There Is No Other Way to Put It: Your Boston Bruins Are Mired in a Bit of a Funk Right Now

No matter how good your team is in the NHL, at some point in the slog of an 82-game regular season, you are going to run into some speed bumps along the way. The Bruins (24-8-11) are clearly not themselves at the moment as they dropped a rather lifeless 4-1 decision to the Oilers (22-17-5) this afternoon at TD Garden that didn't even feel that close. Make no mistake, Boston had 36 shots on goal not to mention 63 shot attempts overall and yet they could only beat journeyman goaltender Mike Smith (35 saves, 8-9-2 this season and he improved to 5-13 all-time vs. the Bruins in his forgettable career) just one single time. Somehow, it was only their second loss in regulation at home this season and you have to say that it had to be one of their sloppiest efforts-namely countless missed passes and shots right at Smith-of 2019-20.

With a 1 p.m. EST start time, you figured that would have to favor the Bruins who accordingly struck first at 3:10 of the first period. David Pastrnak's shot was perfectly redirected by Edmonton defenseman Kris Russell for Pasta's NHL-leading 31st goal of the season. Torey Krug (1 goal, 7 assists in his last 7 games) and Brad Marchand (2 goals, 7 assists in his last 6 games) had the helpers as David extended his point streak to 10 games (5 goals, 10 assists). He is the only player in the league so far in this campaign to have multiple double-digit point streaks. It was also the 10th straight game with a power play goal for Boston (12 for 39 in that span), their longest stretch since March 7-27, 1996.

Jaroslav Halak (22 saves, 9-4-5) got the start for the Bruins and at least initially he seemed sharp as he made a diving save on a one-timer from Oilers superstar Connor McDavid (fed by his fellow stud Leon Draisaitl) late in the first period. Boston was up 1-0 after the first but they trailed 2-1 after the second as they gave up a pair of absolutely atrocious goals. First, Jake DeBrusk completely whiffed on a clearing pass deep in his own end leading to a breakaway and goal by something called Gaetan Haas (his 4th of the season) at 7:41. If that wasn't gross enough, Halak topped it by allowing a nothing shot on goal by Darnell Nurse squeeze past him (hugging the post, quite ineffectively as it turned out) with only 6.3 seconds left in the frame.

This was a strength on strength battle in terms of special teams as Boston came in with the No. 3 ranked power play and No. 2 penalty kill in the league while Edmonton's power play is the best and their penalty kill is No. 4. That's part of what made this such a bitter loss since Boston's penalty kill unit extended their successful streak to 23 for 23 dating back eight games (Dec. 17 vs. LA). Smith continued to make big saves and McDavid put it away for all intents and purposes early in the third. Goon Zack Kassian-who gets the honor of being on McDavid's line-spun around and hit him wide open from the slot where the best player in the world rarely fails to convert. McDavid's 23rd goal of the season came at 1:48 and it was also assisted by Ethan Bear.

The Bruins dominated in the third, outshooting the Oilers 21-7 but as Claude Julien's underachieving teams always taught us: shots on goal can be a very misleading statistic. Par Lindholm was wide open in the slot but he failed to shoot the puck past Smith, mostly because he stinks (witness his 0-for-6 goose egg on face-offs). Edmonton missed an early empty-netter but Draisaitl put a bow on it with an empty-net goal with nine seconds left in regulation. Every garbage time point means something when you're in the heart of a scoring race. His 24th goal of the season was unassisted and it was soon followed by rare (but totally deserved) boos by the Garden faithful that stuck around to the end. If there hadn't been so many kids here it probably would have been even louder in terms of the booing but I'm sure that the B's got the message.

Matt Grzelcyk was a late scratch for the Bruins with an illness but other than that, it was basically a full lineup (Connor Clifton remains out with an injury) for the home team. Since New Year's Eve, they are 0-1-2 against three blah teams (Devils, Blue Jackets and Oilers) and they have scored four total goals in that time frame. Boston won't practice tomorrow so they'll be back at Warrior Ice Arena on Monday morning before traveling to Nashville that day. They play the Predators (18-15-6) on Tuesday (8, NESN) with a chance to avenge Nashville's 4-3 overtime win here on Dec. 21.

The Predators are a bit of a mess themselves (4-5-1 in their last 10 games) after blowing a 2-0 lead vs. Dallas (24-14-4) in the Winter Classic and their outstanding defenseman Ryan Ellis is on IR with a concussion suffered on a dirty hit by Corey Perry (suspended 5 games for it) in that loss. Regardless, Bridgestone Arena is a tough place to play (Preds are 10-7-4 there this season) and Nashville is desperate for a spark to turn things around before they slip too far down in the Western Conference standings. Boston returns home on Thursday (7, NESN) to face old friend Blake Wheeler, UMass-Lowell's Connor Hellebuyck-one of the top goalies in the NHL-and Winnipeg (22-16-4)-another fringe playoff team on the outside looking in at this very second after losing 3-2 in overtime this afternoon in Minnesota (20-17-5).

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In Their First Home Game In Over Two Weeks, the Bruins Take Care of the AHL Coyotes 4-1

In the last few seasons under former head coach Claude Julien, tonight would have been a tailor-made trap game for the Bruins (33-24-6). They were coming off a very successful four-game road trip (3-1-0) and hadn't played at TD Garden in over two weeks (thanks to a bye week before the games in California and Texas) so it was refreshing to see them look like a completely different club in an easy 4-1 victory on First Responders Night. This is Boston's first four-game home winning streak since 2014-the last time that they made the playoffs. They are also unbeaten in their last 10 games vs. Arizona dating back to the 2010 opener in Prague that the Coyotes won 5-2.

Boston improved to a remarkable 7-1-0 under interim head coach Bruce Cassidy, seriously when do they give him some job security and ditch the cheesy title? Arizona (22-33-7) lived up or rather down to its advance billing as the second-worst team in the league. The crazy part is that they are still 14 points ahead of Colorado (17-41-3) who might as well have cancelled the season by now. Would anyone notice? Four different Bruins scored the goals (Colin Miller, Riley Nash, David Backes and Brad Marchand) as they continue to spread the offense around like any quality hockey team is known to do. Tuukka Rask (30-14-4) only had to make 22 saves as he has posted four straight 30+ win seasons.

Other than the paint by numbers two points for the B's, this game will be remembered most for the bone-crunching hit by Boston defenseman Colin Miller on Arizona center Alexander Burmistrov early in the second period. It left Burmistrov down on the ice for a long stretch before he was wheeled off on a stretcher. The good news is that after getting checked out at a hospital in Boston, he will rejoin his teammates later tonight. Miller was assessed a five-minute major for charging and a game-misconduct (10-minutes). For me, that was the type of hit that looks worse than it actually was intended to be. Burmistrov had his head down and was hunched over as he released the puck right before Miller caught him with a shoulder directly to his head. If the play should go to the NHL's Department of Player Safety, Miller could have a reasonable case based on his lack of previous dirty plays and the fact that he's an honest player in general.

Ironically, Colin Miller had begun the scoring with a goal just 3:06 into the first period. David Pastrnak and David Krejci had the assists on his fifth goal of the season. The B's have scored first-period goals in 10 straight games including notching the first goal in the past six games. Boston led 1-0 after the first period but Arizona tied it early in the second as Peter Holland wrapped around the net for a power play strike at 3:27. Something named Brendan Perlini (who sounds like an honorary resident of the North End) and Radim Vrbata (trade that man to a real team!) had the assists on Holland's second goal of the season.

As they have for much of 2016-17, Boston's penalty kill unit sparked them (they are tied for the NHL lead with 8 shorthanded goals) as Riley Nash of all people bagged his first career shorthanded goal in the NHL. Mike Smith (10 saves, 4 goals allowed) fumbled the puck to Patrice Bergeron who fed a wide open Nash for his fourth goal of the season at 7:07. The Bruins put it away from there with two more goals in a scintillating second period: David Backes beat Smith with a one-timer from Brad Marchand and Bergeron at 18:05 and then the backbreaker was Marchand getting his own wraparound goal with 11 seconds left in the frame (his team-leading 28th goal of the season).

Smith was pulled after the second in favor of his backup Louis Domingue and the Bruins settled in for a rare easy win at home where they are 16-13-0. Their focus now turns to Thursday (7, NESN) as they host the Rangers (40-21-2) who as usual are a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference this spring. Against the pathetic Coyotes, Boston was able to put it on cruise control for much of this one but they know they will need to be much better to continue this amazing stretch. An underrated factor for their remarkable turnaround has been their health: the Bruins don't have any significant injuries to speak of which is almost unheard of as the calendar flips to March. Don't forget to stay locked to Twitter and the NHL Network or NESN tomorrow as the NHL Trade Deadline comes at 3 p.m. I wouldn't expect the B's to do much but you never know, maybe GM Don Sweeney will make a surprise last-second move to add to his group that suddenly looks like a real playoff team.

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Bruins Pick Up 4 Points In a Little Over 24 Hours With 4-1 Win Vs. Lifeless Coyotes

For once this season, the Bruins (31-22-9) made things easy on themselves by dispatching the lowly Coyotes (20-36-7) 4-1 tonight at TD Garden. Boston won its second game in as many nights (and 3 out of their last 4) while Arizona has lost nine in a row. Ironically, Boston is now off until Thursday (7, NESN) when they host the Flames (33-25-4) so that means that they can fully enjoy the NHL Trade Deadline on Monday (3 pm).

This one was never really in doubt as the B's scored twice in the first and twice in the second period. The only slight disappointment for them is that they couldn't get a shutout for Tuukka Rask (31 saves). Milan Lucic, Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand all had a goal and an assist while Reilly Smith added two assists. Rookies David Pastrnak and Ryan Spooner continued their strong play as well with both recording helpers in the one-sided win.

It has been a nightmare of a season for the Coyotes and Mike Smith (16 saves). In the Tank for McDavid/Eichel sweepstakes, they are only one point ahead of Edmonton and four points in front of Buffalo. Keep shooting for the stars, boys! Right off the bat, you knew what kind of contest it would be when Smith misplayed the puck behind his net then Milan Lucic banked it in off his skate at 2:40. Lucic's 12th goal of the season was assisted by his young linemates-Pastrnak and Spooner.

Marchand's goal was prettier as he sniped a shot into the top of the far corner at 14:13 of the first. Smith and Bergeron assisted on Marchand's team-leading 18th goal of the season. The Bruins had more good fortune (when have I said that this season?) early in the second frame as Bergeron's backhander went in off Keith Yandle's skate. Haha nice to see the local guy help the B's out. It was also Bergeron's 18th goal of the season so either him or Marchand look like a safe bet to lead the team in goals this campaign. Marchand and Chara assisted on the tally.

Smith's miserable performance was capped off by a Chara power-play missile at 11:50. Smith and Lucic assisted on Chara's fifth goal of the season. My man Louis Domingue, which sounds like Pitbull's real name (whatever that is, I'm too lazy to look) came on for the final 22 minutes and change of garbage time action.

Martin Erat spoiled Rask's shutout bid at 10:21 of the third period. He tipped in Shane Doan's pass with the second assist going to Yandle. PS Doan has been Arizona/Phoenix's captain for 11 years, two more than Chara who is the second-longest tenured captain in the NHL. Why would he want to be with that joke of a franchise for that long? He must love the desert or something, weird.

I'll keep you updated if the Bruins make any trades over the next few days, I wouldn't expect anything major since they are playing pretty well now but then again they do have that extra cap space to work with since Krejci and Miller are on long-term IR. We shall see.

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Well Look Who the Top Team in the Eastern Conference Is (Hint: they play in Boston)

Has it really reached the point where the Bruins' greatness bores us? Haha I'm just kidding but let's be honest: tonight's 2-1 win by Boston over Phoenix at TD Garden was nice albeit pretty dull. You won't see any Bruins (44-17-5) fans complain though since with their seventh straight win, they once again lead the Eastern Conference (one point ahead of the Penguins) and own the longest current win streak in the NHL after the Kings went down vs. Toronto.

I guess I overrate the Coyotes (31-25-11) because it feels like I have half their team on various fantasy squads. Since Boston played in Montreal last night (always an emotional event) and Phoenix was kicking around Boston yesterday, they had no excuse for not playing better. Oh and they're currently in ninth place in the Western Conference so where was their sense of urgency?

The B's got all the offense they would need in the first period. Zdeno Chara ripped a wrist shot high past Mike Smith (18 saves) at 5:54. The captain's 16th goal of the season was unassisted. Boston's other elder statesman provided the offense as Jarome Iginla tipped Johnny Boychuk's shot from the point for his 21st goal of the season at 17:31. Milan Lucic had the second assist on Iginla's tally, do you realize that now he's tied with Brad Marchand for most goals on Boston?

Phoenix's main reason for losing was their pathetic power play which went 0 for 5. For the second game in a row, Rask's shutout bid was extinguished in the third period but at least he got the victory again and that turned out to be the only goal allowed. His fellow countrymen Lauri Korpikoski tipped Oliver Ekman-Larsson's shot at 8:14 with Shane Doan (playing in his 1300th NHL game) picking up the other assist.

Boston's three-game homestand continues on Saturday afternoon (1, NESN) against Carolina (29-28-9) who are currently six points out of the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.

UPDATE 3/14: The Bruins recalled forward Matt Lindblad from Providence. Also Daniel Paille skated today and it looks like he could play tomorrow vs. the Hurricanes.

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Black and Gold are getting it done

At times in the last few years as I got into the team more and more, I honestly never thought the Boston Bruins would reach this point in my entire life.

They are on the cusp of the Stanley Cup finals (for the first time in 21 years) after last night's 3-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning at TD Garden in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals.

As everyone knows, closing out a team is the toughest part (especially for this franchise) but don't you have the feeling that this year is different?

The B's are up 3-2 in the series thanks to another outstanding performance from goaltender Tim Thomas (33 saves). He made the save of the season (which really shouldn't surprise you if you've watched him for years) on Lightning scumbag Steve Downie which left Downie pouting alone on the bench after the game had long ended. Strange cat.

Tampa Bay gave Mike Smith (17 saves) his first career playoff start and he wasn't good or bad. The two goals that he gave up were impossible to stop by anyone while Boston added an empty-netter to close it out.

The crazy part about the win was that the Lightning came out flying in the first period while the Bruins seemed to be stuck in the locker room, on the tarmac at Logan Airport or at some other undisclosed location.

Simon Gagne gave Tampa Bay a 1-0 lead 1:09 into regulation after a 2-on-1 break from Steven Stamkos. Andrew Ference got caught up ice and Gagne was able to pot his fifth of the playoffs. If I had been in Boston at the time, I might have jumped off the Tobin Bridge but thankfully the Bruins always always play better from behind as everybody knows at this point.

Thomas held the fort for the rest of the period and his teammates finally woke up from their zombie-like slumber near the end of the frame as they got engaged physically and put four (4!) shots on Smith.

Nathan Horton was one of the only Bruins that was emotionally into it from the start (and that caused two stupid penalties on him) but he tied it up at 4:24 of the second period on a sublime one-timer. Horton's seventh of the playoffs (called by Ryan before the game started) featured a great backhand assist from Milan Lucic and Krejci had the second helper.

Brad Marchand (or as my girlfriend mistakenly called him-The Marshmallow Man) scored the game-winner at 15:56 after an even sweeter feed from Patrice Bergeron. Stationed along the boards, Bergeron whipped a forehand pass to Marchand, who skated past Martin St. Louis and tipped it past Smith (for his sixth of the playoffs). Zdeno Chara had the second assist as he started the play by holding the puck in Tampa Bay's zone.

Thomas made a huge save (helped out by the post) on Adam Hall early in the third period and then came the bananas stop on Downie which barely left the roof on the Garden.

Rich Peverley (second of the playoffs) put it away with an empty-netter at 19:47 of the third period, assisted by Chris Kelly.

So here we are. One more win and the Bruins will get to a place that nobody and I mean nobody predicted they would find themselves this postseason or maybe ever again. Game 6 is tomorrow night in Tampa Bay and Lightning part-time serial killer and head coach Guy Boucher has already announced that Dwayne Roloson is the starter again in between the pipes. It could be some gamesmanship from the Butcher, we shall see. If it's true, advantage Bruins.

Nothing is ever easy for this team or this franchise but for God's sakes, get it over tomorrow night. I don't want to see them in another Game 7 with a trip to the Stanley Cup finals on the line.

Claude Julien's Boston Bruins: Blowing 3-0 leads for life

I can't explain why but no lead ever seems safe when you're a Boston Bruins fan. A three-goal lead in hockey should be analogous to a three-touchdown lead in football or 20-point lead in basketball.

Still, the B's have found themselves on top 3-0 last postseason in Game 7 in the Flyers (how'd that one end?) and this afternoon against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals and in both cases, they have lost. I can never recall a team in any sport that was so good playing from behind and yet so consistently terrible playing with a lead. It's insane.

What is it about three-goal leads with the Bruins? That doesn't even count the Game 2 win against Tampa Bay where Boston went up 6-3 but barely survived for a 6-5 win.

Today's 5-3 win by the Lightning, notice they scored five unanswered goals, was a considerable nut shot to the Stanley Cup hopes of the Bruins and their long suffering fans.

Perhaps we should have known the sky would soon fall (it was Judgement Day after all) as Boston quieted the St. Pete Times Forum crowd with a trio of goals in the first period. There wasn't a strong one in the bunch as Patrice Bergeron scored an unassisted goal at 11:47 after a terrible Tomas Kaberle style giveaway behind Tampa Bay's goal.

The B's went up 2-0 on an even stranger goal as Michael Ryder skated in on a 2-on-1, waited too long to pass it but was beyond lucky to have the puck deflect off a Lightning defenseman and behind goaltender Dwayne Roloson (6 saves). Chris Kelly and Kaberle assisted on Ryder's fifth of the playoffs.

The dream first period was closed out with an unassisted shorthanded goal by Bergeron at 17:58. His long shot went right through Roloson's five hole (he would be pulled after the first period).

We all should have known that there was way too much time left for the Lightning and their potent offense. They're not the Bruins, they wouldn't go out that quietly. As Boston retreated back into their defensive shell (thanks Claude), Teddy Purcell scored a quick pair of goals (at 6:55 and 7:58) to pull Tampa Bay within 3-2.

Neither was Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas' (32 saves) fault as they came directly from snipe city. Purcell undressed Adam McQuaid on the first one with a toe drag then scored on a low backhander that Thomas couldn't reach. Simon Gagne assisted on that one.

Mattias Ohlund and Vincent Lecavalier assisted on Purcell's fourth of the playoffs which was a high shot over Thomas's blocker side.

Most coaches would probably call a timeout at that point since the team was in full meltdown mode but not Julien. Nope, best to play it out at that point and see what you're rattled team can do.

To nobody's surprise, Bergenheim tied it up at 10:53 (his 10th of the playoffs) off a rebound from Domenic Moore. Safe to say the Lightning didn't look back from there. A timeout there would have made sense too but no dice. Clearly, Claude doesn't need timeouts. I mean, who could argue with his results?

At this point, if I was a smarter man I would have gone outside and enjoyed the beautiful day (the first in weeks) but no I'm a dumb ass Bruins fan. I knew that they weren't coming out of this one with a win but I sat there like a goon and watch them piss down their leg as always.

The best I can say is that at least they didn't prolong the agony and send it to overtime. Simon Gagne had the game-winner as he scored his fourth of the playoffs at 6:54 from Ryan Malone. Still plenty of time left in the frame but who thought the B's had a prayer at that point? They continued to skate their lane while the conveyor belt of four lines rolled out and not really do much of anything (which could be said of the final two periods) and Martin St. Louis closed it out with an empty net goal at 19:23 (his eighth of the playoffs) from Gagne and Victor Hedman.

Mike Smith (21 saves) played the final two periods and didn't allow a goal but I honestly can't think of one above average save that he had to make. Boston didn't test him at all (and why would you with a goaltender that just got thrown in there?) but regardless, he should get the start in Game 5.

We have Sunday to cry about this latest choke job but then it's back to business on Monday as the teams return to Boston for Game 5 at TD Garden. Who knows what to expect from the Bruins? They could have a short memory and play well or they could have an emotional hangover (helped by their rightly paranoid crowd) and they'll lose again, which will probably signal their demise. So yeah Game 5 is important but good luck guessing what is going to happen.