The Sky's Not Falling: Bruins Lose To Habs, But Score!

Hear that? That’s the sound of the bandwagon getting a tad lighter in Boston.

Following two mind-rattling losses to the New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings, where the B’s scored a total of zero goals in 120 minutes of play. Tonight, it took the black and gold just over 59 minutes before they finally scored a goal against the Montreal Canadiens en route to a 2-1 shootout loss.

Former Boston Bruin Glen Metropolit got the party started for Montreal, scoring a goal late in the first period after a Dennis Wideman positioning blooper led to a collision with Matt Hunwick, leading to Andrei Kostityn having a clear path to the net with Shawn Thornton in hot pursuit of him. Kostityn was denied by Thomas on the initial attempt but was able to wrap it around the net where Metropolit was able to bang it home for his third goal of the season.

The second period was more of the same Boston and Montreal clash we all know as the B’s and Habs engaged into a defensive battle, fighting for every corner and full of hard hitting, and penalties. However, in what’s becoming expected Bruins fashion, the B’s were unable to capitalize on both powerplay chances in the period, and three in total. At the same time though, the B’s penalty kill was up to the task of shutting down the Habs powerplay, killing both powerplays Montreal had in the night.

The highlight of the second period was a goal-call reversed in favor of the Montreal Canadiens as it appeared that the B’s put one by an unsuspecting Carey Price on a rebound. However, as replay clearly showed, the net was taken off it’s moorings and was put in under the dislodged net.

Near the close of the period, a scrum erupted in front of the Boston crease where Andrew Ference and Maxim Lapierre exchanged words and went as far as Ference dropping his glove to challenge Lapierre to a fight −something Lapierre simply would have no part of, per usual. Ference shook off Lapierre and waved his hand at him, skating away while laughing and having some choice words for the Habs agitator.

It’s not often that you say this when referring to a 22-year old goaltender, but last night was vintage Carey Price.

For much of the night, the story was in net for the Montreal Canadiens as Carey Price played perhaps his strongest game of the 2009-10 season. The oft-taunted goaltender in Boston, Price made one save after another, stopping all 26 of Boston’s shots after 40 minutes of play.

In what was very reminiscent of 2007-08, where Price and the Canadiens beat the Bruins eight times in the regular season and knocked the B’s out of the first round of the playoffs, Price demonstrated excellent mechanics and had absolutely phenomenal poise.

Shutting down Boston in typical 2007-08, Price was less than a minute away from securing a regulation win when Patrice Bergeron banged the puck home for his fifth goal of the season.

In overtime, the B’s had their opportunities, none better than Patrice Bergeron’s shot from just over the blue-line in the attacking zone. Bergeron, a mini-breakaway let one rip and Price went down and made a desperation save straight out of the NHL10, stopping Bergeron’s shot with a filthy glove save.

Following a botched scoring opportunity by Blake Wheeler and Vladimir Sobotka on a 2-on-1, the B’s and Habs were going to the shootout for the first time since November 20th, 2008.

The B’s elected to shoot first and it was Blake Wheeler who was stopped by Price. The first shooter for the Canadiens was Michael Cammalleri, who ripped a wrist shot right by Tim Thomas that to be honest, I saw coming from a mile away. After one round, Montreal had the 1-0 lead in the shootout.

The B’s sent Patrice Bergeron to center ice as their second shooter but again, Price stood tall in net, denying Bergeron’s bid to tie it up. Tim Thomas was also able to stop Scott Gomez with a save off his glove as Boston was in a must-score situation when they sent Mark Recchi onto the ice.

“Mark Recchi?! Not Sturm, Ryder, Sobotka or even Marchand? Mark Recchi?!”

Recchi, although making a great attempt, was stopped by Price and the Habs got their first win against Boston since October of last season, ending a nine game losing streak including the playoffs, against Boston.

While the loss to Montreal may sting, the B’s fans should be thrilled with getting a point, along with the team scoring their first goal in 179 minutes and eight seconds. All things considered, the defense and goaltending for Boston is playing phenomenal, pointing to nothing but good coming from the return of Krejci and Savard along with Milan Lucic in the upcoming weeks.

Dumb Quote of the Night

“It’s different when we get outside buddy, when le fists come into play and at le face” - Completely ignorant B’s fans to group of Habs fans celebrating Metropolit’s goal in the first period.

Honestly, I understand this is a rivalry, but why are we resorting to violence towards fans for being happy that their player scored a goal? This fan proceeded to charge at all of these fans during the first intermission, shoving them up against a wall and calling them all cowards because they wouldn’t fight him. For starters, they were here to watch sixty minutes of hockey, not twenty. Secondly, this man had about seven inches and a good hundred pounds on each on them, I can’t blame them.

B’s fans, it’s time to grow up and leave the fighting to the guys on the ice.

What’s Next?

It’ll be a Saturday night showdown with the Northeast Division leading Buffalo Sabres at the Garden. The Sabres come into Boston winning five out of their last six before tonight’s tilt against the Flyers at the HSBC Arena. They’re led by Ryan Miller, who’s completely playing out of skull right now, posting a 9-1-1 record with a 1.69 goals against average and two shutouts.

The Sabres, who always seem to give the B’s a hard time regardless of their record, should provide a daunting challenge to the Boston Bruins, who will once again be without Milan Lucic, Marc Savard, and David Krejci.

Wings Shutout Boston: A New Streak Begins, Kessel Debuts In Toronto, Winter Classic Tickets

Unfortunately for Boston, as one streak ends, a new one begins.

In tonight’s loss to the Detroit Red Wings, the B’s snapped a loss-win pattern that has plagued the club throughout their first 13 games of the 2009-10 NHL season. However, in the process, the B’s failed to score a goal, rendering them goal-less in their past 133 minutes and 58 seconds of play.

Following tonight’s display in Detroit, is the frustration officially beginning to mount in the Hub?

While the Bruins got shutout by an Original Six team for the second time in the past 72 hours, these Bruins simply don’t appear to be trying out there as a cohesive unit.

Yes, top-liners such Marc Savard and Milan Lucic are both on the long-term injured reserve, but isn’t that extra incentive for players such as David Krejci, Michael Ryder and Marco Sturm to step up?

Tonight, it was more of the same from the black and gold−which simply hasn’t been a good thing this season.

The daggers tonight came from Henrik Zetterberg and Tomas Holmstrom, who both scored late in the first period of the Tuesday night contest in the Motor City. Zetterberg’s powerplay goal seemingly happened instantaneously, so quickly that the VS cable crew was nearly unable to catch it on TV.

Three minutes later, and one Thomas positioning-gaffe later, and Tomas Holmstrom put the Wings up by two, which is more than what Chris Osgood needed to earn the ‘W’ tonight.

Osgood, who came into tonight’s match-up boasting a 4-2-2 record with a 3.10 goals against average, was mechanical, lucky and mechanically lucky for sixty minutes, making 29 saves and getting two lucky post-rings to secure his 50th career shutout.

For Boston, the powerplay-woes continue as the Bruins went 0 for 3 tonight with a man-advantage, worsening to 1 for 20 since being without Marc Savard in the line-up due to a broken foot.

Some good for B’s fans to take solace in is that fourth line cogs, Shawn Thornton and Steve Begin, to continue to play strong and create chances even without 6′4″ Byron Bitz out of the line-up. More good news surrounding the slumping Bruins is that since the team’s acquisition of Daniel Paille, the B’s have killed off 17 out of 18 penalties.

Warning: Phil Kessel Talk Ahead

Tonight marked the debut of Boston’s newest-villain, Phil Kessel, in a Toronto Maple Leafs uniform. The formerly-loved and delightfully dangerous goal scorer, who lit the lamp 36 times in 2008-09 for Boston, who demanded/didn’t demand a trade out of Boston this off-season after the two sides failed to reach an agreement on a new deal.

To the joy of Boston fans, Kessel had an absolutely frustrating night tonight in his Leafs debut. In his return from major shoulder surgery over the off-season, Kessel was on the ice tonight for just under 24 minutes and had a career-high 10 shots, the end result? Zero goals, zero points, and one bone-crunching and bloody-lip inducing hit from Bolts blue-liner Mattias Ohlund. Anyone else want to go out and buy an Ohlund shirt?

Also, honestly what was penalty worthy about that hit? Nothing dirty there, just keep your head up, Ke$$el.

Oh Phil, how Boston will feed off your misery.

Who Got Winter Classic Tickets? Oh Yeah, That’s Right, This Guy!

Honestly, this process was a lot easier than I expected for those of you who have yet to purchase your seats. However, it was still a little questionable to me.

After logging in using my private password and username, I selected the option of “Best Available”. The results weren’t not what I expected. While I knew seats atop the Green Monster, in the left-field grandstands and in the Pavilion Club would be gone, I didn’t expect what I got back.

Two seats, right field grandstand 3, row 13. The view? Here. The price? 225.00 dollars per seat. Errrr, what? For a near-outfield-bleacher view, I simply wasn’t paying this price. I instead opted for seats along the right field line, in right-field box 93, row 7 for 125.00 dollars per seat. My only hope is that I’m not behind Pesky’s Pole.

What’s Next?

On Thursday night in Boston, it’ll be the 700th meeting between the Boston Bruins and the hated Montreal Canadiens. Both Boston and Montreal are coming off losses on Tuesday night. The Canadiens shouldstart Jaroslav Halak for this match-up against the team that eliminated them from the 2009 Playoffs, considering the absolute disaster of a start Carey Price has had to the 2009-10 season. Halak is 5-2-0 with a 2.85 goals against average on the season and has clearly outplayed Price thus far (then again, that hasn’t been hard).

Follow me on Twitter, folks.

Ty

Bruins Return To Garden To Battle Devils

Hi Boston, remember hockey?

It’s been five days since the Boston Bruins have played a game, a thrilling win against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday night in Canada’s capital where the B’s scored two goals with under a minute and a half left in the third to tie it and eventually win in the shootout.

Tonight, the B’s will play host the New Jersey Devils, a team that has given the Bruins trouble and close match-up’s for years. Under Claude Julien, the Bruins are 3-2-3 against the Devils and no final score between the two clubs has had a goal differential over three, which has happened only once.

Ten games into the season, the Devils, back with Jacques Lemaire behind the bench, are off to a 6-4-0 start, but their road record has been more than impressive, it’s been perfect. The Devils are undefeated on the road with a 5-0 record.

As always, a main cog in the success of New Jersey has been Martin Brodeur, who missed much of last season with a torn bicep injury. However, luckily for Boston, Marty will be watching tonight’s game from the bench as Yann Danis will make his Devils debut tonight in Boston.

With the departure of Scott Clemmensen to Florida through free agency and retirement of Kevin Weekes, the Devils were without a solid back-up and addressed this issue with the signing of Yann Danis to a one year contract worth league minimum.

For Danis, this is his third NHL franchise in as many years, spending last season with the New York Islanders, where he put together a respectable season on a dreadful team with a 10-17-3 record, .910 save percentage, and 2.86 goals against average.

Despite his decent numbers, the same cannot be said when Danis stepped in between the pipes against the Boston Bruins.

In three games last season against the Killer B’s, Danis went 0-3-0 with a .881 save percentage, including a start against the Bruins in the Isles season finale where he was lit up for four goals in 25 minutes.

For Boston, the focus will be on looking to continuing the momentum they gained last week as the team gained five out of a possible six points while without top-liners Marc Savard and Milan Lucic.

The Bruins will still be without Lucic (finger) and Savard (foot) for tonight’s game, but call-up’s Brad Marchand and Vladimir Sobotka have played considerably well and aren’t causing headaches for fans in the Hub of Hockey when on the ice just yet.

Last week, the success for Boston came in the final five minutes against the Sens, a task they surely don’t want to have to repeat tonight with Danis in net. The keys to the game will be to put the pressure on the Devils early and get Danis rattled. However, given the Lemaire trap-style of play, inducing lullabies everywhere since 1993, the B’s may have very limited chances to do so in tonight’s game, creating the mantra of capitalizing on their chances.

Players To Watch

For Boston, the pressure-cooker has got to be building on Matt Hunwick. Hunwick, who missed nearly all of the Bruins playoff-push last year following a ruptured spleen injury, has struggled out of the gate on a defensive standpoint so far in 2009-10. While the 24-year old has three goals in ten games thus far, he’s been a total liability when it comes to defending the Bruins zone responsibly. If this continues, B’s fans will be clamoring for the return of Johnny Boychuk from the press box in place of Hunwick sooner, rather than later.

Tim Thomas, coming off a huge 27-save performance in Ottawa on Saturday will be in net tonight for Boston and will look to improve to 5-3-0 on the short season. The 2009 Vezina Trophy winner has experienced relatively good success against New Jersey, boasting a 4-3-3 record and .920 save percentage, including a shutout of last year’s Devils.

In red and white tonight, while Patrik Elias is tops among Devils forwards when it comes to career points against Boston, Elias will be inactive tonight still recovering from off-season groin surgery, putting the focus on Devils captain and notorious Bruins killer, Jamie Langenbrunner. In 10 games this season, Langenbrunner is already off to a fast start with seven points and a +4. Always the dangerous playmaker due to his size and effective skating, Langenbrunner has already tallied 23 points in 34 career games against Boston and could have more if not contained by the Bruins.

Follow me on Twitter, friends.

Ty

This Week In Bruins: Tuukka, The Kids, Philly & My Negativity

Here in the first week of “This Week In Bruins” (okay, I’m cheating, the season is about three weeks old now but who makes up these rules anyhow?), we’re going to examine the past seven days in all things Bruins.

Following a dominating performance against a semi-healthy Dallas Stars team, the Bruins sputtered out of the gate and lost to the currently-untouchable Ilya Bryzagalov the Phoenix Coyotes 4-1 in the desert. Before the game, the Bruins lost Milan Lucic for the night, and went on to lose him for the next 4-6 weeks with a broken finger.

Just how does one of the NHL’s toughest players get away with sitting out four to six weeks because of a broken finger? Well, you can ask him if you see him, but I know I won’t be backing you up.

* To add injury to injury, the Bruins also placed linemate Marc Savard on the long-term injured reserve with a broken foot. While Savard’s seven points were good for best on the Bruins, it was deemed best if 91 spent some time in the press box, giving him time to let the broken bones heal. The injury was suffered during the pre-season, but gives Savard more time to pursue a modeling career, photos by the Improper Bostonian, courtesy of the Looch Ness Monster blog.

* The Bruins call up Guilliam Lefebvre, sent him down, call him up for a half hour, and send him down again. While Lefebvre is heading back to Rhode Island for perhaps the rest of the season, I’ve grown curious as to how much gas money Peter Chiarelli has given Lefebvre.

* Brad Marchand gets an assist in his first NHL game, but rubs Bruins, music, and musically-inclined Bruins fans the wrong way before the game when he admits to wanting to interview Nickelback.

* The Bruins acquire Daniel Paille from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for one of the Bruins 1,982 draft picks. Paille impresses Bruins fans the next night with his dogged determination, tenacity and assist on a game-winning goal for Boston.

* Steve Begin continues to make Boston fans miss P.J Axelsson and Stephane Yelle less and less by the game. Currently, Begin is on pace for 54 points and is second on the Bruins with four assists.

* Surprisingly, Patric Hornqvist survived 60 minutes out there against the Bruins on Wednesday. The Sweden native forward, who stands at a whopping 5′11″ and 186 pounds was hacking away at Thomas’ pads all game, crosschecking Sobotka and being an all around irritation to the Bruins.

* Bruins survive a last second melee in front of Tim Thomas’ crease to secure a win against the Nashville Predators, continuing their streak of inconsistency.

* My negativity towards the Boston Bruins via Facebook status leads to the team waking up, I know I’m friends with Zach Hamill on there, but does news really travel that quickly?

* Both Vladimir Sobotka and Brad Marchand admit that Marley & Me made them cry. Winning the hearts of dog-lovers all over, but creating a buzz about just what is going on in the city of Providence?

* Bruins unveil “official” Winter Classic hats during pre-game skate with Philadelphia Flyers, continuing to upset fans with their lack of anything cool for this year’s battle at Fenway Park.

* The scouting report on Tuukka Rask continues to read “top-shelf”. However, Tuukka still performs admirably in the 4-3 shootout loss against the Philadelphia Flyers, including a stellar save against Jeff Carter on a shorthanded breakaway.

* Scott Hartnell has still refused to get a haircut, to the dismay of even his closest family. His search for revenge on Bart Simpson continues.

*Derek Morris scores his first goal with the Boston Bruins and tallies an assist against Philly, stopping the complaining of B’s fans..for now.

* Is there any team more appealing to loathe than the Philadelphia Flyers? Between that clinically-insane punk Daniel Carcillo to Chris “Mr. Stomp” Pronger, is there any reason as to why anyone outside of Philadelphia would bother liking this club? I suppose it fits their city well though, GREEN-MAN!

* The Canadiens continue to stumble, to the joy of Bruins fans, posing the question, est la Coupe truly downtown? Even more joyous, the Toronto Maple Leafs are still winless seven games into the season, with a wonderfully terrible record of 0-6-1, on pace to give the Boston Bruins the first overall draft pick in 2010. Hey Kessel, how do ‘ya like ‘dem apples?

Tomorrow, the Bruins take to the ice in Kanata, Ontario to take on the Ottawa Senators. This will be the first time that the Bruins face off against Alex Kovalev since his departure from Montreal. Will L’Artist have any tricks up his sleeve or will the Bruins continue to play hard, physical and cliche as they prove to be “tougher to play against”?

If you haven’t already done so, follow me on Twitter!

Ty

Glimpse of the Future? B's Without Savard For 4-6 Weeks

When it rains, it pours.

Earlier this morning, the Boston Bruins announced that they’ve placed center Marc Savard on the long-term injured reserve with a broken left foot, joining fellow linemate on the B’s top line, Milan Lucic.

It’s unclear as to when Savard aggrivated the foot he injured during the preseason, but Savard noted that it was undoubtedly in the best interest if he took some time off. “The best thing now is to shut it down for a couple of weeks and let it heal.” a disappointed Savard said today when talking to the media.

Although the struggling Bruins certainly need the presence of their number one powerplay-producer, could B’s fans be getting a glimpse of the future as Savard could be without the club for nearly two months?

Savard enters 2009-10 in the final year of a four year contract he signed with the Boston Bruins back in July 2006 that pays him five-million a year, a bargain when looking at the numbers put up by the 5′10″ center from Ottawa. In all three seasons in the Hub so far, Savard has put up at least 60 assists or more, something only duplicated in the entire National Hockey League by Joe Thornton of the San Jose Sharks.

However, given the expected decrease in the salary cap along with the continuing development of players such as David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron, and Milan Lucic, all younger players with contracts of 3.75 million or higher, just where does Marc Savard fit into the plan of the Boston Bruins’ future?

When examining the players who finished with the same amount of points and/or more than Marc Savard last season, their average salary totals out at an average of 6.4 million dollars a season. While there’s been plenty of internet chatter about the Bruins interest in signing Savard to a three-year extension worth 6.5 million a season, there’s been no substantial quotes, figures or talks been expressed by both sides to date.

Regardless of the numbers put up by number 91, the Bruins numbers when it comes to the salary cap sets off quite the alarm, creating a large doubt about Savard’s potential return to the club past 2009-10.

Currently, the Bruins have 39.4 million dollars of the 2010-11 cap tied up between 11 positional players and Tim Thomas. However, besides Savard, included in the Bruins pool of pending free agents are promising players Blake Wheeler, Mark Stuart, Tuukka Rask and Vladimir Sobotka along with roleplayers such as Andrew Ference, Shawn Thornton and Derek Morris.

Without including Savard, the Bruins would have approximately 15.9 million dollars to spend on 10 players to fill out a roster. While it’s expected that players such as Mikko Lehtonen, Zach Hamill, Jeff Penner and Andrew Bodnarchuk will be challenging for spots on the big league roster next September, the likelihood of Savard remaining a Bruin without Peter Chiarelli having to continue to move pieces around is near impossible.

Posing the question, could what we’re about to witness be the future of the Boston Bruins?

Called up from Providence over the weekend, fiesty smaller forwards Brad Marchand and Vladimir Sobotka are expected to make their cases for a role on the NHL roster with Kobasew out of the equation and will certainly get their chances with the injuries to Lucic and Savard. They will be helped by the addition of Daniel Paille and call-up of journeyman minor leaguer Trent Whitfield.

Also expected to take the load off Savard’s back on the powerplay will be promising and proven NHL capable centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. While David Krejci totaled 73 points in 2008-09, the 23 year old Czech forward has shown some signs of still being in the midst of recovering from off-season hip surgery. On the other hand, center and 2003 2nd round pick Bergeron has been on an absolute tear, scoring five points in seven games this season and playing much like he did back in 2006-07 before concussions took their toll on the B’s alternate captain.

While tonight’s match-up against the 2-4-1 Nashville Predators may be a good way for the young guns to get into the action, the real tests will come as the B’s schedule gets tougher with opponents such as the Philadelphia Flyers, New Jersey Devils and Edmonton Oilers facing off against Boston in the next nine days.

Do you Twitter? Do you want to twitter? Follow on, friends!

Ty

Bruins Acquire Daniel Paille From Sabres

It didn’t take Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli too long to find an alternative to now former third-line-staple Chuck Kobasew. Today, the club on Causeway announced that they have acquired Sabres forward Daniel Paille in exchange for a third round pick in the 2010 NHL Draft and conditional fourth rounder in ‘11.

While most Bruins fans are no Darren Dreger or Pierre LeBrun, the move has been dubbed as ‘puzzling’, ‘confusing’ and even ’stupid’ on some internet forums so far.

For one, following the placing of Milan Lucic on the long-term injured reserve over the weekend, the Bruins called up forwards Brad Marchand and Vladimir Sobotka to fill in the holes created by Looch’s injury and Kobasew’s departure for Minnesota.

Sobotka, who had an impressive pre-season, creating concerns as to why he wasn’t apart of the NHL roster to begin the season, is absolutely tearing apart the American Hockey League with the Providence Bruins thus far, posting six goals and ten points in just six games so far for the Baby B’s. The same can be said for Brad Marchand, who’s put up eight points, including six goals in six games for Providence.

Seemingly ready for their chance in the National Hockey League, the Boston-hopefuls may have some new competition for ice-time with the addition of Danny Paille into the Boston line-up.

Paille, who’s been a healthy scratch for Lindy Ruff’s Sabres for four games already this season is looking for a new start in the Claude Julien system.

Considering Paille’s decrease in point production by eight points from the season prior, much of that can arguably be attributed to his diminishing minutes as his average time on ice a game went from 13:16 down to 11:54 a game.

So far in 2009-10, Paille has an assist and a +1 in two games for the Sabres. Paille’s career high in goals (19) came in the 2007-08 season, as did his point total, 35, in the same season.

Personally, I love this move. Paille brings many of the same intangibles that Kobasew did, at half the cost with a 1.1 million dollar cap hit. The addition of Paille also gives Boston flexible if Marchand, Sobotka or both, falter at the NHL level, avoiding the idea of thinning out your presumed-NHL-ready depth on the farm.

Kobasew Traded To Minnesota; What's Next?

Well, this is certainly surprising, at least at seven games into the season it is.

Today, the Boston Bruins have announced the trade of Chuck Kobasew to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for winger Craig Weller, the rights to unsigned fourth round pick from 2009, Alexander Fallstrom, and a second round draft choice in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.

Kobasew, a Boston College alumni and first round pick from the 2001 NHL draft, was beginning his third full season with the Boston Bruins after being traded to Boston midway through the 2006-07 season.

Always the fan favorite, Kobasew was known for his strong two-way play and never-afraid-to-get-your-hands-dirty approach to the game and his steady play has been more than welcomed to the Bruins. In 158 games, Kobasew tallied a total of 44 goals and 84 points frequently playing on Boston’s third line. Kobasew was also coming off two consecutive 20-goal seasons in the Hub of Hockey.

However, while Kobasew was a valued and often unsung hero on the Boston Bruins roster, his presence and increasingly unfavorable contract was without question weighing on Boston GM Peter Chiarelli’s mind.

As it stood in the Hub, and now in Minnesota, Kobasew’s making 2.3 million dollars a season through the conclusion of the 2011-12 season. A price simply too rich for the thinning blood of the Boston salary cap.

Coming to Boston in the now is forward Craig Weller, who’s totaled 95 games, 14 points and 127 penalty minutes in two seasons split between the Coyotes and Wild. Along with Weller and the draft choice, the Bruins have obtained Harvard freshmen Alexander Fallstrom, a Swedish forward with a knack for scoring goals in Europe, something he’s looking to replicate with the Harvard Crimson.

So just what does the moving of Kobasew out West create for possible scenarios for the B’s?

1. Deadline Blockbuster – In Boston, one name has been consistently repeated, Atlanta Thrashers captain and star forward, Ilya Kovalchuk. The Russian forward has put up five straight seasons with at least 40 goals and has an expiring contract and may want out of Atlanta if they continue their decline on the map of hockey relevancy. If the B’s are to fail in landing Ilya, they could also used the freed up cap space to perhaps land a top six forward like Nathan Horton from Florida or Alexander Frolov from the Los Angeles Kings.

2. Re-Signing Savard? – The Bruins have reportedly expressed in re-signing top center Marc Savard before he hits the open market this off-season. Savard is coming off three straight 60+ assist seasons and is in the final year of a contract that pays him five million dollars per season. Savard, who’s already off to a good start to 2009-10 with seven points in as many games, is considered a bargain at five million per season and is often looking for his last big contract in the 6.5 million dollar range.

3. Restricted Free Agency Wiggle Room – At the conclusion of this season, young stars such as Blake Wheeler, Mark Stuart and Tuukka Rask headline the B’s crop of restricted free agents. Given the success of the youth while the cap dwindles down, the Bruins are clearly at a disadvantage and need to take the proper steps towards creating a solid crop of players developed into their own system. The clearing of Kobasew’s contract does just that.

Personally, I believe the Kobasew trade makes the Bruins a premier buyer at the NHL Trading Deadline this year. As it stands now, the Bruins have six draft picks in either the first or second round of the 2010 NHL Draft, absolutely huge bargaining chips at the deadline for a cellar-dwelling team looking to unload some expiring contracts.

Also, I’ve noticed a large outcry from Bruins Nation about the trading of Chuck Kobasew. Honestly, my response is just, “At 2.3 million dollars a season, is he really worth what he is on a very talented B’s club, a third liner?”. While Kobasew is, was, a fan favorite at the Garden, his goals will be replaced by a combination of Brad Marchand, Vladimir Sobotka ( who were both called up from Providence today) along with added offensive contributions from role-players Byron Bitz and Steve Begin.

Heading into Wednesday, the Bruins will likely role a set of lines similar to these.

Marco Sturm – Marc Savard – Michael Ryder

Blake Wheeler – David Krejci – Byron Bitz

Mark Recchi – Patrice Bergeron – Vlad Sobotka

Shawn Thornton – Steve Begin – Brad Marchand

Extra Skater: Guillaume Lefebvre

With the shake-up’s seemingly done for now, the Boston Bruins will focus on the Nashville Predators, who come to town on Wednesday for a showdown at the Garden.

Lucic Injured, Lefebvre Called Up

Tonight, the Phoenix Coyotes will host the Boston Bruins at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Arizona, but a key cog in the Bruins roster will not be active for tonight’s game.

Milan Lucic, who’s coming off a five-hit performance less than 24 hours ago, will be sidelined for tonight’s game and possibly more with a currently undisclosed injury.

In typical Boston Bruins fashion, the injury remains undisclosed, leading me to believe that they’d give us GM Peter Chiarelli’s personal cell phone number before telling us above a top six forward’s injury. Regardless of the info, or lack of, the question remains; Just how did Milan Lucic suffer this injury we know little to nothing about?

It’s very possible that Lucic’s physical play last night could’ve banged him up, as he seemed to have an extra giddy-up (they were playing in Texas, so that’s acceptable for this post) in his physicality. Whatever the injury may be, the Bruins have called up forward Guillaume Lefebvre up from the Providence Bruins on an emergency basis.

Essentially when examining the call-up of the 28-year-old forward from Quebec, the Bruins are replacing one menacing force with another.

Lefebvre, who spent all of the 2008-09 season with the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League, tallying 206 penalty minutes along with 13 points in 70 games, has already made his mark in the Providence penalty box. Just four games into the AHL season, Lefebvre’s totaled 25 minutes in the sin bin and is expected to be in the line-up tonight for the Boston Bruins.

This likely means that Byron Bitz is getting moved up to the third line while Recchi moves up one, or that Lefebvre will be a direct substitution for Lucic on the second line. However, the latter of these plans seems unlikely as in short, Lefebvre’s there for his physical play, not his offensive skills.

Tonight will mark Guillaume’s first game in the National Hockey League since February 4th, 2006 when he was with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Word from John Bishop via the Bruins official Twitter acount is that Lefebvre will wear number 92 tonight for the black and gold.

If you haven’t already, follow me on Twitter!

Ty

Desert Bound B's: Bruins vs. Coyotes Preview

Last night in the Hub of Hockey, the riot squads were called off and the Bruins were able to shut down the Dallas Stars en route to a 3-0 rout that’s settled down the masses of B’s fans, at least for now.

While the Bruins earned a “that’s how you do it” from most B’s fans for their efforts, Claude Julien’s squad was able to do all the things that made them such a successful team last season. For starters, they were able to kill of an early penalty to Patrice Bergeron 18 seconds into the game, avoiding the loss of any sort of momentum. The Bruins also capitalized on their up-ice rushes, putting three goals by Marty Turco on 29 shots.

In the eyes of Bruins Nation, three players stood out in particular. Michael Ryder, who moved up to the top line, playing with Marc Savard and Marco Sturm had arguably his best game of the season. Although he was held to just one point, Ryder had some great opportunities.

Tim Thomas, who stoned all 27 of Dallas’ shots showed some great poise when under fire and was bailed out numerous times by great defensive efforts from his blue-liners.

The Bruins first star of the game has to go to Marc Savard, who had a phenomenal night offensively as he was constantly creating offensive chances for his linemates and took advantage of his own chances as he banged home two goals by Marty Turco, the second being an absolute bullet that I’m convinced Turco simply didn’t see.

Charging into Arizona, the Bruins will look to continue to ride their momentum from last night as they’re hosted by Dave Tippett’s Phoenix Coyotes.

Coming into tonight’s game, the Boston Bruins will be without forward Milan Lucic, who injured himself during last night’s tilt in the Lone Star State and have called up bruising forward Guillaume Lefebvre from Providence to stand in for Lucic tonight. Lefebvre has one assist and 25 penalty minutes in four games with the Providence Bruins so far this season.

The game plan tonight for Boston will be much of the same, put the pressure on the young Coyotes early and often. Although Ilya Bryzgalov is in the midst of a spectacular start to the season, posting a 4-1-0 record with a 1.17 goals against average, including two shutouts, the Bruins will undoubtedly up the pressure on the 29-year-old Russian netminder as they did on Turco last night.

For the Coyotes, the focus will be on Shane Doan, who’s off to a seemingly typical slow start, scoring just three points in six games so far in 2009-10.

Players To Watch

For Boston, keep your eyes out for defensemen Johnny Boychuk, currently filling in for injured blue-liner Dennis Wideman. The AHL’s 2008-09 Eddie Shore Award winning defensemen, Boychuk is coming off two very strong games where he showed a strong awareness of his space and where the play was going while continuing to throw his body around very well. At this rate, Boychuk will make fans forget all about the loss of Shane Hnidy as the team’s seventh defensemen.

Two more players to take note of are Marc Savard and Mark Recchi. Savard is currently sitting at 199 career goals, one shy of 200 while Recchi is just an assist away from 900 in his career.

Currently, as it stands, the Phoenix Coyotes are the Pacific Division leaders (crazy season, huh). A player who’s seemingly thriving under the system put into place by Dave Tippett is forward Radim Vrbata. Three goals and an assist in six games is making a lot of us forget that Vrbata was the same player who jetted back home to Czechoslovakia after being upset with the Tampa Bay Lightning just 18 games into a lucrative three year contract last season.

Scottie Upshall is another player to keep tabs on tonight if you’re a Boston player. Upshall has absolutely killed Tim Thomas, well actually any Boston goaltender, throughout his career and has eight points in as many games against Boston throughout his NHL tenure. While Upshall’s currently sitting with just two goals so far this season, it’s very possible that he could be the one to make the difference between a Boston win and Boston loss.

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Ty

Fight Night Round II: Bruins vs. Stars Preview

“He’s a knee seeking missile, he’s a SCUD.” – Bruins’ play-by-play announcer Jack Edwards on Steve Ott’s questionable hit on Stephane Yelle last season at the TD Garden.

Tonight, the Boston Bruins start their first road trip of the season in Dallas to face off against the 2-0-3 Stars. Fortunately for number 29 and Bruins favorite (wink, wink), Steve Ott, will be witnessing this one from the press box of the American Airlines Center nursing a strained oblique that’s landed him on the injured reserve.

In a rematch of perhaps the most talked about regular season game last year for Boston, the Bruins will seek to get their first win against a Western Conference club this season while the Stars are looking to continue their streak of earning a point in every game of this newborn NHL season.

For Boston, the goal is to get sixty minutes of strong play, something they’ve shown a troubling inability to do five games into the season.

Some changes for the B’s will come up front, as Milan Lucic has dropped down to the second line with Michael Ryder moving up to the top line where he’ll be playing with Marco Sturm and Marc Savard for tonight’s match-up.

The Bruins will also have 2009 Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas back in the crease tonight after a two-game Tuukka weekend in the Hub of Hockey.

Good news for the anemicBoston powerplay, which comes into tonight’s game as the sixth worst in the National Hockey League, converting just four of their 29 opportunities, is that defensive forward and penalty killer Jere Lehtinen will be out for tonight’s game along with two-way forward Mike Modano.

For the Stars, the focus should and will be on goaltender Marty Turco, who’s coming off a shutout of the Nashville Predators. Along with Turco, the Stars will rely on their top line featuring Loui Eriksson, alternate captain Brad Richards and James Neal who have combined for 21 out of 56 points this season by Stars’ players.

Honestly B’s fans, don’t expect a repeat of last year’s fight-filled night of antics in Boston. The reasons?

For one, Sean Avery, the man arguably responsible for ruining any team chemistry in the Stars’ locker room is back in New York with the Rangers while Ott is out for tonight’s game. Secondly, the Bruins just need to head into tonight’s game with a level head, there should be no “revenge for a guy who’s now with the Hurricanes” sort of motive on their mind, “just win” is the idea on the B’s mind tonight.

As nice as it would be to see a Bruins’ blue-liner rearrange Matty Niskanen’s kisser as Jack Edwards so proudly put it last year, I wouldn’t hold my breath for a line-brawl tonight.

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Ty

Oh Captain, Our Captain: Why Is There A Nude Zdeno Chara In My ESPN The Magazine?

No, that's not Bigfoot from the Patterson footage, that's just the captain of the Boston Bruins, Zdeno Chara.

It's guaranteed that most of the sports fans out there weren't too thrilled to open their ESPN: The Magazine this morning and see a nude 6'9" Big Z starting at them provocatively wearing nothing but his birthday suit.

Just why did ESPN pick Chara for their inaugural "Body Issue"? Or better yet, why did Chara accept the offer put forth by the television station that loves to act as if hockey is less important than NASCAR?

I'm no 6'9" Slovak, but here are just a few ideas as to why Zdeno Chara agreed to do this photoshoot.

• Chara saw last season's NHL "Is this the year?" poster that said the only thing more terrifying than Zdeno Chara was Zdeno Chara with a playoff beard and he disagreed vehemently. In fact, Chara believes that the image of his nude stare will in fact burn in the heads of NHL forwards as they make their way up the ice.
• He heard that there was a naked painting of Bobby Orr, he felt that he could one-up number four.
• Chara realizes that when you're captain of the Boston Bruins, nearly seven feet tall on skates and known for tossing players around like ragdolls you probably won't hear too much about it from the opposition.
• After registering the NHL record for hardest slapshot at 105.4 mph, a myth began to grow about how human Zdeno Chara actually was compared to how much of a machine he was. He felt he needed to do this to set the record straight.
• Chara felt extreme jealously towards the modeling shots of Andrew Ference and knew that someone had to show up that Earth-friendly blue-liner. After all, while Ference is preserving the mountains, Chara is conquering them.

Regardless that the magazine also contains players such as Sheldon Souray, Bill Guerin and Mike Komisarek, Chara was the only NHL player to pose nude for the magazine. In the process, Captain Zdeno became the first player to ever appear nude in a magazine, sorry Jiri Tlusty.

Powerplay Outage: Hiller, Ducks Beat Bruins 6-1

Is it too late to change the Boston Bruins motto from “Big and Bad are Back” to “Ten Minutes of Offensive Pressure, Fifty Minutes of Mistakes”?

While it’s still extremely early in the season, there’s no doubting that after a 6-1 demolition of the hometown boys thanks to the at-the-time winless Anaheim Ducks following the steam-rolling of Carolina last Saturday, the fans in the Hub are beginning to wonder what they’re in for this season.

My best advice? Don’t jump off the bridge when there’s still 79 games of hockey left.

Heading into tonight’s showdown at the TD Garden, the Bruins were seemingly back to their offensive-juggernaut ways after lighting up the ‘Canes for 7 goals during a Saturday night physical affair in Boston. Tonight however, Jonas Hiller and the rest of the Anaheim (no longer mighty) Ducks were more than ready. After getting peppered by 19 shots by Boston in the first period of play and only letting one Marco Sturm slapshot get by him, the feeling that this was going to be a difficult night for the Boston offense was beginning to reverberate throughout the minds of the Garden Faithful.

From there on out, it was all Anaheim.

Following an interference call on Matt Hunwick for his rather bizarre knock-down to 6′4″ Evgeny Artyukhin and questionable hooking call against Marco Sturm, the Ducks, who boasted the fourth best powerplay in 2008-09, were set up with one minute and 53 seconds of a five-on-three advantage. Turns out they’d only need a minute and thirty seconds of it to jump ahead.

It was a Teemu Selanne bullet that went by Tim Thomas, who was being screened by Corey Perry uncontested that tied that game and wouldn’t you know it, it was Teemu again who put the puck by a sprawled out Tim Thomas a minute later to give Anaheim a lead they would never relinquish.

After Corey Perry’s goal midway through the second period put the Ducks up 3-1, the Bruins seemed simply unmotivated to win, a sight similar to last week’s home opening against the Washington Capitals. Anaheim, who adopted the idealogy of quality over quantity finished the period with three goals on just six shots whereas the Bruins were held to just one goal on 30 shots through 40 minutes of play.

In similar fashion to the aforementioned game last week, Bruins netminder Tim Thomas gave up three more soft goals in the third period, including a very bizarre shorthanded goal by Corey Perry with under a minute to play and the Bruins were done.

When it comes to tonight’s loss, the Krejci line can simply not feel good about the way they played tonight. Frequently offsides and defensively irresponsible is no way to go through a game, boys. All three members of the Bruins’ second line, Blake Wheeler, Michael Ryder and David Krejci finished the night with an upsetting -3.

Kudos to Boston’s fourth line tonight, which was creating offensive chances and throwing the body around all at the same time. Shawn Thornton, who has a knack for scoring highlight-reel goals was kept off the scoresheet but had a very impressive night when it came to moving the puck around and skating.

All and all, the story of tonight’s loss rests on the unsuccessful powerplay put forth by Boston. The Bruins were 0-6 on the advantage, falling to 4-19 on the season.

Dumb Quote of the Night

“*Sarcastic cheers*” – As Thomas stopped the puck after giving up the sixth goal in the closing minute of tonight’s loss.

Yes, Thomas did get shelled tonight, yes he was looking foolish at times, but why are you booing the Vezina Trophy winner from last season after a rough game? For one, the Bruins defense was not giving Thomas any help whatsoever and secondly, wouldn’t you prefer Thomas to work out the kinks from the off-season in October as opposed to in April?

Jersey-Spotting of the Night

A man walking throughout the balcony tonight in Section 314 was sporting a lovely Boston Red Sox away jersey, bearing the last name “Yankees Suck”, featuring the number 24:7. Interesting to say the least as this last name was so long that it makes Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson look like a nameplate belonging to Steve Ott.

What’s Next?

The Bruins will take to the ice in Boston on Saturday night as John Tavares makes his TD Garden debut when the New York Islanders come to town. The Isles are 0-0-2 on the season following an overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators in Canada’s capital tonight. I’m about 95% sure that following tonight’s frustrating effort put forth by Tim Thomas, who stopped 24 of 30 shots, that the Bruins will give the nod to Finnish phenom Tuukka Rask.

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Three More Years Of Milan: The Lucic Craze In Boston Continues

At just 21 years old, Lucic has arguably become the face of the Bruins franchise to the casual fan in just his third season in the National Hockey League. Just what makes this hulking left winger so popular in the Hub of Hockey?

For one, he reminds Bruins fans of a certain number hanging in the rafters of the Garden, Cam Neely. While Lucic has yet to develop the offensive skills that Neely possessed, Lucic has the frame of a power forward with a dangerously high level of tenacity and aggression when on the ice.

While Neely still receives booming ovations when shown on the Garden jumbo-tron, be it in classic clips, opening videos or live shots from the ninth level of the TD Garden there’s no louder chants heard than when Lucic is on the ice. As the Boston faithful chant their overpoweringly loud chorus of “Loo”, you know the 6′4 forward is stalking an impending victim for a devastating body check and about to create some offensive chances for his linemates in the process.

To say Lucic is more than a just another fight wouldn’t be doing the Vancouver native any justice, as HockeyFights.com has Lucic boasting a 18-4-2 record in the regular season when it comes to dropping the mittens.

In just the past month alone, Milan Lucic has single-handedly bloodied two guys in fights. Lucic’s first victim was Senators enforcer and known tough-guy Chris Neil, who was essentially asking for it after leveling Boston star forward Marc Savard during a preseason tilt. However, the newest face to get pummeled by number 17 is that of Jay Harrison, a defensemen for the Carolina Hurricanes who was getting under the skin of every Boston player throughout the night until his exchange (or lack thereof on his part) of blows with Lucic.

Already achieving of cult status in the city of Boston, the popularity of Lucic is growing relentlessly. “Lucic Crew” shirts with the number 17 on the back along with the phrase “Ass-Kicker” on the nameplate have quickly become a staple in the balcony of every Bruins home game.

While Lucic may have golden-glove-like qualities, primarily from his days as a teenage boxer in British Columbia, it’s becoming more evident that he has more than mediocre skills on the offensive spectrum of things. Playing on Boston’s top line last season, Lucic put together a 42 point season, including 17 goals, including three game winners. Even more impressive for Lucic enthusiasts in 2008-09 was the fact that his penalty minutes actually increased by 47 minutes from the previous season

Outside of the hockey bubble in Boston, the bruising forward is primarily known for his hate-fueled rivalry with defensemen Mike Komisarek. The two, who have been going at it since Lucic’s rookie season, have not only exchanged words, shoves and checks; but fists, twice, with Lucic winning both decisions handily.

In Montreal, there’s no debating that Lucic has become enemy number one for his refusal to drop the gloves with Georges Laraque on numerous occasions as he prefers to instead beat the Canadiens on the scoreboard rather than toil in the penalty box for five with an old fashioned “goon” by NHL standards.

Without question Boston fans love the physical presence provided by their second round choice from the 2006 NHL Draft, as their near 20 foot tall banner featuring Zdeno Chara and Milan Lucic proclaiming that “Big & Bad Are Back” featured on the outside wall of the TD Garden tells us, it’s becoming clear that Lucic has matured immensely through the lessons and mentoring by both head coach Claude Julien and Bruins VP Cam Neely. In just two seasons with the Bruins, Lucic has driven home the point that he’s at his best when the team needs him most. For Lucic, his time to shine has been throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs where in just 17 career games he’s put up 11 points and a +11.

With the Boston Bruins quickly on the rise within their own city and the National Hockey League as a whole, the spotlight on the Bruins prized winger is certainly going to grow larger with the team’s rising success.

Looked upon as a game-changer for the B’s, at the age of 21 mind you, Lucic has shown a willingness to destroy anything and anyone in the Bruins way for a victory and after Saturday night’s display on the Garden ice, we shouldn’t expect him to stop anytime soon as Lucic became a very rich man when he agreed to a three year contract extension through the 2012-13 season worth 12.25 million dollars.

The Chronicles From The Garden's 2009-10 Eastern Conference Predictions

Can't you feel it? The NHL season is officially upon us. Here's my predictions for the regular season this year in the NHL.

Eastern Conference

1) Boston Bruins - Call me a homer, but what's not to like about this team? You have the Vezina in net with Tim Thomas, the Norris on your blue-line in 6'9 Zdeno Chara and Jack Adams winning coach in Claude Julien behind the bench. Although the leading goal scorer from last season is now a Maple Leaf, the return of Marco Sturm, a full season out of Mark Recchi and continued development from the youth should fill in the void. Expected to help on the powerplay is the addition of Derek Morris, a puck-moving defensemen who finished with a disappointing 20 points last season between New York and Phoenix. What's not to like? The lack of depth on the blue-line due to the departure of Shane Hnidy, Steve Montador (perhaps a blessing) and Aaron Ward.

2) Washington Capitals - Alexander Ovechkin is continuing to build on what's looking to be a career full of record breaking in the Nation's capital. Over the offseason, while Sergei Federov and Viktor Kozlov left for their homeland in Russia, the Capitals were able to add former Bruin and Flyer Mike Knuble to their club. Knuble will be a huge contribution to the Washington offense as he has the ability to bang home many of Ovechkin's rebounds. What's not to like? Given the rather unsettling play of Jose Theodore last season, the Caps may turn to Semyon Varlamov to lead the team. Varlamov, who was run out of Game 7 in the second period against Pittsburgh last season has under 25 games of total NHL experience to his name and could be unprepared to take the full load.

3) Philadelphia Flyers - Following two disappointing Stanley Cup Playoff exits in a row, Flyers GM Paul Holmgren was in the market for making a big move during the offseason. There was perhaps no bigger move made than the Flyers acquistion of 6'6 Chris Pronger from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a first round draft pick and expendable forward Joffrey Lupul. Pronger gives the Flyers another valuable weapon on the blue-line and in my opinion, is the one that puts them over the top in their division. What's not to like? The goaltending duo of Ray Emery and Brian Boucher is a stretch for a division winner, if both falter as starter's, then the Flyers may be in the market for a goaltender at the trade deadline.

4) Pittsburgh Penguins - The Pittsburgh Penguins did what many hockey fans, myself included, didn't think they could do, beat the Red Wings without Marian Hossa. Pivotal in the Pens road to the Stanley Cup were veteran Bill Guerin and agile winger Chris Kunitz. Good news for fans in the 'Burgh is that these players have returned to the club for another year. What's not to like? The departure of secondary scorers Miroslav Satan and Petr Sykora along with gritty defensemen Rob Scuderi could hurt the Penguins in the dog days of the NHL season.

5) Carolina Hurricanes - As Boston fans felt the sting of on May 14th, 2009, you should never doubt the 'Canes. In net for Carolina is clutch goaltender Cam Ward, who stymied the opposition until hitting the Eastern Conference Finals and became 36+ million dollars richer over the off-season with a six year extension. The Carolina Hurricanes added a bevy of grit this offseason with the additions of Tom Kostopoulos, Andrew Alberts and members of last season's Bruins in Aaron Ward and Stephane Yelle. What's not to like? In the event of an injury to either Eric Staal or Cam Ward, the Carolina Hurricanes could fall from division contenders to on the outside looking in. The fact that they also will feast off a poor division is a knock on them for many people.

6) New Jersey Devils - Given the absence of Martin Brodeur for 50 games last season, it's a marvel that the New Jersey Devils continued to go on and win the Atlantic Division. While the Devils have a familiar face back behind the bench with the return of Jacques Lemaire as bench-boss of New Jersey, the team is already battling injury woes with Patrik Elias' absence from the line-up while recovering from groin surgery. What's not to like? Over the offseason, the Devils lost their two back-up's, Scott Clemmensen and Kevin Weekes. While 'Clem' went to Florida to back-up Tomas Vokoun, Weekes took a job in the booth for the NHL Network and backing up Marty is now Yann Danis.

7) Montreal Canadiens - It's very safe to say that 2008-09 wasn't quite the centennial celebration that the Habs had hoped for. At the start of the season, the Canadiens seemed poised to win the Stanley Cup with the additions of Robert Lang, Alex Tanguay and tough-guy Georges Laraque. However, a severe rash of injuries and inconsistent play by their top six amidst drug-trafficking allegations against the Kostityn's by the Montreal media and the Habs finished with the 8th seed in the East. Over the off-season, the Canadiens went through a major overhaul, adding Scott Gomez, Brian Gionta, Michael Cammalleri, Hal Gill, Paul Mara, Jaroslav Spacek while parting ways with Saku Koivu, Alex Kovalev, Alex Tanguay, Mike Komisarek and Chris Higgins. What's not to like? The million-dollar question in Montreal remains "Will Carey Price return to his rookie season form?". If not, the Jacques Martin system could falter in it's first year in Montreal.

8) Buffalo Sabres - While it doesn't feel as if the the Buffalo Sabres were two points away from making the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season, they were. While the Buffalo blueline lost veterans Jaroslav Spacek along with Teppo Numminen, they added what they hope will be a rebounding Steve Montador. The Sabres were also able to add gritty forward Mike Grier and once-seemingly-NHL-banished defensemen Joe DiPenta. What's not to like? The health of Ryan Miller and Tim Connolly (what else is new?) will be the Sabres biggest concerns in their attempt to return to the playoffs after a two year hiatus.

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9) Toronto Maple Leafs - The Maple Leafs are set to begin year one of the official Brian Burke reconstruction. Burke and the Leafs had a busy off-season to say the least, adding Mike Komisarek, Francois Beauchemin, Colton Orr, Garnet Exelby, Jonas Gustavsson and Boston's leading goal scorer from last season, Phil Kessel. While Kessel won't be ready to play until around mid-November, the addition of number 81 gives Toronto a top-line forward they desperately need for the future. What's not to like? If Jonas Gustavsson struggles at the top level, the Leafs will be forced to rely upon Vesa Toskala, who has never quite provided the numbers expected of him when initially acquired from the San Jose Sharks.

10) New York Rangers - In typical Glen Sather fashion, the Rangers had an expensive offseason. The biggest addition for the blue-shirts is that of Marian Gaborik, the Minnesota Wild's franchise leading point man, to a five year deal worth over 37 million dollars. The right winger, who's experienced considerable injury woes as of late, has been productive when in the line-up. The Rangers were also able to add toughguy Donald Brashear, Boston University standout defensemen Matt Gilroy and secondary scorers Enver Lisin, Vinny Prospal and Chris Higgins. What's not to like? The lack of NHL-ready defensemen on the New York blueline will be a concern as they're in perhaps the best division in the Eastern Conference when it comes to scoring goals.

11) Atlanta Thrashers - While the big question in Atlanta continues to surround Ilya Kovalchuk and whether or not the captain of the Thrashers will remain that by this year's trading deadline, the Thrashers did go out and get some additions to complement their Russian superstar. The biggest names arriving in Atlanta are none other than Nik Antropov and Pavel Kubina, two former Toronto Maple Leafs. The presence of Antropov will without question give the Thrashers another weapon on the powerplay for Ilya and the same goes for Kubina. What's not to like? While Kari Lehtonen is recovering from back surgery, the Thrashers will look to Johan Hedberg and Ondrej Pavelec to stop the pucks. The problem arises even more so when Lehtonen does return because injuries to the back are just so unpredictable when it comes to goaltenders.

12) Ottawa Senators - The problem in Ottawa, for seemingly ever, has been the lack of a true number one goaltender. That problem will continue in 2009-10 as the Sens are expected to role with a platoon of Brian Elliot and the surgery-recovering Pascal Leclaire. Without question the biggest news involving the Ottawa Senators came with the trading of Dany Heatley to San Jose in exchange for Milan Michalek and Jonathan Cheechoo. They, along with the addition of Alexei Kovalev from the Montreal Canadiens will also bolster the Senators anemic secondary scoring situation. What's not to like? The blueline. While players such as Anton Volchenkov and Chris Phillips are good for a depth chart, they should not be relied upon as a top defensive pairing.

13) Florida Panthers - I almost fell for this club last season, their play, including a shutout of the Boston Bruins made me a believer. I was convinced that the Florida Panthers were going to the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference and that Jay Bouwmeester would fall in love with the Panthers and re-sign. Boy, was I was wrong. Due in large part to Bouwmeester's struggles following the trade deadline, the Florida Panthers finished 10th in the Eastern Conference. Although disappointment resonated (well, sort of) in Florida, the Panthers were able to see young stars such as David Booth develop and shine brightly in the Sunshine State. With the loss of Jay-Bo, the Panthers were able to add forwards Steve Reinprecht, Dominic Moore, blue-liners Dennis Seidenberg, Jordan Leopold, and goaltender Scott Clemmensen. What's not to like? The puck-moving ability from the blue-line certainly dropped with the departure of Bouwmeester, but the Panthers top six forwards are simply disappointing and not enough to compete in this year's Eastern Conference.

14) Tampa Bay Lightning - Oh the Barry Melrose era in Tampa, what an illustrious 16 games for all involved, especially Steven Stamkos, who flourished with his near no-ice time, right? After a 5-7-4 start, the Lightning fired the famed coach turned ESPN-analyst and following a voodoo-like hex put on the Lightning by Melrose after his departure, the team began to experience limited success under Rick Tocchet. Amid rumors of Vinny leaving for Montreal, the captain of the Lightning remained in black and blue after the trading deadline, investing some sign of faith towards the future for Bolts fans. The Lightning's biggest additions are on the blueline, with the drafting of Sweedish defensemen Victor Hedman and signing of Mattias Ohlund to a contract. The Bolts were also able to add back-up goaltender Antero Niittymaki through free agency and left winger Alex Tanguay on the cheap in September with a one year deal. What's not to like? Even with the addition of Tanguay, the Lightning become the Norfolk Admirals of the American Hockey League after their second line, up front and on defense.

15) New York Islanders - I suppose there should be no surprise here. This team has a lot of woes, perhaps not as many as the Phoenix Coyotes, but still, the concerns are there. While the Jonathan Tavares era is beginning on the Isle, the question is for how long? Following continuing refusals of the "Lighthouse Plan" proposed by Islanders owner Charles Wang, the frustrated owner is beginning to explore other options that involve relocating the team. On the ice however, the Islanders were able to add Rob Schremp from Edmonton through waivers and two fringe-starting goaltenders in Dwayne Roloson and Marty Biron. What's not to like? There's a question that requires an answer almost too big to comprehend. For the Islanders, the fact that their best defensemen behind Mark Streit is Brendan Witt is an obvious cause for concern.

Eastern Conference Finals Prediction: Boston Bruins vs. Philadelphia Flyers.

Introduction To Offensive Production: New Look Bruins Defense Ready To Shine

Remember when the best defensemen Boston had to offer was the 6'7 pylon known as Hal Gill and a Brian Leetch just above the age to receive the senior discount at your local Dunkin' Donuts? Oh my, how thing's change.

The official transformation of the Boston blue-line continues into their third year into 2009-10 under head coach Claude Julien and continuing to be anchored by team captain and Norris Trophy winner Zdeno Chara.

Under Julien and the ever-so-loved defensive trap style of play, the Bruins have gone from 13th to 8th and from 8th to 1st. While Boston has seen a drastic increase in offensive production from their forwards, the focus of their play remains to be on a strong defense that reduces the oppositions scoring chances greatly.

The rock of the defense, as previously mentioned, is behemoth and the tallest player in NHL history, Zdeno Chara. The Slovak blue-liner, who was harshly ridiculed for his poor play under Dave Lewis in 2006-07 has blossomed under Claude Julien and has seen an overall rise in his level of play due in large part to less minutes per game. Along with increasing his powerplay productivity, Chara has become a more effective penalty killer and taken less unnecessary penalties in the process of attempting to save the day.

Alongside Chara for close to three seasons was veteran defensemen and three-time Stanley Cup champion Aaron Ward. Admired in Boston for his no-nonsense attitude and down-and-dirty style of play, Ward gained popularity rapidly in the Hub of Hockey, spawning a short-lived series of t-shirt's depicting fans as members of the "Psych Ward". However, with his rather unfriendly 2.5 million dollar salary counting against the Boston cap in 2009-10, Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli made the call and sent the 36-year old back to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Patrick Eaves and a 4th round draft choice.

While Eaves was quickly bought out, the plan of utilizing the newly freed up cap space to sign Phil Kessel was steadily gaining momentum. It came as a surprise to Boston fans across the map as the money was instead used to bring in puck-moving defensemen Derek Morris on a one year contract worth 3.3 million dollars.

Adding another piece of the puzzle, Morris is expected to bring an added presence on the powerplay to take the pressure off Bruins such as Zdeno Chara and Dennis Wideman to carry the play from the point. Despite his upside, Morris is coming off a rather disappointing season split between Phoenix and the better of the two New York's. In 75 total games last season, Morris tallied 20 points, five of which coming on the powerplay.

As Morris added at the annual "State of the Bruins" meeting at the TD Garden, it's become more about winning than anything else for him and with an attitude like that and willingness to buy into the Julien system, it'll certainly be interesting to see how he performs for the Bruins in 2009-10.

Behind the two headliners on the blue-line, the B's may possess one of the best unsung hero-defensemen in Dennis Wideman. The former oft-criticized defensemen known for his failure in the shootout had a breakout year in 2008-09, scoring 50 points and finishing with a stellar +32. Although his slapshot is still on par with Happy Gilmore when it comes to accuracy, the Ontario native certainly knows how to dish the puck around on the powerplay and has 30 assists on the powerplay over the past two seasons to prove it.

Likely to be paired with Wideman is outspoken activist and gritty defensemen Andrew Ference. Originally acquired in a trade that sent him and teammate Chuck Kobasew to Boston for Wayne Primeau and Brad Stuart, Ference has been the epitome of a team player. Whether he's fighting Sean Avery, Sidney Crosby or carbon emissions, Ference has never been afraid to voice his opinion and let his play do the talking.

While the 5'11 defensemen isn't afraid to lay his body on the line, injuries have hindered Ference throughout his tenure as a Bruin. Considering the fact that this is the final year of Ference's deal, expect the 30 year old to leave it all on the ice even more.

Seemingly poised to breakout is Bruins' "caveman" and bruising defensemen, Mark Stuart. Boston's first round selection from the 2003 NHL Draft, Stuart is coming off his best season with the big club. A natural leader, Stuart experienced an increase in offensive output, more than doubling his point total from all of the season before while remaining to be one of the baddest son-of-a-guns to lace them up on a nightly basis.

Hoping to continue to make strides in the NHL as an offensive defensemen despite his lack of a spleen is Matt Hunwick. The 24 year old is coming off a mini-breakout season in Boston where he passed Matt Lashoff on the depth chart and contributed 27 points in 53 games, including an impressive +15. The seventh round pick from the 2004 NHL Draft, Hunwick was also used sparingly as a forward and could perhaps see more time up there if the Bruins elect to use him as a hybrid of sorts similar to Ian White in Toronto or perhaps Dustin Byfuglien in Chicago.

Joining the big club in Boston is Providence Bruins stand-out and Eddie Shore Award winner, Johnny Boychuk. The arrival of Boychuk into Boston although expected, comes at the cost of fan favorite Shane Hnidy, who earned the nickname "Sheriff" and was actually a popular jersey among the Garden crowd. With the Sheriff now in Minnesota with the new-look Wild, the time for Boychuk to fight his way into the NHL line-up is upon us. Boychuk's numbers in the American Hockey League are nothing but promising seeing as how the 25 year old put up 20 goals and 66 points in 78 games for Providence in 2008-09.

On the farm, the Bruins have new faces with limited NHL experience such as Drew Fata and Andy Wozniewski ready to get the call in the event of a rash of injuries striking the boys on Causeway Street (and no, not the five dollar hat guy). Fata, who has eight games of NHL experience under his belt, all with the New York Islanders, is a known tough guy who's never too shy to drop the gloves in defense of his teammates. Loathed in Toronto, Wozniewski will provide a big body on the Providence blue-line is likely to spend the full season down in the AHL unless a plague of injuries finds their way to Boston.

Along with these NHL-fringers, the Bruins also have Adam McQuaid under contract for the upcoming season and could use him as an emergency call-up to fill in with Boston with his 6'4 frame and physical style of play.

Regardless of the offensive surge in Boston, the Claude Julien philosophy promotes a strong foundation on the blue line. Expect to see more of the same grit, passion, physicality and an added offensive boost from the blue-line of the Garden for the good guys this season.

The Vezina & The Flash: Boston Looks To Goalies For Anchoring

Not since the days of Andy Moog and Reggie Lemelin (Apologies to Andrew Raycroft and Hannu Toivonen) were the Bruins considered to have as much strength in net as they did in 2008-09. The goaltender duo of Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez proved to be the best in the National Hockey League, taking home the Jennings Trophy for fewest goals against along with Tim Thomas leaving Vegas with the Vezina trophy in June.

Heading into the off-season, it was pretty much a known fact that Fernandez wouldn't be returning to the Bruins for a third season with the club. The 35 year old, who was acquired in a trade with the Minnesota Wild back in 2007, was seemingly in a do-or-die moment when it came to his health. Fernandez, who was sidelined for 78 games of the 2007-08 season with a severe knee injury that required surgery had just one more chance to prove he could perform at a high level in a contract year with Boston.

As the rigorous schedule of a National Hockey League season took it's toll on Fernandez's back and knees, the netminder often referred to as "The Mexican" (he's from Canada, go figure) seemed ready for what could be one final go 'round with Boston.

Fernandez performed admirably in 2008-09, finishing with a 16-8-3 record and a .910 save percentage for the Boston Bruins. Manny's big moment in Boston come in October and didn't end until December as Fernandez performed exceedingly well in a platoon role with Tim Thomas, going 12-2-1 in the 2008 calendar year with a 1.94 goals against average.

The lack of playing time that followed Fernandez in 2009 was due in large part to the success of Tim Thomas along with what was considered either a back sprain, although rumored to be an "attitude issue" that limited 'Mandez' to just 12 appearances in the second half of the season. Fernandez went on to finish the season poorly, dropping four of his last six games.

Obviously, the play of Tim Thomas went on to lead to both zero appearances in the postseason for Manny and a Vezina Trophy for the 35 year old Thomas. The Michigan-native and perhaps one of the best stories in Bruins history put up career highs in all categories with his 36-11-7 record and league leading .933 save percentage and 2.10 goals against average. His strong play in 2008-09 led to the once dubbed "poor-man's Dom Hasek" goaltender to receive a four year contract worth 20 million dollars.

Heading into this season, Thomas is clearly the number one starter for the Bruins for the fourth year in a row. However, Thomas will have new competition on the bench as prized Finnish goaltender Tuukka Rask has finally cracked the big league line-up and joined Boston. Rask, who was originally acquired from Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for Andrew Raycroft in what's considered the biggest steal in recent Bruins trade history has spent the past two seasons playing for the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League. In his two seasons of seasoning with the P-Bruins, Rask posted a 60-33-6 record and 2.42 goals against average.

Last season, Rask joined the Bruins for a brief stint and participated in one game during the entire season. This one game proved to be the best of Rask's short NHL career thus far. The Finnish Flash held the New York Rangers off the scoresheet, stopping all 35 shots his faced from the blue-shirts offense. His shut-out on January 31st sparked great internet banter from every wannabe-expert who believed that Rask should have either traded Fernandez to make room for Rask, and or give the reins of the starting job to Rask.

Ignoring the hype from the know-nothings who dub Rask as the Finnish version of Roberto Luongo, there's still a lot to look forward to when it comes to Tuukka. On the surface, Rask appears to be that perfectly mechanical goaltender that every NHL G.M salivates over. At just 22 years old, it's very possible and entirely likely that Rask will only get better with time.

The Boston Bruins are expected to continue to limit the workload of Tim Thomas for stamina purposes while giving Rask his first real taste of the National Hockey League. My realistic expectations of Thomas is to play around 55 games around while Rask will get in for 25, perhaps a little more or less if he is to live up to the hype.

On the farm, the Providence Bruins will have the ability to select through a plethora of goaltending options throughout the year in Dany Sabourin, Kevin Regan and newly signed Matt Dalton. While Sabourin is expected to be the number one for Providence, P-Bruins coach Rob Murray will undoubtedly try to give Matt Dalton a good look while UNH-alum and Boston native Kevin Regan re-cooperates from off-season hip surgery.

Something worthy to note, the Boston Bruins likely have the two most volatile-tempered goaltenders in the crease this season thanks to Tuukka's affection for throwing milk-crates whereas Thomas has a tendency to flip nets off their moorings, tackle forwards, knock down wingers, and chase after agitators when things don't go quite his way.

"Hey, What Happened To 30 In 30?"

Good question, I'll give you credit.

Over the past two weeks or so, I've had many e-mails, texts, Facebook messages and the like asking me the same thing. That same thing is of course, "What happened to the rest of your 30 teams in 30 days?". My simple answer? College, work, more college and even more work.

Since starting school about two weeks ago, I've had a difficult time finding the time, or making the time to devote serious time to teams such as the St. Louis Blues, Nashville Predators and Anaheim Ducks. Some of the blogs got done, others? Not so much. However, with Bruins season now (almost) upon us, the time to blog is back.

In the end, I apologize to my readers who were looking forward to seeing my thoughts on the Columbus Blue Jackets, San Jose Sharks, and even the Carolina Hurricanes. If the Chronicles From The Garden were a three-piece team, or perhaps even a two-piece team, this task would have ultimately gotten done. As any Chicago Cubs fan would say, there's always next year.

Forget about the other 29 teams because right now, it's all Bruins baby. Tonight will begin my three part preview of the Boston Bruins in 2009-'10.

Ty

Final Farewell To A Legend: Bruins Broadcast Legend Cusick Passes Away

It may be over twelve years since we've heard announcer Fred Cusick yell "SCORE!", but the memories left with us of Cusick's 35+ years in the Boston Bruins booth have continued to live on with the club through the years.

Sadly, it was revealed this morning that Cusick, who had been battling cancer at the age of 90 had lost his battle with the disease and passed away early today in his Massachusetts home. Arguably Boston's most famous announcer (Johnny Most being the best competition), Cusick was just one day away from his introduction into the Massachusetts Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

During his 36 years in the booth for Boston, Cusick called what is considered the most formative years in Bruins history. He was the premier announcer for the club during both the Bobby Orr, Ray Bourque and Cam Neely era's and called both of the last two B's Stanley Cup victories in the 1970's.

Thanks to his phenomenal work when it came to calling the games and bringing the excitement to your television set, Cusick was the first American broadcaster inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame and was also a recipient of the Lester Patrick Award in his career.

Besides his obvious goal calls still heard during most Boston pregame videos, the patented enthusiastic "score" call that Cusick became famous for has transcended into the game calling of current Bruins broadcaster and fan-favorite/loathed Jack Edwards.

Hockey heaven has found their voice.

30 Teams In 30 Days: Stop, Hiller Time?

When realizing the success of the Anaheim Ducks in this past decade, it's somewhat reminiscent of the Reese's Puffs commercial.."Hockey? In Anaheim?".

Just two seasons removed from their Stanley Cup Championship season, the Ducks were a team seemingly relying on their age time and time again. Would Selanne be back with his ugly JOFA helmet? Would Niedermayer shave his Santa beard and lace 'em up for another season?

The answer to both of these much-pondered queries was a profound yes as both Selanne and Niedermayer provided key clutch performances to propel the Ducks into the NHL Playoffs for a fourth straight season.

In the playoffs, the Anaheim Ducks and young goaltender Jonas Hiller quickly became the top story of the first round as they eliminated the 2009 Presidents Trophy winner and heavily favorited San Jose Sharks out of the first round in six games. On top of having an added advantage as they took on the NHL's perennial choke-artists in the post-season, the breakout of Jonas Hiller is giving Duck fans more than just a few reasons to smile.

After holding San Jose to just 10 goals in six games in the post-season, the 27 year old Swiss netminder finished with a 7-6 record with an impressive 2.23 goals against average, which should stand out even more considering his particularly unfavorable match-up's against both the Sharks and Red Wings on an eighth seeded club.

As the club was sent home following a Game 7 loss to the Detroit Red Wings, the off-season topic of what to do with aging defensemen and top dollar defensemen Chris Pronger loomed over the Ducks much like the 6'7" shadow he casts. On the day of the 2009 NHL Draft, this issue was addressed head on as Pronger was sent to Philadelphia in exchange for draft picks and former Ducks forward Joffrey Lupul.

Lupul is coming off his best season with the Flyers where he put up 50 points in 79 games for the black and orange. While Lupul's contract is more of a headache than relief as the 25 year old is set to make 4,250,000 a season through the 2012-'13 season.

As time would tell, this move was just a precursor to a fresh summer makeover done by Ducks GM and chair-tossing fan Bob Murray.

Although the club's youth was beginning to shine with the breakout season of rookie Bobby Ryan, the Ducks were still in the midst of losing veteran leadership up front with the departures of Rob Niedermayer and Sammy Pahlsson through free agency. As one defensive minded Scandanavia based center was exiting town, a one of greater hype was about to step into Anaheim.

Surely stating our initial shock and confusion at the Ducks' signing of Montreal Canadiens captain Saku Koivu didn't quite give it enough justice. All NHL fans heard throughout the entire off-season was that Saku was bound to end up in Minnesota to play with his brother Mikko and be the second line center that the Wild direly needed. If it wasn't the Wild, it seemed to be Montreal. Quite frankly, the idea of Koivu going to Anaheim had the makings of an NHL09 trade coming to life in the form of a rumor mill.

Koivu is coming off another Koivu-like season in Montreal where the Finnish forward put up at least 50 points for the sixth straight season. Regardless of injuries holding the 34-year old center to just 65 games, Koivu's 50 points were good for third on the Habs roster.

Following the major additions of Lupul and Koivu and some key departures with Pronger, Niedermayer and Pahlsson, the Ducks went out and added role players Nick Boynton, Evgeny Artyukhin and Leafs goaltending prospect Justin Pogge.

Barring any trades, the Ducks' line-up should go as follows come opening night.

Corey Perry - Ryan Getzlaf - Teemu Selanne
Bobby Ryan - Saku Koivu - Joffrey Lupul
Ryan Carter - Todd Marchant - Evgeny Artyukhin
Mike Brown - Petteri Nokelainen - George Parros
Extra Skater: Andrew Ebbett

Scott Niedermayer - Ryan Whitney
Nick Boynton - James Wisniewski
Sheldon Brookbank - Steve Eminger
Extra Skater: Luca Sbisa

Jonas Hiller
J.S Giguere

Perhaps it's the added Finnish influence, or maybe it's the varying facial hair on this team which makes them so fun to watch. I believe that this year the Ducks will significantly improve with a steady goaltending situation in place for the 2009-'10 season and continuing progression of Jonas Hiller into a stud goaltender in the NHL.

Players To Watch: A player to keep a close eye on is Jean-Sebastien Giguere. The 32 year old is coming off a troubling season where he finished with a 19-18-6 record and was a bench warmer for the first time in his tenure with the Ducks in the playoffs. If Hiller continues his success and wins the starting job over Giggy, how will the Quebec native take it? Will he willfully accept the role of a back-up goalie or will the Ducks begin to look to move their six million dollar goaltender?

Prediction: 2nd in Pacific Division. 6th in Western Conference.