After Hanging 7 Goals On Ottawa, I'd Say That Boston is Officially Ready for the Winter Classic

For a Tuesday night game in late December, you couldn't have asked for much more entertainment (that is if you support the home team) than Boston's (20-12-4) insane 7-3 victory over Ottawa (18-13-6) at TD Garden. Jimmy Hayes scored his first career NHL hat trick while Patrice Bergeron and Matt Beleskey each added two goals apiece. What's more, near the end of the contest there were five (count them five!) legitimate fights. It was a taste of Old Time Bruins Hockey as the B's can now fully turn their attention to Friday's (1, NBC) much-anticipated Winter Classic at Gillette Stadium vs. Montreal (21-15-3).

The Senators were coming off a 3-1 win against the Bruins on Sunday night in Ottawa but they looked nothing like that club as Boston scored a season-high four power play goals (their most since 4 on Oct. 3, 2009 vs. Carolina). Improbably, the B's top-ranked power play continues to chug along (they are 30 for 102 on the season = 29.4%) while their usually strong penalty kill is finally starting to catch up (4-for-4 tonight) and they began the game 13th in the league. The two points were important since it allowed Boston to go up two on Ottawa (with a game in hand). The Bruins are also one point ahead of Detroit, one behind Montreal and two behind first-place Florida. The top six teams in the Atlantic Division are only separated by six points.

It was the exact same goaltender matchup from Sunday as once again Craig Anderson (30 saves) took on Tuukka Rask (29). I guess that Ottawa really didn't want to play backup Andrew Hammond at all since Anderson was hung out to dry and kept in for the entire beating. Hayes fittingly opened the scoring at 8:01 when a good bounce allowed him to tap the puck in from close range. Kevan Miller assisted on Hayes' sixth goal of the season. One of the few things more improbable than a Hayes goal was Senators tough guy Chris Neil tying it at one but that's what he did at 12:31. Rask left him a juicy rebound and he deposited it for his second goal of the season with assists to Shane Prince (Tayshaun's little brother?) and Max McCormick. Bergeron got his first goal of the contest (and first on the power play) at 16:25 when he put in a shot from the slot. Torey Krug (back after missing one game with an undisclosed injury) and Ryan Spooner had the assists on Bergeron's 13th goal of the season.

Unlike Hayes, Beleskey created many chances earlier this season but similarly couldn't find the back of the net with much regularity. Hopefully that'll change as well as he scored a power play tally at 1:21 from Brett Connolly (1st point in 12 games!) and Brad Marchand (who could be suspended after a low bridge hit in the first period). Beleskey's sixth goal of the season was followed by Mika Zibanejad who cut it to 3-2 late in the second (17:51). Neil and Prince assisted on Zibanejad's seventh goal of the season.

Bergeron's second power play goal came at 2:38 of the third period and it gave Boston another two-goal lead (4-2). Krug picked up his second helper while Seth Griffith (called up today with David Krejci on IR) got his first point of the season. Mike Hoffman's shot went off Dennis Seidenberg's skate which confused Rask and trimmed Boston's advantage to 4-3 at 4:22. Hoffman has 18 goals (who knew?) while Eric Karlsson (32 assists) leads the NHL in assists with Marc Methot getting credit for the other apple. Hayes finished a 2-on-1 with Max Talbot at 15:49 then 51 seconds later, Beleskey smoked a one-timer from Spooner. Loui Eriksson sneakily got assists on both of those as he became the third Bruin to reach 20 assists this season (joining Krejci who has 22 and Bergeron who has 21). The hat trick came with 0.2 seconds left in regulation aka garbage time (haha also on a power play) but Hayes will certainly take it. Frank Vatrano and Dennis Seidenberg assisted on the goal that set off a steady stream of hats (ironically the team had given away winter hats today) onto the ice.

Bruins-Canadiens doesn't need an introduction and in case you need a little review on their storied history, turn on NESN, NBCSN or the NHL Network for the next few days. Friday's game is always the showcase event for the league on New Year's Day and with the College Football Playoff the night before, I predict this edition gets its best rating yet (if you're into that kind of thing, which you're probably not). A little snow would be nice but with temperatures expected to be in the low 40s, it should be a virtually perfect atmosphere for the best rivalry in the NHL and one of the greatest in professional sports.

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B's Have Figured Out How to Play Well At Home, Consistency & The Road are the Next Steps

It's impossible to explain how a team that could beat Nashville 5-3 last Tuesday then Detroit 5-2 tonight (both at TD Garden) could be the same one that no-showed on Saturday in Columbus (a 6-2 loss that was the lowest point of the season). That's what makes the Bruins (19-15-3) so frustrating in 2014-15; when they are motivated and pulling in the same direction, they are capable of beating anyone. Then they have these frequent bizarre lulls where they are awful and get blown out by non-playoff teams.

Boston came into this evening without the services of Patrice Bergeron and Milan Lucic, who are both "day-to-day" with injuries picked up from the Blue Jackets debacle. They also lost Matt Fraser as he was picked up off waivers by his hometown Oilers. No problem, they've got Jordan Caron and Matthew Lindblad. Haha ugh. Therefore, it was shocking when the B's played their best first period of the season. They pumped in three goals (season-high) and took 19 shots (also a season-high). They got out to a 3-1 lead as Reilly Smith scored on a blast from the point at 2:44 then Gregory Campbell got a hustle goal on a rebound at 16:12 and Carl Soderberg (3 points) tapped one in from Loui Eriksson (2 assists) behind the net 1:13 after that.

Detroit's (19-9-9) opening goal came on Justin Abdelkader's diving backhander when he was falling down at 11:21 that tied it at one. Smith's goal was his ninth of the season, Campbell's was his fourth (first in over a month) and Soderberg grabbed his seventh. The Red Wings have the No. 3 power play in the league so it made sense when they cut it to 3-2 on Tomas Tatar's screened shot at 15:50 of the second period.

The B's bounced back though with a very solid third period of their own. Seth Griffith potted a sweet power play goal at 5:11, his sixth of the season, assisted by David Krejci. The youngster capped it off with a sweet celly but even cooler than that, he had showed off his skills by ripping a snap shot top shelf by Jimmy Howard (40 saves). Boston's season-high 45 shots came in handy and they clinched it with Chris Kelly's empty-netter at 17:34. Tuukka Rask made 28 saves, a much better effort than his sorry relief work on Saturday.

The stupid cliché that the next game is the most important one for the Bruins is actually true. Doubly so when they meet an Atlantic Division rival like the Red Wings or Maple Leafs on Wednesday (7, NESN) aka New Year's Eve. This mini three-game homestand is capped off by the Senators on Saturday afternoon (1, NESN). So while you're waiting for the ball to drop either at a bar or some friend's house, make sure to tune in what should be an interesting contest. Each team has a blowout win to their credit: Boston won 4-1 on Oct. 25 at the Garden then got smoked 6-1 in Toronto on Nov. 12. With tonight's results (Toronto lost 3-2 at Tampa Bay), the B's are only two points behind the Leafs and they have each played 37 games so a win by Boston would tie them up.

For the B's, a spot in the top eighth of the Eastern Conference should be all they are thinking about as the regular season nears the halfway point. They have thrown away too many points already to worry about anything bigger than that.

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There's No Place Like Home for the Bruins, Especially When It Comes to Garbage Opponents

Right after two horrific losses (6-1 at Toronto and 5-1 at Montreal), that were so bad that I didn't feel like writing about them, the Bruins returned to TD Garden aka their comfort zone. Boston (11-8-0) did what they had to do to beat Carolina (5-8-3) 2-1 this afternoon. Like most of their victories this season, it wasn't an artistic masterpiece by any means but for a team that played so poorly on back-to-back nights, at least this was much more indicative of who they are (or rather who they should be).

The Hurricanes scored first, something which has happened to Boston in five of their last six contests, as Jiri Tlusty tipped in Justin Faulk's shot from the point at 7:05 of the first period and Eric Staal had the second assist. Tuukka Rask (33 saves) earned the first star of the game but there was nothing he could do about that high shot that went even higher off the deflection for Tlusty's team-leading seventh goal of the season.

Fortune was smiling on Boston during their fifth-straight win at the Garden as Seth Griffith tied it at 14:24 on one of the flukiest goals I have ever seen. It started with Andrej Sekera fumbling the puck backwards on some sort of ill-fated pass, that ended up going off Griffith then back off Sekera again and past Cam Ward (23 saves). You'll probably never see a goal like that in the NHL, at least not for many years. Griffith's fifth goal of the season (tying him with Carl Soderberg and Brad Marchand for the team lead) was unassisted but we all know that Sekera deserved something special for that monumental fail.

The Bruins got the game-winner on their own accord. A strong forecheck led to Brad Marchand stealing the puck and feeding Patrice Bergeron for one of his patented quick shots after a turnover. Dennis Seidenberg had the second assist on Bergeron's fourth goal of the season and Reilly Smith did his part by screening Ward.

All that stuff happened in the first period with basically nothing to write home about or remember about the second or third periods. Yay afternoon games! Boston outshot Carolina 14-3 in the second and the Hurricanes returned the favor by outshooting the B's 15-4 in the third but it didn't matter. The key sequence of the game also took place in the first when Boston killed a 5-on-3 for 1:43 just 12 seconds after Tlusty's goal. If Carolina had added another goal or two then, who knows what would have happened?

Finally, the Bruins play another quality team at the Garden on Tuesday (7, NESN)-those have been so few and far between. St. Louis (11-4-1) currently leads the very difficult Central division in the Western Conference and they are 9-1-0 in their last 10 games entering tonight's game vs. Washington.

David Krejci and Zach Trotman were the scratches today, meaning that Matt Bartkowski played for the first time in eight games. He finished +1 with four shots, two hits and a blocked shot which for him is a highlight reel game. Milan Lucic also looked like himself with a game-high six hits, he was way more active than he's been in weeks.

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Bruins Close Out Perfect Homestand (4-0) with 5th Straight Win, 4-2 vs. Devils

Not that I was too worried about it but the Bruins are officially themselves again. Boston (10-6-0) dispatched New Jersey (6-7-2) 4-2 at TD Garden on Monday for their fifth straight win. The Bruins closed out their four-game homestand (4-0) with a much tougher schedule on the horizon namely a back-to-back in Toronto on Wednesday (8, NBCSN) and in Montreal on Thursday (7:30, NESN).

Ironically enough, the B's improved to 6-1 since Zdeno Chara went down with an injury-an indication of their weak opponents along with them finding their proverbial groove at the same time. The Devils scored the fastest goal vs. the Bruins this season as Travis Zajac finished a pass from Mike Cammalleri 1:26 into the contest after a turnover by Dougie Hamilton. It was the fifth time in the last six games that the Bruins have allowed the first goal not that it's seemed to matter at all.

In the eight games this season where Boston has allowed the first goal, they have tied it at one in seven of them including this evening. Carl Soderberg scored a power-play goal at 10:21 as he tipped in Reilly Smith's pass with the second assist to Patrice Bergeron (4-game point streak). Soderberg's fifth goal of the season tied him with Brad Marchand for the team lead.

A sloppy turnover by the Devils gave the Bruins a gift-wrapped 2-1 advantage at 17:16. Bergeron was there to slam in his third goal of the season by former BC star and Marblehead native Cory Schneider (19 saves). Former Bruins great Jaromir Jagr did something he rarely did in Boston two seasons ago-score a pretty goal or any goals for that matter. His turnaround shot beat Tuukka Rask (26 saves) low and to the far side at 13:00 of the second period for Jagr's third goal of the season and 708th all-time (tying him with Mike Gartner for 6th in NHL history).

Boston put it away with a quick pair of goals late in the second period (1:20 apart, their 9th and 10th of the season in the final two minutes of a frame). Rookie Seth Griffith scored unquestionably the prettiest goal of the season (his fourth of the season) for the B's and one of the best in the NHL. Words don't really do it justice but he had his back to Schneider but he managed to hit a shot between his legs which went through Schneider's pads. Incredible and just a taste of what Griffith can do at the ripe old age of 21. Other than Tyler Seguin (and I'm not saying he could be Seguin), when is the last time Boston had a forward with those type of eye-popping skills? Like Bergeron, his tally was unassisted.

Smith added the final strike at 19:21 as he one-timed a pass from Bergeron (3 points) by Schneider. New Jersey outshot Boston 14-3 in the third period but that was somewhat misleading since they didn't translate to many real scoring opportunities.

The Maple Leafs (8-5-2) have won their last two games but the Bruins typically own them. Conversely, the Canadiens (10-4-1) have won their last two after a poor stretch but they dominate Boston particularly at the Bell Centre. I would expect Niklas Svedberg to make his first start in November on Wednesday before Rask returns to the net on Thursday in Montreal where he has been terrible.

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Bruins Blow 2-Goal Lead In 3rd, Fall 4-3 to Wild

Boston allowed the first goal on Tuesday night at TD Garden to Minnesota but after that the B's rattled off three in a row to take a commanding 3-1 leading after two periods. Unfortunately for them, hockey games still consist of three periods and their third was a disaster. The Wild (5-3-0) scored three straight goals to take a 4-3 road win.

This was an unforgivable loss for the Bruins for a couple reasons: 1) Minnesota had played last night in New York (5-4 loss to Rangers); 2) Boston last competed on Saturday (if you can call it that vs. the hapless Maple Leafs); 3) two-goal leads for them, even without Zdeno Chara, should mean lights out.

Nino Niederreiter (great name) made it 1-0 just 4:51 into the contest as he one-timed a pass from Bruins killer Thomas Vanek. In 56 career games vs. Boston, Vanek now has 30 goals and 33 assists. Has Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli ever thought about signing him?

The only real bright spot for the B's was the improving play of Seth Griffith (2 goals, 1 assist). He tied it at 18:23 with his second goal of the season, redirecting David Krejci's sharp pass right by the net. Zach Trotman had the other assist for his first NHL point.

Griffith bagged his first multi-goal game with another redirection at 5:23 of the second period. This one was even sweeter than the first as he connected with Gregory Campbell's pass and then dove in the air after it went in the net, similar to Bobby Orr in the most famous play in Bruins history.

Milan Lucic's power play goal, yet another redirect, at 16:59 gave Boston that 3-1 advantage. Torey Krug and Griffith had the assists on Lucic's second goal of the season.

Boston completely shut down in the third period, they couldn't win any puck battles and were chasing it all frame as they were outshot 18-7 and outscored 3-0.

In most circumstances, we love Captain America Zach Parise but not tonight as he cut it to 3-2 at 4:21 with a redirection from Mikael Granlund and Jared Spurgeon. Only 2:13 after that, Minnesota had tied it up as Justin Fontaine put in a rebound from Ryan Carter and that scumbag Matt Cooke (yes he's still in the NHL and not behind bars).

The B's didn't deserve any good bounces so it was poetic that the game-winner was a shot by Marco Scandella (who?) from the point that went off Krejci's skate and in the net at 14:07. Boston had plenty of pressure after that but they couldn't beat Niklas Backstrom (25 saves) who improved to 5-0-1 all-time against the Bruins.

For the second time in five days, the Bruins have the honor of a cupcake matchup with the reeling Sabres (2-8) in Buffalo on Thursday (7, NESN). The Sabres were blanked 4-0 by the Maple Leafs tonight and Boston won 4-0 at First Niagara Center last Saturday. As far as we know, Buffalo is still an NHL (why, I couldn't tell you) so this meeting comes at the right time for a B's club still searching for consistency as they close out the first month of the season.

UPDATE 10/29: As if they needed another injury on defense, Krug broke a finger last night so he's out two to four weeks. Joe Morrow and David Warsofsky were recalled from Providence with thoughts of sitting Matt Bartkowski who is off to a predictably terrible start.

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Bruins Pick Up Their Best Win of the Young Season: 5-3 Over Sharks

I'm happy to say that it's time to find a new way to make fun of the Bruins this season. After they were so pathetic for the first five games in terms of goal-scoring, they have awoken lately capped off by tonight's 5-3 win over the Sharks at TD Garden.

Boston (4-4) reached the .500 mark while setting a season-high in goals and scoring 4+ for the third straight game. It was also their best victory since San Jose (4-2-1) had been playing great hockey before the end of this arduous five-game road trip.

Milan Lucic tied a career-high with three assists while Torey Krug (1 goal, 2 assists) tied a career-high for points and David Krejci (1 goal, 1 assist) also had multiple points. Boston received goals from three different lines plus a defenseman and their power play even sprung to life with a pair of goals in the first two periods.

Three different Bruins scored their first goals of the season so fittingly, Brad Marchand opened the proceedings with a power-play snipe at 13:57 of the first period from Lucic and Krug. Logan Couture answered with a power play goal of his own at 16:28 when he tipped in Patrick Marleau's shot, also from caveman Brent Burns.

Boston regained the lead early in the second period as Krug whipped in a power play goal at 6:54 from Lucic and Krejci. Couture tied it at 16:52 after Marleau fed him right in front of Tuukka Rask (31 saves). Boston lost their focus for a minute as former Bruins No. 1 draft pick (in 1997!) Joe Thornton batted a Joe Pavelski pass out of the air 37 seconds later. Former UMass star Justin Braun had the second assist.

San Jose had been 4-0-1 entering the third period this season with a lead and Boston was 0-3-0 when they trailed going into the final frame but both those numbers got flipped. Rookie Seth Griffith tied it up at 4:50, putting in a rebound from Lucic and Krug at 4:50 for his first career NHL goal. Good timing right? I'm not going to make too much out of it but it was nice to see a Bruins young player step up and take advantage of a great opportunity.

This was only the third game of the season for Gregory Campbell but he showed his value to the B's with a key goal, the game-winner in fact as he tipped in Daniel Paille's shot at 10:42 after a strong forecheck. Krejci's empty-netter with 25 seconds left in regulation put the finishing touches on a solid two points against a quality Western Conference (still the far superior conference) opponent.

The B's figure to have their hands full again on Thursday (7, NESN) as they host the New York Boychuks (4-2-0), I mean Islanders. It's Boychuk's first game against the Bruins since his stunning trade a few weeks ago so he will surely get a huge ovation at least at the start of the game. The Isles fell 5-2 to the Maple Leafs tonight but they've looked really good thus far so I bet they'll bounce back from that disappointing result.

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