December 23rd. The Boston Bruins pre-Christmas schedule comes to a close and boy have they given us something to be happy about. A marvelous move by Pouliout, Marchand's first career hat trick and Tuukka Rask's second straight shutout led the way as the Bruins demolished the Southeast division leading Florida Panthers. The Bruins go into the break much in the same way they have gone into every game since the page turned leaving October in the rearview mirror. They made a statement. A loud, enthusiastic, and very clear statement. The Bruins completely outclassed the Panthers in a game that was even more heavily one way than the score may appear. All but four Bruins notched a point, Marchand leading the way with 5 and Bergeron chipping in with 3. Special teams continued to play a big role, the B's scoring on both the PP and kill. Tuukka turned away 31 shots for back to back shutouts for the second time in his career. The Bruins put on a clinic tonight, thoroughly dominating even strength, including a 4 on 4 goal. The layers they employ, the clogging of the neutral zone, the heavy fore check, and the board game are paying dividends, and in a big way. To make the night even sweeter, Philly came out with a losing effort at Madison Square Garden, moving the Bruins back into first place in the Eastern Conference with a game in hand.
The Bruins 23 wins is the best in the NHL, and trail only the Chicago Blackhawks, by 1 point with 2 games in hand. The Bruins have an overall record of 23-9-1 and continue to be at the top of the power rankings. Now I understand the power rankings do not mean a whole lot, but here are some numbers and a statement you cannot argue with. The Bruins are the hottest team in the NHL. I don't mean this week. I don't even mean this month. They have overcome some injuries, a suspension to their top line winger, and have improved that power play (although I'll admit, it would have been tough to go backwards) without the ultra talented playmaker, Marc Savard. Since November 1st, the Bruins have gone an unbelievable 20-2-1 and have outscored their opponents 97-38. Tyler Seguin leads the league at a +26, and there are 5 other Bruins in the top 10. The Bruins are a +34 in the 3rd period. There is more distance between the Bruins and the second place team then there is between 2 and 23rd. The goaltending has been phenomenal. I challenge you to come up with any logical argument to support a claim of a better tandem anywhere in the NHL. Would you believe that Tuukka's numbers are actually better than Timmy's? Tukka has a GAA of 1.66, Thomas is coming in at a 1.84. Tukka has a slight edge is save percentage, .944 to Timmy's .943. Thomas is tied for the league lead with 4 SO's, Rask with 2. Maybe the most beautiful stat of all is starts. Tim Thomas is barely in the top 20, coming in at 19. That means that this team is playing at an elite level and resting the tenders at the same time. Timmy is a tank, pun fully intended, and has shown to be a horse that can carry a heavy work load. Imagine how good he could become time for a playoff run with fresh legs. This team seems to have fixed their problems with only playing well in front of Thomas.
Probably the biggest aspect of the game that has changed for this team, the killer instinct. They do not sit back and collapse on their goal or play a red line and dump game. This team ramps it up and once it smells blood, it goes in for the kill. Hopefully that Flyers series a couple years back has completely cured them of that game plan. As we wind down on the first third of the year, there are some really telling stats to look at. The Bruins only have 4 players with double digit goals, and only have two players in the top 20 there. The Bruins only have one player in the top 30 for total points. Yet this team leads the league in goals scored per game(3.52) and goals given up per game(1.88).This team is second in total goals scored(116), trailing the Flyers by 2, and number 1 in total goals given up(62). Is that not astounding? This team does not have an Alex Ovechkin. It is a team based on consistent production from all four lines and believing and playing within a system that starts in their defensive zone.
The Bruins will open up the after Christmas stretch on the road with a December 27th game in Phoenix before heading to Dallas and New Jersey. They then return home for four starting with the second night of a back to back against the Calgary Flames. After that, most of January will be on the road. Sandwiched in their will be three matinee games highlighted by a January 7th afternoon rematch with the Vancouver Canucks. While the schedule is not easy, this team is playing so well and seem so confident that I cannot wait to get back to hockey again. What a blast! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. 'Til Next time, Let's Go Black and Gold!
Friday, December 23, 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Monday, December 5, 2011
Bruins Shine, Dominate Pens
The Boston Bruins are feeling pretty good about themselves right now, and Monday night proved once again why. The B's went into Pittsburgh to play the Eastern Conference's best team, the Crosby powered Penguins. Well, the Bruins took the measuring stick and beat the Pens up and down the ice, outhitting, out battling, and dominating play for long stretches. Tim Thomas stood tall on multiple occasions and the whole Bruins PK deserved first star honors tonight. After some egregious officiating, the Bruins were left to kill two separate 5 on 3's, one for 1:37 and another for a full 2:00. The Bruins came out strong, consistently gaining entry into the offensive zone and spending some big chunks of time down there. To go along with great play by the forwards, the defensemen have been joining in lately and have been letting shots from the blue line go with regularity. McQuaid let one rip that ended up in the back of the goal, but it was disallowed for a un-penalized goaltender interference (correct call). The Bruins set the tone early and often, but both teams left the ice after one without anything on the scoreboard.
The second period started great as well, and the hard work paid off less than 3 minutes in. A blue collar shift by the fourth line wielded an opportunity in front of Fleury that Campbell took a swat at, got blocked, but elevated his second attempt over Fleury's mitt. Great effort and will to win, which is a staple of this teams and we are fortunate to see night after night. Benoit Pouliot got in on the action a little while later when he roofed a beautiful shot from the slot, once again the opportunity provided via grit and toughness. Sandwiched between those goals was a spirited bout by Brad Marchand, who was on his way to the box for tripping, and old friend Matt Niskanen. I do not think this team needed a lift so to speak, but they play much better when they are angry and physically involved. Brad Marchand provided that, and lit a bit of a fire as opposed to simply serving his two. The guys were excited about it, and the PK took care of the rest. The chippiness picked up from there. The second ended with the camera fixed on Crosby, who was yelling at David Krejci, I believe for messing up his hair. Let me expand upon that comment real quick. I will say a few things about Sidney: He is phenomenal. He is excellent. He is the best offensive player in the NHL (Although I think Datsyuk is 1A). But the guy suffers from Tom Brady syndrome. He wants to push and shove and use some nifty stick work, but do not do it back to him because he immediately looks to the refs. He doesn't dive and I am not saying he is dirty or cheap, but he is certainly one of the biggest cry babies in the sport. I'm getting off my soap box now.
Tyler Seguin notched a PP goal, his 13th of the year, 1:07 in after an absolutely beautiful play and set up by Patrice Bergeron. Matt Cooke broke up the shutout halfway through the 3rd after an unfortunate bounce on Seidenberg but great pass by Joe Vitale, more on him momentarily. It is always an aggravating feeling to see Matt Cooke playing this game while Marc Savard is at home, probably sitting in a dark room because of him. The Bruins once again showed the character of their team and their willingness to play for each other. Vitale, for the second straight rush, invaded Timmy's crease, this time bumping him and actually pushing down on Thomas's head. Like usual, 5 white sweaters were there immediately, gloves and sticks littering the ice. From the scrum emerged a nice lengthy bout between Soupy (Greg Campbell) and Vitale. Both combatants exchanged big blows, Vitale landing the final one before the arm weary warriors toppled to the ice. Whether or not you consider it a win or a loss for Campbell, there is no denying what it says about him as a teammate and person. Tim Thomas postgame echoed the value of the act, saying that Campbell's willingness to stand up for him was much appreciated. He went on to add that with this black and gold team, these acts are unsolicited. The Bruins do not need to be called out in the media and will not be made to look timid in their resolve to be there for each other, and to a man, this team believes in that. While the Bruins were heavily outshot 46-27, thanks in majority to some lengthy home cooking calls and a 23 shot 3rd period, the two teams were dead locked at 16 scoring chances a piece. The defenseman did a great job of forcing shots from the outside and keeping the lanes open for Timmy to track the rubber. He is currently riding a career best win streak at 10 in a row. The Bruins are on a 15 game point streak, going 14-0-1, their longest since the club went 17 games in a row without a loss back in 1983. The Bruins will embark on a nearly 1500 mile trip to Winnipeg for a Tuesday battle with the Jets before returning to the Garden to host the surging Panthers. This 3 game in 4 night trip will certainly test the Bruins, but they appear to be up to the challenge. Later start time tomorrow night, puck dropping around 8:30. Lets hope the boys can keep playing well and go after a new record streak of their own. Let's Go Black And Gold!
+
The second period started great as well, and the hard work paid off less than 3 minutes in. A blue collar shift by the fourth line wielded an opportunity in front of Fleury that Campbell took a swat at, got blocked, but elevated his second attempt over Fleury's mitt. Great effort and will to win, which is a staple of this teams and we are fortunate to see night after night. Benoit Pouliot got in on the action a little while later when he roofed a beautiful shot from the slot, once again the opportunity provided via grit and toughness. Sandwiched between those goals was a spirited bout by Brad Marchand, who was on his way to the box for tripping, and old friend Matt Niskanen. I do not think this team needed a lift so to speak, but they play much better when they are angry and physically involved. Brad Marchand provided that, and lit a bit of a fire as opposed to simply serving his two. The guys were excited about it, and the PK took care of the rest. The chippiness picked up from there. The second ended with the camera fixed on Crosby, who was yelling at David Krejci, I believe for messing up his hair. Let me expand upon that comment real quick. I will say a few things about Sidney: He is phenomenal. He is excellent. He is the best offensive player in the NHL (Although I think Datsyuk is 1A). But the guy suffers from Tom Brady syndrome. He wants to push and shove and use some nifty stick work, but do not do it back to him because he immediately looks to the refs. He doesn't dive and I am not saying he is dirty or cheap, but he is certainly one of the biggest cry babies in the sport. I'm getting off my soap box now.
Tyler Seguin notched a PP goal, his 13th of the year, 1:07 in after an absolutely beautiful play and set up by Patrice Bergeron. Matt Cooke broke up the shutout halfway through the 3rd after an unfortunate bounce on Seidenberg but great pass by Joe Vitale, more on him momentarily. It is always an aggravating feeling to see Matt Cooke playing this game while Marc Savard is at home, probably sitting in a dark room because of him. The Bruins once again showed the character of their team and their willingness to play for each other. Vitale, for the second straight rush, invaded Timmy's crease, this time bumping him and actually pushing down on Thomas's head. Like usual, 5 white sweaters were there immediately, gloves and sticks littering the ice. From the scrum emerged a nice lengthy bout between Soupy (Greg Campbell) and Vitale. Both combatants exchanged big blows, Vitale landing the final one before the arm weary warriors toppled to the ice. Whether or not you consider it a win or a loss for Campbell, there is no denying what it says about him as a teammate and person. Tim Thomas postgame echoed the value of the act, saying that Campbell's willingness to stand up for him was much appreciated. He went on to add that with this black and gold team, these acts are unsolicited. The Bruins do not need to be called out in the media and will not be made to look timid in their resolve to be there for each other, and to a man, this team believes in that. While the Bruins were heavily outshot 46-27, thanks in majority to some lengthy home cooking calls and a 23 shot 3rd period, the two teams were dead locked at 16 scoring chances a piece. The defenseman did a great job of forcing shots from the outside and keeping the lanes open for Timmy to track the rubber. He is currently riding a career best win streak at 10 in a row. The Bruins are on a 15 game point streak, going 14-0-1, their longest since the club went 17 games in a row without a loss back in 1983. The Bruins will embark on a nearly 1500 mile trip to Winnipeg for a Tuesday battle with the Jets before returning to the Garden to host the surging Panthers. This 3 game in 4 night trip will certainly test the Bruins, but they appear to be up to the challenge. Later start time tomorrow night, puck dropping around 8:30. Lets hope the boys can keep playing well and go after a new record streak of their own. Let's Go Black And Gold!
+
Thursday, December 1, 2011
B's End Historic Month On High Note
The Boston Bruins have ended November with their franchise best month since December of 1969. They are without a doubt the hottest team in the NHL. The Bruins were sitting in the basement when the calendar flipped to November, and knew that this month was going to be pivotal for them if they had any pipe dreams of a repeat hoist come summer. The black and gold answered their critics and themselves going 12-0-1, giving up only one of 26 possible points, that going to the western conference's Red Wings. Last night opened a home and home series with the division rival Maple Leafs up in Toronto, league leading point getter Phil Kessel once again entangled in the story lines. There was a lot of talk about how much this game meant to Toronto, who had gotten throttled on two earlier meetings with the Bruins to the tune of 13-2, including a 7-0 slashing on home ice. Still, Toronto found themselves at the top of the Northeast Division heading into the clash.
Both teams came out strong, with Toronto notching a PP tally from Grabovski to get the scoring started. Milan Lucic added a PP goal of his own to tie the game in a fast paced first which saw the Bruins have a slight edge in possession and shots, 17-16. Tim Thomas was once again a major factor, in the process adding to a career best win streak at 9 in a row. David Krejci opened the second period scoring with his fourth of the year. Joffrey Lupul tied it up a few minutes later before a Zdeno Chara put the Bruins ahead for good who has been red hot as of late with his 5th of the year. Three third period goals by the Bruins, Pouliot(3), Lucic(10) second of the night, and Marchand(9) added an empty netter, finished off the Maple Leafs in front of a sellout crowd. The score was not completely indicitive of the type of game played. It was a fast, physical, and even game up until about halfway through the third period, where not many teams can play with the Bruins. It definitely had a playoff feel to it, and it think it is safe to say Boston wants no part of helping Kessel with any success as they seem to have his number pretty well dialed up. Boston will be home at the Garden for the second half of this home and home Saturday night. The Leafs will want to extract some revenge, and once again the division lead will be up for grabs. Phaneuf should be a bit fired up due to some late game physicality he came out on the short end of, and I would not be surprised to see Colton Orr sitting on the visitors side. I expect another physical matchup with these two original six franchises.
With that, November is gone and this team will need to continue their hot streak if they want to stay in a playoff spot. The division lead looks to continue changing hands due to whoever has a night off, and the eight Eastern Conference playoff spots are separated by a measly 6 points, with 9,10,and 11 less than 13. December has not started off to bad though. We woke up this morning and learned that Timmy has been named the NHL first star for the entire month of November. To go along with that David Krejci has been inked to a three year extension. The news conference will be held at 1:00pm on NESN. I think this is a great move by Cam and Peter. There have been a lot of trade rumors lately involving David due to his slow start. It was my opinion that he was a franchise player and someone to continue to build your team around. Apparently management felt the same, and maybe the security of the contract will take some pressure off of 46 and he will get back to his normal level of play. For everyone keeping track, that is a huge UFA taken off the to do list come the off season. Big decisions are still to be made with Rask, Marchand, Lucic, and Horton set to come off the books. Happy Holidays and here's to the boys making this holiday season even more magical. It all starts Saturday night at 7:07. Let's Go Black and Gold!!
Both teams came out strong, with Toronto notching a PP tally from Grabovski to get the scoring started. Milan Lucic added a PP goal of his own to tie the game in a fast paced first which saw the Bruins have a slight edge in possession and shots, 17-16. Tim Thomas was once again a major factor, in the process adding to a career best win streak at 9 in a row. David Krejci opened the second period scoring with his fourth of the year. Joffrey Lupul tied it up a few minutes later before a Zdeno Chara put the Bruins ahead for good who has been red hot as of late with his 5th of the year. Three third period goals by the Bruins, Pouliot(3), Lucic(10) second of the night, and Marchand(9) added an empty netter, finished off the Maple Leafs in front of a sellout crowd. The score was not completely indicitive of the type of game played. It was a fast, physical, and even game up until about halfway through the third period, where not many teams can play with the Bruins. It definitely had a playoff feel to it, and it think it is safe to say Boston wants no part of helping Kessel with any success as they seem to have his number pretty well dialed up. Boston will be home at the Garden for the second half of this home and home Saturday night. The Leafs will want to extract some revenge, and once again the division lead will be up for grabs. Phaneuf should be a bit fired up due to some late game physicality he came out on the short end of, and I would not be surprised to see Colton Orr sitting on the visitors side. I expect another physical matchup with these two original six franchises.
With that, November is gone and this team will need to continue their hot streak if they want to stay in a playoff spot. The division lead looks to continue changing hands due to whoever has a night off, and the eight Eastern Conference playoff spots are separated by a measly 6 points, with 9,10,and 11 less than 13. December has not started off to bad though. We woke up this morning and learned that Timmy has been named the NHL first star for the entire month of November. To go along with that David Krejci has been inked to a three year extension. The news conference will be held at 1:00pm on NESN. I think this is a great move by Cam and Peter. There have been a lot of trade rumors lately involving David due to his slow start. It was my opinion that he was a franchise player and someone to continue to build your team around. Apparently management felt the same, and maybe the security of the contract will take some pressure off of 46 and he will get back to his normal level of play. For everyone keeping track, that is a huge UFA taken off the to do list come the off season. Big decisions are still to be made with Rask, Marchand, Lucic, and Horton set to come off the books. Happy Holidays and here's to the boys making this holiday season even more magical. It all starts Saturday night at 7:07. Let's Go Black and Gold!!
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