Nearly A Year Later, The B's Are One of the Top Teams in the NHL & The Habs are One of the Worst

Remember when it felt like the Bruins (25-10-8) could never quite seem to catch up with the Canadiens (18-21-6) both in terms of overall team speed up and down the ice and more importantly on the scoreboard? My oh my how things have changed recently as now Boston has won four straight games against lowly Montreal following tonight's easy 4-1 victory at TD Garden. Of course for Bruins fans, they'll never grow tired of seeing the Habs become a complete dumpster fire like this. After beating them 4-3 in a wild shootout at the Bell Centre on Saturday night, the B's let the Canadiens score the first goal before they slowly made them submit to another defeat. Even better, Boston can beat these jokers three times in eight days since they meet this Saturday night (7, NESN) in Montreal as well. Thanks, NHL schedule makers!

Faster than you could say Handsome Ralph, the Canadiens were up 1-0 as rookie defenseman Jakub Jerabek threw the puck at the net and it deflected in off Zdeno Chara just 31 seconds into regulation. Jerabek's first career NHL goal was assisted by Charles Hudon and Paul Byron. Montreal led the entire game for a grand total of 6:19 as Boston tied it up on a sweet passing play from Brad Marchand to Patrice Bergeron to David Pastrnak for the goal. Marchand was actually on his knees when he flung the puck to Bergeron who quickly dished it to Pastrnak (get it?!) for his 18th goal of the season. Against Isaiah Thomas and Paul Pierce's wishes, the Bruins showed a nice tribute video for Claude Julien that drew a huge ovation from the Garden crowd. See NBA, these things can be done with minimal drama and whining.

In soccer terms, both clubs enjoyed the benefit of an own goal as Ryan Spooner put the Bruins ahead 2-1 at 2:37 of the second period when his attempted pass went off the enigma known as Jonathan Drouin, by Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (28 saves; 13-15-4) and into the net. Spooner's sixth goal of the season was assisted by David Krejci and Jake DeBrusk. Not only is Montreal a terrible team but they are also boring to watch (unless you hate yourself) which is about the worst combination that you can be in sports. They were only down a goal going into the third period but once Marchand bagged a power play goal at 3:40 of the third period, it was basically over. His 19th goal of the season was assisted by Bergeron and Torey Krug. The final score actually could have been way more lopsided as three Bruins hit the crossbar or post (Noel Acciari, David Backes and Krejci) over the course of 60 minutes. Julien pulled Price for an extra attacker with a few minutes left since what the hell right? It predictably backfired immediately as Krejci (8th goal of the season) scored an empty-netter at 16:46 from Backes.

All in all it was a great day for the Black and Gold as they honored former Bruin Willie O'Ree on the 60th anniversary of his first NHL game (he broke the league's color barrier). PS how is he not already in the Hockey Hall of Fame? Boston mayor Marty Walsh declared tomorrow "Willie O'Ree Day" and the city is opening a street hockey rink in his honor which will be completed by this summer in Allston. The B's extended their point streak to 14 games (10-0-4) which is the longest in 2017-18 in the NHL and goaltender Tuukka Rask's (21 saves; 16-8-4) personal point streak reached 15 games (13-0-2) as well. Finally, after missing 36 games recovering from the broken leg that he suffered vs. Vancouver on October 19, veteran defenseman Adam McQuaid returned to action subbing in for Kevan Miller who has the bird flu or something.

The B's are right back at it tomorrow night (7, NESN) against the Islanders (23-19-4) at Barclays Center. New York is one point out of both Wild Card spots in the Eastern Conference so unlike the Canadiens, they have plenty to play for. That figures to be another start for Anton Khudobin (9-2-4) with Rask getting the Canadiens once more on Saturday. If it ain't broke, don't fix it right? So while we chuckle at Julien circling the drain in Montreal (again), realize that these Bruins under head coach Bruce Cassidy are a real force in the East. This is probably looking too far ahead (but what else do you want to hear in mid-January?) but with a few breaks going their way, the Bruins could make this spring a real memorable one for Boston sports teams and I'm not just talking about the Celtics.

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Patrice Bergeron Returns to Save the Day for the Bruins as They Romp the Canucks 6-3

It was a great night to be Patrice Bergeron's agent as the Bruins (3-3-0) center made his 2017-18 debut with a vengeance: he had a goal and three assists (his 5th career 4-point game) as the B's returned to TD Garden and beat the lowly Canucks (2-3-1) 6-3. After losing to Malcolm Subban in their last game and coming off a very uneven 1-2 road trip, the Bruins were in desperate need of a complete performance and luckily for them Vancouver-who has to be one of the worst teams in the NHL-was on the schedule at just the right time.

Tuukka Rask was diagnosed with a concussion today after a collision at practice yesterday with rookie Anders Bjork. Anton Khudobin (26 saves) picked up his second win of the season and the Canucks actually scored first as Derek Dorsett used a knuckle puck type shot to beat Khudobin at 2:58 of the first period. Michael Del Zotto and Christopher Tanev assisted on Dorsett's second goal of the season. It didn't take long for Boston to wake up as Bjork cleaned up a rebound 31 seconds later for his second goal of the season. Bergeron and Brad Marchand had the assists on their rookie linemate's tally.

If you are a Canucks fan, and my sincere apologies if you call yourself that, you can easily pin this loss on one stupid guy: Erik Gudbranson. He hit Frank Vatrano from behind, leading to a fight with Tim Schaller. When the smoke had cleared, Gudbranson was tagged with a boarding major and a game-misconduct. The Bruins proceeded to reel off three power-play goals on the same five-minute major penalty for the first time since Oct. 28, 1998 (vs. Montreal). First David Pastrnak undressed Vancouver's sorry defense for a 2-1 Boston lead at 9:03, his fourth goal of the season. 23 seconds after that, Bjork took a feed from David Krejci and beat poor Anders Nilsson (4 goals allowed, 13 saves) top-shelf for a 3-1 B's advantage. Charlie McAvoy had the second assist. Finally, Krejci made it 4-1 at 10:40 after a juicy rebound from Nilsson (whose night ended after that). David's first goal of the season was assisted by Bergeron and Kenny Agostino (his 1st point in Black and Gold).

Up 4-1 after the first frame, Boston continued to pile it on in the second as Marchand sniped one past backup goaltender Jacob Markstrom (2 goals allowed, 16 saves). Bjork and Bergeron had the helpers as Marchand bolstered his four-game point streak. Other than Dorsett's goal, the Canucks showed only a brief glimpse of life in the second as they cut it to 5-3. Bruins killer Thomas Vanek who will no doubt still be scoring goals against them when he's living in a retirement home tipped in a power-play goal at 16:06. Sam Gagner and Del Zotto assisted on Vanek's third goal of the season. Bo Horvat, who honestly might be Vancouver's best player at the moment, tallied a goal 34 seconds later to cause some panic in the Garden crowd on Hockey Fights Cancer night.

Fittingly Bergeron put this one away for good with Boston's fourth power-play goal of the contest (matching their total from the first 5 games combined) midway through the third period at 11:53. Pastrnak and Marchand notched the assists on Bergeron's first goal of the campaign. David Backes also made his first appearance of the season for the B's and while he didn't record any points, like Bergeron he is known as one of the vocal leaders on the team. Adam McQuaid continued to display incredible toughness as well, blocking two shots on a late third period Vancouver power play before he had to be grabbed by Backes and pushed towards the bench by Zdeno Chara since he was gliding on one leg. Still, I'll bet that McQuaid suits up on Saturday (7, NESN) vs. Buffalo (1-4-2) since he didn't miss any time despite blocking a monster slap shot by former Bruin Colin Miller on Sunday night in Vegas. This was a nice way for Boston to kick off their four-game homestand, now they need to put together their first win-streak of 2017-18.

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Bruins Sweep Their Pivotal 3-Game Homestand with Resounding 4-0 Victory vs. Montreal

Remember like a week ago when we were all resigned to the fact that the Bruins (29-23-6) weren't going anywhere this season? The inevitable firing of head coach Claude Julien finally happened on Tuesday and that was one of the only real interesting facets left in 2016-17. As my old pal Lee Corso loves to say on ESPN's College GameDay, "not so fast, my friend!" In case you haven't noticed, the B's look like a completely different team these last three games under interim head coach Bruce Cassidy. Tonight, they beat Montreal (31-19-8) 4-0 at TD Garden as they go into their NHL-designated bye week with a three-game win streak (tying a season-high) and a whole new outlook on life. Perhaps the best part was after the beating when Canadiens goaltender Carey Price admitted that "we seem to have lost our identity." That is one beautiful quote from the best player of the team that I hate more than any other in pro sports.

It's hard to fathom how the same group of underachieving guys can suddenly turn into a quality team: knocking off the Sharks, Canucks and the Canadiens in the span of four nights. Boston improved to a season-best two games over .500 at the Garden (15-13-0) and they also ended with a split of the four-game season series with Montreal. Tuukka Rask (25 saves, 6th shutout of the season) actually notched his first ever win vs. the Canadiens in Boston (he had been 0-9-3 before that). The heated rivals are going in opposite directions as the Canadiens fell to 3-6-1 in their last 10 games while the Bruins improved to 6-4-0 in their last 10.

Obviously it's way too early to explain why Cassidy's team is superior to Julien's but there are a few interesting trends to point out: the power play which was good under Claude has stayed red-hot with goals in each of their last eight games (11 for 30, 36.7%) while Boston's defensemen have been frequently activated and in turn, contributing way more offensively (adding 2 more goals tonight including Zdeno Chara's 1st shorthanded goal since 2011). From the start, this felt like an old Bruins-Canadiens game when the rivalry was entertaining and unpredictable. Torey Krug and Andrew Shaw fought 58 seconds into the proceedings, settling a longstanding beef from the last matchup.

Adam McQuaid started the scoring with what quite possibly was the prettiest goal of his NHL career (in his 400th game). His one-timer (2nd goal of the season) was assisted by rookie Peter Cehlarik (1st NHL point) and Torey Krug at 8:57 of the first period on what looked like a set play of sorts off of a faceoff win by the B's in Montreal's defensive zone. Boston's penalty kill unit (6 for 6) was great all night, especially late in the first when they had to negate a two-man advantage for 1:37. The Bruins' special teams were the story in the second period as well with Zdeno Chara of all people dangling around Alexander Radulov for a shocking shorthanded goal at 5:08 (his 5th of the season was assisted by Ryan Spooner and Brad Marchand) and then David Krejci finished a beautiful sequence of touch passing on the power play with David Backes and Cehlarik registering helpers on his 14th goal of the season at 15:05.

Both teams had played yesterday (Boston is now 2-6-2 in Game 2s of back-to-backs while Montreal is 6-4-2) but it was still a bit surprising that Price didn't get pulled either after the second period with his team lifeless and trailing 3-0 or when Frank Vatrano put in a lucky bounce off the boards (after Krejci's one-timer from David Pastrnak missed the net) for his eighth goal of the season at 5:00 of the third period. This being the Habs, they were up to their usual low rent tricks as Nathan Beaulieu gave Chara a Milan Lucic memorial nut tap late in the second and Alex Galchenyuk hit Kevan Miller with a high-stick right in the face (which drew blood for a double-minor) late in the third. Miller fought Mike McCarron in garbage time with the funniest part being that McCarron was sent straight back to the AHL after the game. Happy trails, you bum!

The Bruins are tied with the Canadiens and Jets for the most games played so far this season so I'm sure that they are happy to get a rest. They are off through Friday and they will practice on Saturday in San Jose before facing the Sharks (34-18-5) on Sunday night (8:30, NBC Sports). That tilt kicks off a four-game road trip in California (Anaheim and Los Angeles) before they end in Dallas (22-25-10) two weeks from now on February 26 (12:30, NESN). Boston's next home game isn't until February 28 (7, NESN) vs. Arizona (18-28-7) so let's hope that they are still the quality road team (14-10-6) from earlier this season under Julien.

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In Boston, The Capitals Leave No Doubt As To Who the Best Team in the NHL is at the Moment

Unlike the pitiful effort that they displayed in Friday's disgraceful 5-1 loss to Montreal in the Winter Classic at Gillette Stadium, at least tonight at TD Garden the Bruins (20-14-4) showed some sense of pride. The problem was that they were facing the Capitals (29-7-3), who in case you have been living under a rock happen to be the top team in the league, so they came up short once again 3-2. Boston has lost five out of its last six games as they depart for a pivotal five-game road trip beginning on Friday (7, NESN) in New Jersey.

Joonas Kemppainen returned after missing 11 games with an upper-body injury but Adam McQuaid left early in the second period with what had to be a concussion after Zach Sill boarded him. There was no call on the play but McQuaid appeared to be knocked out after going face-first into the glass. That meant that the Bruins had to play with five defensemen for more than half of the contest. Don't forget that David Krejci remains out with his upper-body injury, Brad Marchand was out (2nd game of his 3-game suspension) and David Pastrnak is back from the World Juniors Championships but for now playing in Providence.

Spotting a 2-0 lead to the Capitals made things infinitely more tough for the goal-challenged Black and Gold. Andre Burakovsky one-timed a pretty cross-ice feed from Evgeny Kuznetsov at 15:01 of the first period. My man Aaron Ness had the second assist on Burakovsky's fourth goal of the season. Kuznetsov doubled Washington's lead at 12:40 of the second period with a power play strike. He walked right in and ripped a shot over Rask's shoulder. Nicklas Backstrom and Matt Niskanen assisted on Kuznetsov's 13th goal of the season.

Scoring two goals against Braden Holtby (25 saves) is a big accomplishment since he's been the best goaltender in the NHL. He is 17-0-2 in his last 19 decisions and if they had the vote right now, he would be a front-runner for the Vezina Trophy (MVP). Loui Eriksson got Boston on the board at 15:26, Brett Connolly and Patrice Bergeron assisted on his 14th goal of the season. When Marcus Johansson put in a loose puck at 10:41 of the third period for a 3-1 Washington lead, you knew that it was over. Dmitry Orlov's shot from the point hit the post and Nate Schmidt had the second assist on Johansson's 10th goal of the season. The Capitals have seven guys with 10+ goals this season, I doubt that any other club can top that.

After Washington's No. 2 power play came through, Boston's No. 1 power play made its presence felt too as Patrice Bergeron scored at 11:52 of the third to cut it to 3-2. Ryan Spooner and Torey Krug assisted on Bergeron's 15th goal of the season (tying him with Marchand for the team lead). Boston fell to 9-11-2 at home in 2015-16 while they are 11-3-2 on the road. They have to hope that bizarre road success carries over the next few weeks since after New Jersey, they'll be in Ottawa on Saturday (7, NESN) night. They are at the Rangers on Monday (7, NESN), at the Flyers on Wednesday (8, NBCSN) and wrap things up in Buffalo on Friday (7, NESN). Even in their current state of disarray, they should win at least two of those matchups. For what it's worth, if the playoffs started today Washington would face Boston. Scary stuff indeed.

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Bruins Blank Free-Falling Penguins 3-0, Tuukka Rask Picks Up His 4th Shutout of the Season

There were only two games in the NHL tonight so that meant much of the hockey world got to see two teams on national TV (NBCSN) that are headed in opposite directions. Boston (17-9-4) beat Pittsburgh (15-12-3) 3-0 at TD Garden behind 34 saves by goaltender Tuukka Rask for his fourth shutout of the season (tied for NHL lead) and 30th of his career. Seven different Bruins had points, led by Jimmy Hayes and Ryan Spooner who each put up a goal and an assist. These same teams will be back at it on Friday (7, NESN) at Consol Energy Center.

Boston is 6-1-3 in its last 10 games and this win vaulted them into second-place in the Atlantic Division (tied with Detroit, with 1 game in hand) and fifth-place in the Eastern Conference. Conversely, Pittsburgh is stuck in fifth-place in the Metropolitan Division and 11th-place in the East. The Penguins have suffered an epic bout of injuries, terrible luck and general poor karma that tends to permeate around bad teams. Still, with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel in the fold, it's hard to believe that the Penguins could be tied with the Maple Leafs for the third fewest goals scored (68) so far this season in the league.

Even early on, you had a feeling that it was the Bruins' night when Max Talbot of all people scored his first ever goal for Boston (in his 29th game) at 9:52 of the first period. Adam McQuaid and Hayes assisted on Talbot's goal that was a snipe (haha for him at least) over poor Jeff Zatkoff's (26 saves) glove. Boston doubled its lead at 4:00 of the second period when Spooner's pass bounced in ever so slightly off of Hayes who drove to the net just as Bruins head coach Claude Julien had told him to. New Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan (formerly of the Bruins, BU and Marshfield MA) challenged it to see if Hayes interfered with Zatkoff but he didn't so it held up. Colin Miller had the second assist on Hayes' fifth goal of the season (the former BC star had just 1 assist in his last 14 games).

Pittsburgh dominated the second period, outshooting Boston 18-4, but they had nothing to show for it. That had to be extremely frustrating for the Penguins and each club seemed to basically go through the motions in the third period. Spooner clinched it with the ultra-rare power play/empty-net combo platter goal at 17:17. Patrice Bergeron (6-game point streak) and Loui Eriksson assisted on Spooner's eighth goal of the season.

Adam McQuaid escaped serious injury in the second after he took a wayward puck to his face. He skated off quickly with his hand over his mouth and headed straight to the dressing room for some repairs. There were some chippy plays on both sides but only four penalties were called on Pittsburgh and three on Boston with no fights (maybe since Zac Rinaldo went on IR yesterday). Expect that to change on Friday, especially if Pittsburgh is losing again and in desperate need of a spark.

Rask has been on fire lately, he is 7-0-2 in his last nine games with a 1.36 goals against average, .955 save percentage and three shutouts. He's playing his best hockey of the season along with most of his teammates. It only took nearly 2.5 months but Boston is finally .500 at home (7-7-2) this season, haha progress! They remain one of the best road teams (10-2-2) in the NHL while Pittsburgh is 8-5-2 at home. It's hard to say with a straight face that any game before Christmas is a must-win in the NHL but if the Penguins have any pride, Friday is basically that.

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Loui Eriksson's Third Career Hat Trick (1st With Boston) Leads Bruins to A 4-2 Win Over Wild

In his third year in Boston and most importantly, with a clean bill of health, Loui Eriksson has been the Bruins' most consistent player so far this season. Tonight, he was rewarded with his third career hat trick (1st for the Bruins) as the B's (9-8-1) beat the Wild (10-5-3) 4-2 at TD Garden. Boston is 2-2 on its longest homestand of the season with the finale on Saturday night (7, NESN) vs. Toronto (6-9-4). This victory improved their wretched home record to 3-6-1.

Jonas Gustavsson (4-1-0) made his first start as a Bruin at the Garden and it was a good one since he had 24 saves to earn the third star of the game. Given how bad Tuukka Rask has been and the fact that Gustavsson hadn't played in nearly two weeks (11/7 at Montreal was his last outing) created an easy decision for Bruins head coach Claude Julien. I have no doubt that Rask will be back in between the pipes on Saturday but Gustavsson should be in action again on Monday when Boston travels to Toronto.

The Bruins still have the worst penalty kill in the NHL but it took a step forward tonight. They killed a Minnesota power play that started less than a minute into the game and went 3-for-3 for the duration of the contest. Brad Marchand made it 1-0 Boston at 5:30 when he wrapped around the net and beat Devan Dubnyk (34 saves) after Brett Connolly's shot from the slot had missed the net. It was Marchand's seventh goal of the season.

Boston showed some toughness (something which has been rare for them this season) as Matt Beleskey fought Brett Bulmer four seconds after Marchand's goal. Apparently it was a spur of the moment thing because Bulmer is a nobody who was just playing in his second NHL game of the year. Ryan Spooner had a great chance on a 2-on-1 late in the frame but his shot hit the crossbar.

The Bruins had a two-man advantage for 1:16 but they weren't able to convert as Dubnyk made a couple great saves. Jason Zucker tied it at 5:12 of the second period after Gustavsson gave him a juicy rebound. Mikko Koivu and Nino Niederreiter assisted on Zucker's sixth goal of the season. Rookie Frank Vatrano got crushed along the boards by Minnesota defenseman Nate Prosser, he went to the dressing room and never returned because of he suffered a concussion (no word on the severity).

Loui's hat trick was the first for a Bruin since David Krejci's in 2014 (March 4, 2014 vs. Tim Thomas and Florida) and the fastest since Brad Boyes in 2006 (March 18 vs. Carolina). The Swede got it started when his centering pass to Connolly at 7:37 went off a Wild skate and in the net. Krejci and McQuaid assisted on Eriksson's seventh goal of the season. For a guy that's not particularly big or strong, Eriksson does a nice job of going to the net and using his hands to score many goals. He struck on the power play (Boston's PP remains No. 1 in the NHL) in that fashion at 11:21, assisted by Patrice Bergeron and Torey Krug.

The Wild were playing in the final game of a four-game road trip without their star Zach Parise but they showed some heart by cutting it to 3-2 at 13:37 of the second. Jordan Schroeder tipped Ryan Suter's wrist shot from the point with the other assist going to Ryan Carter. One crazy note on Suter: he leads the NHL in ice time and he played 32:36 (32 shifts!) tonight. He must be a cyborg, that's not human.

Eriksson finished the hat trick at 4:14 of the third period with a one-timer from Krejci and Beleskey. Ironically, he and Tyler Seguin have the same amount of hat tricks at the Garden in 2015-16. For two teams that rarely see each other, there was some nastiness particularly at the end when Colin Miller got a game misconduct after a large scrum. After the final whistle, Zucker had to be helped off following a seemingly innocent tap by Beleskey behind his knee. I have no idea if he typically embellishes stuff but you would have thought that he broke his leg or something, very strange scene.

Not that it should matter since the Maple Leafs are still one of the worst teams in the league but Toronto is at Carolina (6-10-2) tomorrow night before coming to Boston. I've said it before and it hasn't happened thus far but this little stretch here before Thanksgiving is a perfect time for the B's to put a win streak together. We shall see, the first part is to win back-to-back games at home-a simple task which they haven't successfully completed yet this season.

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The Jekyll & Hyde Bruins Continue to Mystify Us

If you are trying to make sense of the Bruins through the first seven games of this season, don't bother because it'll only give you an ice cream headache. Boston (3-3-1) won 5-3 tonight at Barclays Center against the Islanders (4-2-1) who are supposed to be one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. The B's improved to 3-0 on the road while backup goaltender Jonas Gustavsson (23 saves) earned his second win in as many starts. Haha trade Tuukka! (Just kidding of course).

What's more strange is that head coach Claude Julien shuffled up the forward lines for once and they paid immediate dividends as Ryan Spooner (1 goal, 1 assist) and rookie Joonas Kemppainen (1 goal, 1 assist) each had two points on the rejiggered fourth line. Another good sign for Boston is that they rallied from down 2-1 in the first period (when it could have been worse since they were outshot 18-8) but recovered to go ahead in the second period and then continued to build on that in the third period before New York scored in garbage time.

Brett Connolly opened the scoring with his second goal of the season and in as many contests. He actually beat Islanders superstar John Tavares to a loose puck and slammed in the rebound at 9:51 of the first. Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron had the assists on their temporary linemate's tally (Matt Beleskey remained out with an upper-body injury). Marchand took a needless hooking penalty and New York cashed in on the power-play as Josh Bailey put in a rebound of his own at 14:08. Tavares and Ryan Strome had the assists on Bailey's third goal of the season.

A crazy sequence began at 15:27 when Casey Cizikas tipped in Johnny Boychuk's pass by Gustavsson for what turned out to be New York's only lead, 2-1. Matt Martin had the other assist on Cizikas' goal and after the play, he dropped the gloves with Adam McQuaid. This is where I'm supposed to bitch about fighting having no place in today's NHL but I'd say that it at least settled down the frazzled Bruins who had allowed two goals in 1:19.

Kemppainen fittingly was rewarded with his first NHL goal after some excellent backchecking caused a Bruins-style turnover in New York's end. Jaroslav Halak (21 saves) stopped Spooner's initial shot but the big Finn was there to score on the second chance at 16:13 of the second period. That turned things in Boston's favor as David Pastrnak made it 3-2 Bruins 2:03 after it. He showed off his creativity and impressive skills by kicking the puck with his skate to his stick where he shot it into the corner through traffic. Loui Eriksson had the lone assist on Pastrnak's second goal of the season (his 1st since Opening Night).

Spooner has often been in Julien's doghouse the last two seasons so it was nice to see him get a bounce to go his way rather than the opposite unintended consequence. He had a clear lane at Halak with his backhand but he chose to pass it to a trailing Kemppainen. The puck went off an Islanders' skate and into the net at 8:09 of the third period. Halak was pulled for an extra attacker with nearly three minutes left in regulation (why not?) but Krejci potted an empty-netter for his league-leading 12th point (5 goals, 7 assists). He has a point in every game so far in 2015-16. Eriksson and McQuaid had the helpers.

The Bruins get a couple days to relax in Boston before they host Arizona (3-3-1) on Tuesday (7, NESN) at TD Garden. The B's beat the Coyotes 5-3 last Saturday in Glendale, AZ. Since winning their first three games of the season, Arizona has predictably dropped its last four. Additionally, they are in Ottawa (3-2-2) tomorrow night and Toronto (1-3-2) on Monday so Boston is the last stop on a six-game road trip. In other words, they should be exhausted and the Bruins have no excuse but to beat them and pick up their first long overdue home win.

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Maybe There Is a Method to Don Sweeney's Madness After All

This is such a wasteland on the American sports calendar every year and it certainly doesn't help when the Red Sox are so unwatchable and irrelevant by the middle of May. I'm trying to (partially) rationalize why we tend to overreact to any significant trades involving our local teams that come at this extremely dull point of the summer. Case in point, the Bruins last week looked like a drunken mess as they traded Carl Soderberg to Colorado for a sixth-round pick, Dougie Hamilton to Calgary for three picks and Milan Lucic to Los Angeles for Martin Jones, a minor league defenseman and a pick. We wondered, "what the hell is Don Sweeney doing?" He doubled up on the crazy by rewarding mediocre defenseman Adam McQuaid with a four-year contract.

For a change from last week's constant drama and unending questions, today brought some sense of clarity for the Black and Gold. First, they signed coveted free agent left wing Matt Beleskey to a five-year deal worth $19 million. He's the exact same age-down to the day-as Lucic (27) but unlike the former Bruin, his career trajectory seems to be trending upwards. Last season, he put up a career-best 22 goals in the regular season (65 games) followed by eight goals in the postseason for Anaheim. Granted playing with Cory Perry and Ryan Getzlaf would turn almost anyone into a 20-goal scorer but Beleskey similarly should bring size (206 pounds), toughness and the left-handed shot that they were looking for. Put him with David Krejci and David Pastrnak or Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand then we might have something.

Sweeney won more support by trading away oft-criticized forward Reilly Smith and Marc Savard's $4 million cap hit to Florida for former BC star and Dorchester native Jimmy Hayes. Smith scored 20 goals two seasons ago but that went down to only 13 this past campaign. That coupled with the fact that he does literally nothing else made him easily expendable. I would normally bitch about the Bruins giving him that silly extension last year but I'm tired so oh well. Hayes' numbers were pretty similar to Smith's last season (19 goals, 16 assists) and his huge frame (6-foot-6, 221 pounds) should help the Bruins crash the net better (something that nobody consistently does for them).

Now it's time to sign some NHL-caliber top-six defensemen since at the moment, Boston has like four that they can reasonably count on: Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Torey Krug and McQuaid (kind of). Matt Bartkowski signed a one-year deal with Vancouver and Gregory Campbell agreed to a two-year deal with Columbus; needless to say after their rough performances last season, most Bruins fans aren't sad to see those two leave town.

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Bruins Squeak Out a 2-1 Overtime Win at Hurricanes, Thanks to Pastrnak & Rask

It was a great day overall for the Bruins (38-25-13): rookie David Pastrnak was the hero as they pulled out a thrilling 2-1 overtime win at Carolina (28-36-11) tonight at half-empty PNC Arena. Meanwhile, Florida (35-26-15) helped them out big-time by winning 4-2 at Ottawa (37-26-12). That put Boston back into eighth-place in the Eastern Conference, three points ahead of the Senators (who still have a game in hand).

The Panthers are four points behind Boston but on another positive note, the B's are only three points behind the Red Wings and Capitals. Most importantly, now they truly control their own playoff destiny from here on out. Boston got all four points that it needed this weekend with back-to-back wins (something they've struggled to attain) against the Rangers and Hurricanes; going back to Thursday vs. Anaheim, five points out of six is not bad for three games in four days.

Tuukka Rask (31-19-12) returned from his scary bout with a migraine headache on Saturday to make 30 saves and earn the win. Rookies scored both goals for the Bruins as Ryan Spooner beat former Boston backup goaltender Anton Khudobin (29 saves) with a quick and low just 2:21 into the tilt. Pastrnak and Adam McQuaid assisted on Spooner's seventh tally of the season.

As they have too often to count this season, Boston let an inferior team hang around and it cost them (at least temporarily). Former BC star Nathan Gerbe used a top-shelf shot to put one past Rask with 22 seconds left in the second period, tying it at one apiece. Chris Terry and Harvard's Danny Biega assisted on Gerbe's eighth goal of the season.

Both teams hit the post and each went 0 for 3 on the power play so it was not a surprise to see it proceed to overtime. Pastrnak's 10th goal of the season had to be one of the most memorable in his young life. Through traffic and without more than a quick glance, Carl Soderberg's backhand pass went right to his tape and he proceeded to crush a one-timer low between Khudobin's five-hole. Torey Krug had the second assist on Pastrnak's third game-winning goal of the season (tied for 3rd most on the team).

For all intents and purposes, Tuesday (7, NESN) could serve as a virtual elimination game for the Panthers. If Boston beats them in regulation at TD Garden, Florida would be six points back with only five games left in the regular season. That's not impossible to overcome but rather unlikely. The B's have no choice but to keep their heads down and to try to keep grinding out results in the final few weeks of their 2014-15 campaign.

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Bruins Repeatedly Puke on Their Skates, Fall 2-1 in Shootout vs. Sabres-The NHL's Worst Team

Boston's (36-23-11) 2-1 shootout loss to Buffalo (20-43-7) on Tuesday at TD Garden is exactly the type of result that keeps a team one point out of the playoffs in a month. The Bruins are still in decent shape (up 3 points on Ottawa) for eighth-place in the Eastern Conference but when you play the worst club in the NHL at home (in their second leg of a back-to-back), you have to get two points.

What made matters worse for the B's is that they had 95 shots (45 on goal, 28 blocked and 22 missed the net) while holding the Sabres to only 47 (24 on goal, 10 blocked & 13 missed the net). Anders Lindback (3-11-2) picked up his first win for Buffalo and first as a starter this season (he had 2 in relief with Dallas), so at least we can say that Boston was part of NHL history in that respect. Tuukka Rask was out with "general soreness," haha really. It was the perfect time for Niklas Svedberg (7-5-1; 23 saves) to make his once-a-month start and he was fine since he could mostly nap during play-Buffalo had 10 shots through the first two periods.

It looked like it was going to be a St. Patrick's Day laugher when Loui Eriksson scored at 9:55 of the first period for an early 1-0 Bruins advantage. Adam McQuaid's shot went off the end boards and took a weird bounce right to Eriksson in front of the net. Other than empty-netters, Boston won't get an easier goal this season than Eriksson's 18th of the season. Carl Soderberg had the other assist, his first point in seven games while McQuaid snapped a 23-game scoreless streak. I won't mention that Soderberg hasn't scored a goal in exactly two months but oops, I just did!

Even though the B's must have set a season-high in shots and also zone time (good luck keeping track of that), you had a terrible feeling that Buffalo would somehow win when they could never extend their lead. The inevitable happened after they let the Sabres hang around: Buffalo tied it at 1:23 of the third period. Rasmus Ristolainen's power-play shot from the point went off Matt Bartkowski's skate and through Svedberg's five-hole because of course. Ristolainen's fifth goal of the season was assisted by BC's Brian Gionta and Johan Larsson.

Boston got more pressure in overtime, outshooting Buffalo 7-3, but when it went to a shootout you knew they wouldn't win. The Bruins beat the Lightning in a shootout last Thursday to snap a seven-game losing streak in them but they came in 3-7 overall this season while Buffalo improved to 8-5 in the novelty format. Tyler Ennis had the lone shootout goal as Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and Torey Krug all failed to get the job done.

This completed a three-games-in-four-nights stretch for the B's with another beginning on Thursday (7:30, NESN) at Ottawa (34-24-11). Needless to say, that is the biggest contest of the season thus far. Then it's off to Florida (31-25-14) on Saturday night (7, NESN) followed by Tampa Bay (43-21-7) on Sunday night (5, NESN). Boston only has twelve games left in the regular season: the Senators and Panthers represent their remaining competition for the second Wild Card while the Lightning are a team they could see in the first round of the postseason (assuming that they make it).

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Bruins Tie Season-Best Win Streak (5 games) With a 3-0 Shutout of the Rangers

Things can change pretty fast in the NHL. A few weeks ago, the Bruins were circling the drain in the Eastern Conference and looked headed for the Draft Lottery in the spring rather than the playoffs. Now, they are playing like what we all thought they would be this season: one of the main contenders. Boston (24-15-6) won their fifth straight game (tying a season-high), 3-0 tonight at TD Garden vs. the Rangers (24-13-4).

Tuukka Rask made 30 saves for his second shutout of the season and 25th of his NHL career. Three different Bruins scored goals-all even-strength-as Boston flexed their muscles against what had been the hottest team not only in the East but in the entire league. Patrice Bergeron didn't wait long to give the B's an early lead as he followed up Dougie Hamilton's shot and knocked in the rebound at 4:00 of the first period. Bergeron is second on the team with 11 goals.

David Krejci doubled Boston's lead in the second period, Torey Krug found him for an easy tip-in that looked straight out of practice. Poor Cam Talbot (29 saves) didn't have a chance as Krejci potted his sixth goal of the season with Adam McQuaid picking up the second assist. Speaking of McQuaid, he stood up for David Pastrnak after Ivy League educated (Dartmouth) goon Tanner Glass was slashing the rookie on the back of his leg.

Things only get more chippy in the third period when former BC star Chris Kreider boarded Carl Soderberg. Chris Kelly ended up tangling with Kreider, who came out of the scrap with a cut on his chin. Boston put it away a few minutes later as Loui Eriksson roofed a pretty shot by Talbot from in close. His 10th goal of the season (8th straight season of 10+ goals, most on the Bruins) was assisted by Krug and Kevan Miller.

Saturday's meeting (7, NESN) at the Garden is the third of four this season between the Bruins and Blue Jackets. Boston won 4-3 in a shootout at Columbus on November 21 then returned there right after Christmas break for a disgraceful 6-2 loss on December 27 (their lowest point of the season). The Blue Jackets (18-20-3) are in 14th place (out of 16) in the East and 13 points behind the Rangers for eighth-place. In other words, expect some payback by the home team.

It's also the last home game for the Bruins before the All-Star break, they play two games on the road next week before they get some real time off. Tonight's two points put Boston two ahead of the Rangers. Believe it or not, the B's are only six points behind Tampa Bay who is still the top club in the Eastern Conference. They might have been off the rails for a while but now Boston has a chance to get back to where they belong with plenty of games left in the regular season.

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David Pastrnak Scores His 1st 2 NHL Goals, Bruins Beat Flyers 3-1 for Their 3rd Straight Win

You might have missed it but some significant things happened in Boston's routine 3-1 win over Philadelphia this afternoon at Wells Fargo Center. The headline of the victory for the Bruins (22-15-6) was that rookie David Pastrnak scored his first two career NHL goals. Seeing his skill and talent on the ice is a breath of fresh air for a team that has needed a boost of energy all season.

Tuukka Rask (24 saves) almost had a shutout and Chris Kelly scored a shorthanded goal as Boston put together its first three-game win streak since before Thanksgiving (third overall). I don't know what it is about the Flyers (16-19-7) but the B's typically dominate them and this season they happen to be pretty down. Boston beat them 2-1 on Opening Night and now they finish the three-game season series on March 7 in Boston.

You knew it was going to be a weird game when Adam McQuaid fought Nick Schultz seven seconds into the proceedings. McQuaid was being a good teammate and standing up for Daniel Paille who got crushed on a hit by Schultz in the neutral zone. McQuaid got a 10-minute misconduct and also an extra two minutes for instigating but Boston was able to kill the penalties.

That was nothing compared to Philadelphia goaltender Steve Mason getting hurt later in the frame and having to be replaced by Ray Emery. Pastrnak's first goal wasn't anything special (in terms of showcasing his ability), it was just a simple tap-in following a rebound. Torey Krug and Zdeno Chara assisted on the power play strike.

After a blah Saturday afternoon second period where nobody scored and nothing happened, things thankfully picked up in the third. Boston broke it up and put it away with a one-timer by Pastrnak (from David Krejci and McQuaid) at 4:58 followed by Kelly's top-shelf shorty (his 5th goal of the season) at 9:51 from Loui Eriksson and Chara.

The only time all game that the Flyers showed any real signs of life came on Giroux's power play goal at 14:13. It was his type of move and low shot from the slot that beat Rask, assisted by Mark Streit and Jakub Voracek (the leading scorer in the NHL).

Boston returns to the Garden for the next week as they host Tampa Bay (27-12-4)-the top team in the East-on Tuesday (7, NESN), the hottest team in the league the Rangers (24-11-4; 9-1-0 in their last 10 games) on Thursday (7, NESN) and then Columbus closes it out on Saturday (7, NESN). Those are three Eastern Conference clubs that Boston will be competing with for a playoff spot, OK maybe the Blue Jackets not so much but this is still a time to put a real good stretch together for the Black and Gold.

After the game, Patrice Bergeron was named to the first All-Star game in his career (10 years in the NHL). It'll be great to see him enjoying the festivities, he's earned it. Sadly no other Bruins made it (at least before replacements come in for injuries and what not).

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Rask Gets His 1st Shutout of the Season as Bruins Blank Blues 2-0

With one of the best teams in the NHL visiting TD Garden to kick off a huge week, the Bruins picked a good time to play their preferred style of hockey. Boston (12-8-0) shut out St. Louis (12-5-1) 2-0 behind 33 saves by Tuukka Rask for his first shutout of the season (and 24th of his career). Every game seems to bring a different lineup and this was no different as Brad Marchand was scratched but David Krejci returned to action. Through it all, the B's have won six straight games at home.

St. Louis outshot Boston 33-17 which is a little more disparity than the Bruins would prefer but their penalty kill did go 2 for 2. Patrice Bergeron was the recipient of a gift in the first period as Ian Cole's clearing attempt went right to him. Even worse (for the Blues), Brian Elliott (15 saves) was out of position-behind the net-so all Bergy had to do was slot it in the empty cage for his fifth goal of the season. That gives him four goals and five assists in his past eight games.

Boston's other goal had some Cole on it as well since Torey Krug's shot from the point deflected off Cole's knee by Elliott. Matt Bartkowski and Loui Eriksson assisted on Krug's third goal of the season (first since Oct. 21; he missed 4 games). Zach Trotman was sent back to Providence earlier in the day and Adam McQuaid left in the second period after taking a shot off his hand so Bartkowski's role suddenly got that much more important. Since he returned on Saturday vs. Carolina (after 7 DNDs in a row), Bartkowski has looked like a different, more confident guy. Tonight, he was +2 with one hit and one takeaway in 20:52. He'll never be an All-Star or on a top defensive pairing (at least not here) but the B's needed him to be better and he's starting to turn the corner.

The Blues outshot the Bruins 15-3 in the third period but many of those chances were from the outside. Both teams took their timeouts late in the frame and despite a huge advantage in offensive zone time all game, St. Louis could never find the back of the net even when they took Elliott out with a couple minutes left.

Boston travels to Columbus (6-11-1) for the rare Friday night (7, NESN) NHL game. The Blue Jackets are a disaster: in last place in the Metropolitan Division and only one point ahead of the Sabres after getting smoked 5-0 tonight vs. Detroit. The next night (7, NESN), the B's host the Canadiens (14-5-1) and then on Monday (7, NESN) the Penguins (13-3-1) come to the Garden. The Bruins passed their first test and Friday is a good chance to tune up their road record (4-4-0) while giving Niklas Svedberg a start. It's all about Montreal and Pittsburgh, two great litmus tests for Boston before Thanksgiving.

UPDATE 11/19: McQuaid is out for 6-8 weeks after breaking his thumb last night. Poor guy, like last year when he was hurt, the B's have Kevan Miller who is a suitable McQuaid replacement.

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Losing to the Sabres is Simply Not an Option, Like Ever

Down 2-1 with less than five minutes left in regulation, the Bruins were on the verge of the unforgivable: losing to the Sabres (the worst team in the NHL). Thankfully, the universe was still in order as Boston (6-6) rallied to tie it on Brad Marchand's goal at 14:30 then he also won it at 1:20 of overtime at the First Niagara Center. Buffalo (2-8-1) remains winless at home this season while the Bruins picked up their third straight road victory.

This wasn't the 4-0 laugher on October 18 or what the other two meetings will probably turn out to be (Dec. 21 and March 17 both at TD Garden) but the B's will take two points however they can get them these days. With Torey Krug out (along with Zdeno Chara and Kevan Miller) and Matt Bartkowski a healthy scratch, no less than three Providence Bruins defensemen had to be in the lineup: Zach Trotman, David Warsofsky and Joe Morrow (making his NHL debut).

The Sabres are definitely the team you want to see in dire situations like the one currently facing the Bruins with all their injuries and uninspired play. Niklas Svedberg improved to 2-2 this season and ironically, both wins have come vs. Buffalo. Tonight, he only had to make 13 saves which is a complete joke but then you remember that Buffalo had 10 shots in an a 4-0 loss in Toronto on Tuesday.

Buffalo actually led not once but twice (I just puked in my mouth) as Drew Stafford's power play goal at 5:12 of the second period made it 1-0. Adam McQuaid tied it up at 11:36, from Carl Soderberg and Marchand, for his first goal of the season. Quaider certainly isn't known for his goal-scoring ability so it makes sense that the goal came on an easy wrist shot that took a deflection off a Sabre to elude Jhonas Enroth (34 saves).

Tyler Ennis' wrist shot beat Svedberg at 16:25 of the second period. Boston finally woke up in the third period, outshooting Buffalo 16-4 (37-15 for the game) and they were rewarded for their strong play. Marchand's first goal (only his second of the season) was flukey as Eriksson threw it at the net and it went in off Marchand's glove (unintentionally of course). It was reviewed and remained a goal which was the right call.

Of their next five games, Ottawa (5-2-2) looks like the only good team that the fortunate Bruins will have to face. The Senators come to TD Garden on Saturday night (7, NESN) for their first meeting of the season with their Atlantic Division foe.

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Bruins Re-Sign Matt Bartkowski for Another Season

In pro sports, it's all about where you play. Meaning that a mediocre player on a good team often gets exposed while nobody notices the same player on a bad or average team. I bring this convoluted thought up because the Bruins avoided arbitration today and signed defenseman Matt Bartkowski to a one-year deal worth $1.25 million.

We all know Bartkowski's strengths (moving the puck) and weaknesses (decision making) after a full season with Boston in 2013-14. In 64 games, he had zero goals, 18 assists and he was +22 with 30 penalty minutes and 91 shots on goal. In eight postseason games (he was a healthy scratch a few times), he had zero goals, one assist and was +2 with 10 penalty minutes and 12 shots on goal.

He'll never be a star but it's not hard to see Bartkowski having a long and respectable NHL career, he just turned 26 in June. He has decent size (6-foot-1, 196 pounds), he's durable and you know what you're getting from him. With Dennis Seidenberg and Adam McQuaid out with major injuries for much of last season, that gave Bartkowski an opportunity for consistent ice time with the B's and a ticket out of Providence.

With Seidenberg and McQuaid both expected back by training camp in September, Bartkowski could find himself back on the fringe of the roster. Zdeno Chara, Johnny Boychuk, Torey Krug, Dougie Hamilton, Seidenberg and McQuaid are all better than him. Still, much can change between now and the regular season starting in October: injuries, trades, playing poorly, etc.

There are many teams in the NHL that Bartkowski would be a top-4 defenseman for, the difference is that will hopefully never happen with the Bruins unless they are in a serious rebuilding mode. He provides quality depth and this contract is certainly affordable for them going forward.

UPDATE 7/16: If that Bartkowski news didn't get you fired up for this season, I know what will: the Bruins re-signed Jordan "I'm totally useless" Caron to a one-year deal worth $600,000. If I have to explain how dumb that decision is, stop reading this blog and log off forever, friend.

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Bruins Steal Two Points vs. Sharks Thanks to Krejci's Game-Winner With 0.8 Seconds Left

After the bush league crap pulled by John Scott last night, it was refreshing to enjoy a hockey game for hockey reasons, in October no less. The Bruins pulled out an improbable win as David Krejci scored with 0.8 seconds left in regulation for a 2-1 victory over the Sharks at TD Garden. San Jose (8-1-1) entered without a loss in regulation and plenty of rest while Boston (7-2-0) had played the night before and had to fly back (albeit a short trip) to face the NHL's top team.

Tuukka Rask (38 saves) beat his Finnish homeboy Antti Niemi (15 saves) as truthfully San Jose dominated most of the game but that doesn't matter since the B's earned the two points at the end. It didn't feel like there would be enough time left but Adam McQuaid put a shot on net that Krejci beautifully redirected for his second goal of the season. Milan Lucic had the other assist on Krejci's buzzer-beater (who knew those existed in hockey?).

San Jose came out flying in the first period, outshooting Boston 16-3 but Rask held the fort as they say. The Bruins actually got on the board first too which was shocking. Jarome Iginla potted his first as a Bruin (one night after it looked like he did that but it was wiped away by Lucic's tip in). Krejci and Dennis Seidenberg assisted at 18:48 as Iginla somehow snuck it by Niemi from no angle.

There is a reason the Sharks entered as the NHL's highest-scoring team, Patrick Marleau tied it up just 18 seconds into the third period after Rask let up a rebound to him. Marc-Edourard Vlasic had the assist on San Jose's lone goal.

Selfishly, I was happy that the Bruins and Sharks didn't go into overtime because I wanted to watch the World Series but there is no way I could have predicted that excellent ending. It helps take a bit of the sting away from the Red Sox' 4-2 loss in Game 2. The B's are off tomorrow but they host the Devils (1-5-4) on Saturday (7, NESN) in another game that goes up against the World Series (Game 3 starts at 8:07 on Fox). The Devils are off to a terrible start but former Bruins Michael Ryder and Jaromir Jagr are putting up points so it'll be fun to see them back at the Garden.

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Bruins Dominate Lightning 5-0

Just for the fact that it was Saturday night, I'd give you a pass for missing out on the Bruins-Lightning game. Add in that it occurred at basically the same time as Red Sox-Tigers Game 6 of the ALCS and I understand why few paid attention to the Black and Gold on this night. It was a surprisingly one-sided affair as Boston (5-2-0) beat Tampa Bay (5-3-0) 5-0 at Tampa Bay Times Forum.

After topping the Lightning 3-1 in the opener on October 3 at TD Garden, the B's have outscored them 8-1 in two games. They'll meet twice more: in November and March. I'm sure Tampa Bay will be happy to play other teams since they are 5-1-0 against clubs not named the Bruins so far this season.

Boston played its best game (yes I know they are seven games in) thanks to a complete effort from the entire team: goals from all four lines and a defenseman while Tuukka Rask (23 saves) picked up his first shutout of the season. Tampa Bay hinted at this being a blowout as they allowed a goal 1:32 into the proceedings. David Krejci redirected a pass by Milan Lucic for his first goal of the season. Jarome Iginla had the second assist.

The B's opened it up in the second period with three goals, their top 20 minutes of the season. Adam McQuaid scored on a wrister from the point that was deflected by a Lightning for his first goal of the season at 4:37. Boston hit Tampa Bay with a pair of goals 55 seconds apart late in the second which turned this into a laugher and gave us more liberal time to check out the Red Sox game.

Patrice Bergeron finished off a pretty rush by Reilly Smith and Loui Eriksson at 14:52 for his second goal of the season. Believe it or not, Chris Kelly already matched his goal total from last season (3) when he scored tonight from Brad Marchand and crazy Carl Soderberg. That signaled the end for Ben Bishop who was pulled in favor of the immortal Anders Lindback.

Other than a few fights, the Lightning never really pushed back or forced Rask to make too many difficult stops. Given their abundance of offensive talent, that was strange. Another surprising element was Shawn Thornton's snipe 34 seconds into the third period. Daniel Paille assisted on his first goal of the season.

If Boston brings this same effort on Wednesday in Buffalo (8, NBCSN), they could honestly beat the Sabres (1-8-1) by double-digits. I know that isn't realistic but the B's looked that good this evening while the Sabres are that hopeless. Haha should be fun!

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Nobody In The World Expected The Bruins To Sweep The Penguins, Except They Just Did It

When we are old and grey, this Bruins-Penguins Eastern Conference Finals will be something that we look back to and wonder how the hell it went down the way it did. Boston swept Pittsburgh with a 1-0 victory at TD Garden this evening. The Bruins outscored the Penguins 12-2 for the series including two shutouts by Tuukka Rask (26 saves). Boston advances to its second Stanley Cup Finals in three years, awaiting the winner of Chicago-Los Angeles (Blackhawks lead 3-1 with a chance to close it out tomorrow night at home).

Adam McQuaid provided the game's only goal, a snipe to the top shelf on a one-timer from Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron. McQuaid's second goal of the postseason was undoubtedly the biggest of his life given the circumstances. Tomas Vokoun (23 saves) once again was the tough luck loser who gave up six total goals in Games 1, 3 and 4.

For now, let's bask in the absurd stats coming out of this truly ridiculous (in a good way of course) series. The two best hockey players in the world-Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin-had no points, same story with Jarome Iginla, James Neal and Kris Letang. Brandon Sutter and Chris Kunitz were the only Penguins able to solve Rask. What's more, Pittsburgh never led in the entire series and their unstoppable power play was 0 for 15 capped off by 0 for 3 in Game 4.

The B's are the definition of a team where the sum is much better than their parts. On paper, you think they'd be lucky to hang with the Penguins except they controlled the whole series and never let Pittsburgh dictate play. It helps that Rask is playing the best hockey of his career, a big reason why Boston has won nine of its last 10 games (OT loss to Rangers in Game 4 being only setback).

No matter if it's the Blackhawks or Kings, it's hard to believe that anyone is out there still doubting the Bruins. They have beaten three completely different styles of teams (Maple Leafs, Rangers and Penguins) in a row and done it in less time for each successive series. Along those lines, it's also time for Bruins head coach Claude Julien to start to receive way more credit. His teams might be boring to watch at times but the man knows how to get the most of his players and getting everyone to buy in to a specific role.

Personally I'm rooting for Chicago since Bruins-Blackhawks has never happened and it would be the first Original Six Stanley Cup Finals since 1979 (Rangers vs. Canadiens). Chicago won a Cup in 2010-the year before the B's-and apart from that, it's a great city similar in many ways to Boston. If the Kings can find a way to win three straight, they would be an interesting opponent as well since they won the Cup last season and nobody has repeated since 1997 & 1998 (Detroit). I'm sure the B's would like LA to win another game or two to ensure those two clubs will totally be exhausted while they get some extra rest.

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Bruins Completely Ruin Toronto's First Home Playoff Game In 9 Years, Winning Game 3 5-2

There is no better way to troll Canada than to have an American NHL team go up there and win an important game. In that way, Boston made the U.S. proud tonight as they won 5-2 in Toronto's Air Canada Centre in Game 3, giving the B's a 2-1 series lead.

The Bruins never trailed as they scored the first goal then jumped ahead 4-1 in the second period before letting Tuukka Rask (career-high 45 saves) close it out in the third period when the Maple Leafs bombarded them with shots on goal (18-6).

Speaking of Rask, Toronto goaltender James Reimer (33 saves) is no Rask. Boston's first goal set the tone for him as he allowed Adam McQuaid to score his first career playoff goal on a slap shot from just inside the blue line at 13:42 of the first period. Milan Lucic (3 assists) and David Krejci (1 goal, 2 assists) assisted on the goal that never should have happened. I don't know how Reimer didn't stop it, he wasn't really screened and it wasn't deflected.

Toronto's weak defense was the issue on Boston's second goal as Jaromir Jagr stripped Ryan O'Byrne behind Reimer's net then fed Rich Peverley for a one-timer at 5:57 of the second period. Boston's much-maligned third line cashed in its first goal (and points) of the series.

The Maple Leafs solved Rask with a power-play goal from Jake Gardiner at 13:45 of the second period after the B's failed to clear the puck out of the slot. The good news was that Boston responded like a top team should. Nathan Horton scored a goal in his third straight game, finishing off a one-timer from Lucic that ended up lodged on the camera inside the goal. Krejci had the second assist at 14:35, only 50 seconds after Gardiner's strike.

If that goal by the B's didn't take all the energy out of the building, the next one certainly did as Daniel Paille took the puck away from Phil Kessel on a power play and went in alone for a sweet backhander. That shorthanded goal gave Boston the 4-1 lead at 16:37 that they would never relinquish.

Kessel sort of atoned for his gaffe by scoring a power-play goal 47 seconds into the third period on a rebound. That's as close as the Maple Leafs would get though and Krejci sent the nice people of Toronto streaming for the exits with an empty-netter with 1:17 left in the game.

If Game 1 taught us anything, it's that we can't get too cocky even after a great victory by the Black and Gold. They need to show that they can put efforts like this together consistently, not sporadically. Game 4 on Wednesday (7 p.m., NESN) is a wonderful chance to really take control of this series and put Toronto on the brink of elimination.

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Anybody But Blake Wheeler, I Beg Of You

The Bruins pissed away a chance to be tied for first place in the Northeast Division tonight in Winnipeg. Boston (19-6-3) held a shaky 1-0 lead in the third period but the Jets (16-12-2) scored three times (including an empty-netter) in the final 8:16 for a 3-1 win at the MTS Centre. The Jets had 16 more hits than the Bruins (33-17), a disparity that never happens to the B's in that manner.

In not even three weeks, Boston has somehow managed to blow leads in the third period four times. For comparison's sake, they didn't do that once last season (32-0-0) when leading after two periods. Ugh. Well at least former Bruin Blake Wheeler scored twice for Winnpeg, oh wait that just makes me more depressed since he was a complete stiff in Black and Gold.

Offense was a real struggle for the B's with David Krejci out and their defense wasn't helped by the fact that Adam McQuaid hurt his shoulder in the first period and never returned. Boston had been lucky for the first month plus not to suffer any injuries but now they are coming nearly every game (Kelly, Krejci, McQuaid). Ryan Spooner, playing his second NHL game, couldn't coax anything out of Nathan Horton and Milan Lucic while the third line continued to exist solely on the side of milk cartons (they still have those right?).

Boston's lone goal was truthfully a gift since a pass around the boards ended up on Brad Marchand's stick alone in front of the Jets' goal. He deposited his team-high 13th of the season in eight seconds, the fastest goal to start a period for the B's all season. After that, Ondrej Pavelec (27 saves) put the clamps on while Tuukka Rask (22 saves; 14-4-3) allowed a tip-in by Wheeler at 11:44 to tie it. Jordan Caron's bonehead hooking penalty made him the goat on that play. Rask had to do better on the game-winner when he couldn't squeeze Grant Clitsome's (poor guy) shot and Evander Kane was there for the rebound 57 seconds after Wheeler's goal.

This is the first time in 2013 that Boston has lost consecutive games in regulation. They will look to regroup in Ottawa on Thursday (7:30 p.m., NESN) against the Senators (16-8-6, 3rd in Northeast Division) who continue to defy the odds by hanging in there despite all their calamitous injuries. Ottawa only trails Boston by three points heading into that game and the B's have won the first two games (in OT and a shootout) but then again, they had won the first two meetings with Winnipeg before this evening.

UPDATE 3/21: McQuaid has a left shoulder strain and he's expected to miss 3-4 weeks. I suppose it could have been worse but that's another obstacle for the Bruins to overcome in the injury department. That means Aaron Johnson will be on the third defensive pair with Andrew Ference.

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