout all around, and I hope we'll see more of that from Chara as the season progresses.

As far as the game itself, it was good to see Phil Kessel continue to play well, especially in a game hyped as being a battle of young stars, with projected-rookie sensations Johnathan Toews and Patrick Kane on the Blackhawks. Toews scored his team's only gooal on the power play, so it was a matchup that seemingly lived up to expectations. I hope to see Kessel's playing time increase as he continues to play better.

I'd also like to see more offense from this team. Yes, they won and scored 3 goals, but they only had 18 shots on goal. That isn't usually enough. Also, let's hope the toughness continues. Claude Julien wanted this to be a hard team to play against, and if Chara does to one more person what he did to Koci, teams will definitely start to think twice about pushing the B's around.

GOALS:

<
em>Boston- Phil Kessel (4,5), Glen Metropolit (1)

Chicago- Jonathan Toews (4)

SAVES:

B
oston- Tim Thomas, 26 saves on 27 shots

Chicago- Nikolai Khabibulin, 15 saves on 18 shots

NEXT GAME: Saturday, October 27 vs. Philadelphia Flyers @ 4:00 PM EST

                     
               VS.

The Bruins rolled into the Shark Tank on Saturday, hoping to close out their season opening road trip with a win against one of the Western Conference's top teams. Joe Thornton and his Sharks are considered to be Stanley Cup favorites by many hockey minds, so a win against this group would be a great boost for the B's confidence. 

The team was looking to carry over its offensive show from the LA game, but also had to tighten up dramatically on defense. In the defensive case, the Bruins definitely succeeded. Tim Thomas was given the start in net, and did not disappoint, stopping 26 of 27 San Jose shots.

The game was played back and forth, and the Bruins played some of their best hockey of the season so far against one of the better teams. Patrice Bergeron scored the first goal with around 4 minutes left in the first period, and that looked to be the decisive strike until Milan Michalek tied the score with just under 40 seconds left. This is where the Bruins of last year would have fallen apart, and probably lost this game in overtime, if not in the final seconds. However, further distancing themselves from last year's team, the Bruins fought hard and were rewarded.

Right off the post-goal face-off, Patrice Bergeron worked hard in the corner behind the San Jose net and won a loose puck. Marco Sturm took the feed from Bergeron, and sent it out to the left face-off circle, where Aaron Ward slammed a slap shot past Evgeni Nabokov to give the B's the lead and the win. In 26 seconds, the Bruins went from a let-down tie to a somewhat shocking win. When I saw the score, I assumed the B's scored an empty net goal and then allowed a late one to the Sharks. However, when I saw what actually happened, I was very excited. This isn't the team that had the propensity to roll over from last season. They took a game from an elite team at their home opener, and did it right after allowing the tying goal late in the game. Talk about a statement. Let's hope the momentum can continue against the Lightning at the B's home opener Thursday night.

There were some problems with this game, as the B's only mustered 20 shots on goal. That isn't going to cut it most nights, but with the defensive effort being what it was, the 2 goals were enough on this night. I'd like to see Manny Fernandez get the start at home on Thursday, because he needs to get his confidence back. He's clearly shaken, and won't get better by sitting.

Other than that, the B's need to keep up the offensive pressure, keep the power play strong, and keep play solid defense. The Lightning are a skilled team, and if the Bruins play a physical game against them, they may be able to take control.

 GOALS:

Bost
on- Patrice Bergeron (3), Aaron Ward (2)

San Jose- Milan Michalek (3)

SAVES

Bo
ston- Tim Thomas, 26 saves on 27 shots

San Jose- Evgeni Nabokov, 18 saves on 20 shots

NEXT GAME: Thursday, October 18 vs. Tampa Bay, 7:00 PM EST