The Time Is Now

Found this on HF Boards. Enjoy!

Top 10 Things To Consider...

This is a list of the top 10 things to consider going into the final three games of the season. Without further adieu, I give you, THE list...

{Letterman Top 10 musical intro}

1. The Bruins head into the final week tied for 7th place with a team, in the Washington Capitals, chasing them like that chick from college who won't take no for an answer. "It was just a one night stand! Please leave me alone!" I digress. Anyhow, if there were ever a time to step up, it is now. They have to play in New Jersey, in Ottawa, and home for the final game against the Sabres (who will most likely be eliminated by then). The toughest test will be Tuesday against one of the great big gamers, Marty Brodeur. In my opinion, the Bruins need at least four points this week to lock down the 8th seed.

2. Please, take a moment and look at the CURRENT injury list on the side bar. If Mr. Owl told you these guys would all be injured during the final two weeks of the season you would tell the "wise" owl to shove his Tootsie Roll Pop where the sun only shines when you do a hand stand. This team has scored 15 goals in the last 4 games after averaging .00001 goals for during the season. Not too shabby.

3. Staying on the injury dune buggy, if you also add to the list names like Chara, Ward, Axe, Thornton, Thomas, and Lucic who all missed significant time at one point or another it is a shock that the final week actually matters. The depth with mostly youngsters has proved that Chiarelli has done his job (which certainly is not finished) in building a solid franchise, not just a decent NHL team. People need to remember that it takes more than two years to build success. As we speak, Providence is in first place in the Atlantic Division with a 50-16-3-4 record. That's good for best in the entire league. That's pretty good if you ask me (which you didn't).

4. Shawn Thornton has been awesome in sticking up for teammates along with playing well on the 4th line. Take Ottawa for example. He dropped the gloves after two dirty hits on Jeremy Reich and Mark Stuart. How can you not love having this guy and and his orange handle bar mustache in the line-up policing the idiots on the opposing bench?

5. David Krejci has stepped up big since Marc Savard's back injury. Krejci was picked as the NHL's 3rd star for this past week while he scored 3 goals and 5 assists after being point stricken for quite some time earlier in the year. The future is bright for him.

6. Speaking of a bright future, no one can be disappointed with the play of Milan Lucic. He can contribute in many facets of the game and it is hard to believe that the kid is 19. It's like bringing a girl home from a party only to find out two days later that she was another girl's 16 year old sister. "She said she was 18, and MAN ALIVE, she worked it like she was 21!...I'm in trouble...Yes, Lucic is playing beyond his years already.

7. Though I don't see Alex Auld playing this week (unless they have clinched and Buffalo is officially eliminated prior to the finale against Buffalo) everyone should commend the job he has done. He has kept the Bruins in so many low-scoring games that it is a total mind blow. He has had very little scoring help and many times he has got the team into extra sessions to salvage a point when the team had no business making it to overtime/shootout.

8. Tim Thomas is a classic metaphor. He's like the girl you call late at night when it's been "a slow night." She doesn't have the prettiest style but, every once in a while she does some ridiculous move that makes your jaw drop. Plus, 4 out of 5 times she gets the job done. Great season Timmy.

9. Claude Julien. Clooaud (love his pronunciation, Clawed is boring) has done a phenomenal job in creating a system that gives a team that struggles to score (like that kid in the front row of your IT class) a chance to win every night. Sure there was a few 10-2's tossed in there but hey, that wasn't the system, it was the players having a completely off night. It happens. We love Clooaud.

10. Finally, the moment you have all been waiting for, number 10. Remember wayyyy back when "experts" had the Bruins labeled for 14th place in the East? Ah, yes, a time where Toronto was picked at the top and now they are gazing at the buttocks of the Bruins, Capitals, etc. With all these injuries, who would have thought that the Bruins would be in a playoff spot going into the final week of the season? Take that Boston haters!

As you can see, this season has been an exciting one. A season that has surpassed expectations and one that showed what the youngsters can do. We can only hope this continues onward past April 5th. Let's have a big week here Bruins fans!

Late Surge

I apologize for not being near a computer during such an awesome time for the Bruins. I was at a Cancer benefit in Lawrence all weekend and just got back. I have a league meeting for beer league softball tonight at 7 so, I'll be back after that to make a post. Hopefully, it's about how the Bruins take it to the Sabres!


Tonight's overtime loss was a bummer to say the least. If it weren't 1 am I would actually write but, I'm gassed. Big week ahead!

Bruins 4 - Leafs 2

The Boston Bruins officially eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night courtesy of a non-offsides call by a linesman. The missed call lead to a quick breakaway where sophomore Phil Kessel did the business to goaltender Vesa Toskala. From there, the snowball continued to roll down hill as the Bruins jumped into a tie for 7th place and stayed two points ahead of Washington who beat Tampa Bay in overtime. The Bruins received contributions from everyone tonight, including a game winning goal by Glen Murray and a late goal by a stranger to the line-up, Peter Schaeffer, who brought the lead back to two goals to finish off the Leafs. Tim Thomas did what he had to do to help this team win and the Bruins put the puck in the net to assist the goaltender's efforts. Look out Ottawa, the Bruins remembered how to score!

7th Player Award Winner

Congratulations to Milan Lucic on being named the 7th Player Award recipient. I have to say, the fans got this one correct. This kid deserves this award as he stepped up big after having small expectations at the beginning of the season. He proved it with his tenacity, and his will to play his heart out every single game. This kid is a gamer. As you can see in the above picture Lucic also has the ability to make a grown man cry. It's science.

Congrats Milan!

Back End of the Home & Home

The Bruins face-off in yet another crucial game with the Toronto Maple Leafs. They will be without Marc Savard (back) who will be out at least through the weekend. They will also be without Chuck Kobasew (fractured tibia) who will miss 4-8 weeks. Andrew Ference (sprained knee) will also be out of the line-up. These are among the regulars that are always out of the injury-laden line-up.

To win tonight, the same formula applies. Fire anything and everything at Toskala, get in the low slot/top of the crease to screen him, and bury rebounds for garbage goals. Again, the formula that works for this team is

Team + Defensive Talent /Injuries X Garbage Goals = Wins

If the Bruins can do this they can pull off back-to-back wins (really? What?!). Here is tonight's expected line-up...

Sturm-Krejci-Murray
Lucic-Metropolit-Axelsson
Schaefer-Sobotka-Kessel
Reich-Nokelainen-Thornton

Chara-Ward
Lashoff-Wideman
Stuart-Hnidy

Thomas

If Bruins use this formula to their advantage I can see another 2-goal victory without the use of the empty-netter. I know I predicted this last time but, doesn't it seem logical to predict the same thing if they can duplicate Tuesday's performance? Yes, yes it does.

Kobasew Status & Others

Chuck Kobasew had a CT scan today on his injured left foot. The results have not come in yet/they have yet to be reported. Kobasew was inured when he took a blue line blast off of the foot from teammate Zdeno Chara (that son of a...!...kidding of course). Peter Schaeffer will be in the line-up tomorrow night in the event that Kobes is not able to suit up. No one will be available for emergency recall (ER) from Providence because the Bruins have "12 healthy forwards." Lashoff was allowed to come up on ER because without Ference the Bruins only had 5 Healthy D-men.

Ference (leg) didn't practice today but will skate tomorrow morning. He will be re-evaluated then.

Patrice Bergeron will take his neuro-psych test this afternoon. If he passes, it will be another cleared stage in his recovery from the Grade 3 concussion. Bergeron is also scheduled to see a neurologist tomorrow for further re-evaluation. Bergeron participated in practice and said he feels good.

Andrew Alberts has been headache-free for the last three or four days. He must not experience headaches for one week before he is cleared for full-contact practice.

Marc Savard (back) will not play tomorrow.

Bruins 6 - Leafs 2

Just a tremendous game tonight by everyone in white. The defense was solid as a rock and the offense rattled the snot out of Toskala and generated garbage goals just as I asked. We're the Bruins reading my blog an hour before game time?! Obviously not but hey, a guy can dream can't he? Here are two common NHL formulas for success...

Team + Offensive Talent = Highlight Reel Victories

Team + Defensive Talent /Injuries X Garbage Goals = Wins

You tell me which makes the most sense for this team. Give up? Alright, it's the latter. It is more complicated and far more difficult to get the result but, it is the ONLY way this team can pull off victories (a cold opposing goalie wouldn't hurt either).

Thankfully, Buffalo and Florida lost tonight which puts some space between those teams below the B's. However, Philadelphia beat the Rangers in a shootout (Boo, they both get points), Washington beat Carolina in a shootout. The Bruins are now two points ahead of Washington in the 8th spot while the Rangers and Philly are 3 and 2 points ahead of the Bruins for 6th and 7th, respectively. Thursday is another doozey of a match-up with the Leafs.

Do or Die

Tonight, in fact, is the actual must win game of the year. Buffalo and Washington are hot on the Boston trail and tonight's opponent, Toronto is hopping on the late season surge bandwagon as well. However, the Bruins didn't get the bandwagon memo so they decided to get injured and not score goals. Without Savard, this offense will struggle (Ah! you mean worse than it has?!) and there are guys who have been cold (See: Muzz, Metro, Sturm, etc. I guess I could really go through 16 others) who need to put it all on the line.

I have said this before and I will say this again,

THE ONLY WAY TO SCORE WHEN YOU ARE STRUGGLING IS TO CRASH THE NET AND THROW ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING TOWARD THE NET.

Forest Gump said it best. Sh*t happens. Yes, it will happen in front of the net if you put the puck there. Goaltender's hate traffic and they hate opponent's in close. As a goaltender I can vouch that this couldn't be more truthful. The Bruins need to get in Toskala's head and get him rattled. Garbage goals still count on the scoreboard.

IF the Bruins can do this, they'll win by two without the aid of an empty netter in the waining minutes. If not, hello 9th but, I'd rather say hi to 7th again.

Savard Update

After being hit from behind by Steve Begin in Saturday's game against the Montreal Canadiens, Marc Savard had a CT Scan at Mass General Hospital and will not be in the line-up for Tuesday's game in Toronto. The results from the CT Scan are unknown however, if it comes back positive it could be something along the lines of a cracked rib or another broken bone.

Update 8:35- It appears that Savard is now definitely out for the next two games after having a CT Scan on his lower back/mid-torso. He will undergo another exam and possibly another CT Scan later this week.

McKeon's Take- This is a detrimental blow to this line-up as the team is already struggling to score with the number two man in assists playing, let alone without him (second by one point to old friend Joe Thornton). This concerns me dearly as this team needs a set-up guy like him to feed the puck to marginal/streaky scorers. Unfortunately, I missed the incident but I would love to know if it was an actual cheap shot or not. If it was, is this all Kyle McLaren karma coming to kick us right in the groin? Probably not but, the hockey gods work in funny ways and they haven't smiled down on the black and gold in quite a bit of time...

The Weekend Ahead...

I am going to post this up now as I won't be around tonight or tomorrow for a pre/post-game post. I have an alumni hockey game tomorrow night (Sat.) and that always leads to a bar afterward. At any rate, the Bruins now have a legitimate, undebatable, must win game on Saturday versus the Montreal Canadiens IN Hab country of course. I can not think of a more difficult situation for a must win game at this point. I don't have much to say about this aside from I am sick of watching boring trap hockey AND watching the Bruins lose. It's one thing when they play trap and win but, when they can't capitalize on their scoring chances it's just plain boring. I feel like Glen Murray is the biggest anchor keeping the team from moving forward. He always seems off balance but, he does just enough to stay on his feet. It's like a mite player, who doesn't fall down.

The log on this fire is starting to die out? Anyone have any paper or some kindling to get this thing going again? It's going to be a tough summer if they collapse out of a playoff spot that they held for so long. Anyone up for a 70 game season next year?!

Et Tu Boston?

Do you remember how you felt when you woke up as an American soldier the morning the Allies attacked Normandy beach way back during WWII? Probably not. Can you at least picture the feeling? It's a gorgeous day, the sun is shinning, the air is calm, the birds are chirping without a care in the world aside from what can I eat and where can I poop? Wait, story break. Birds definitely do not think about where they are going to poop, they just go...must be nice. I digress. Like I said, calm air, birds etc. With all of these surroundings, soldiers put on their coats, grab their gear knowing full well there will be plenty of bloodshed and sacrifice on either side for the greater good.

The Boston Bruins need to go into this game with the same mindset. The end is near, and if they do not put it all on the line for their brothers and their fans, there will be no tomorrow (exaggerating, I know, there's 7 tomorrows left after tonight), there will be no second chances. They are amidst a point in the season where it is do or die. They are at the point where only the strong survive and who is standing in their way? Montreal, the most hated team that takes the ice. The Bruins need to be intense, and they need to play merciless hockey against this team. They need to take down the Habs with them looking up prior to their defeat saying, "Et tu Boston?" just as Brutus did to Caesar on the Ides of March (hmm, only 5 days off).

On a serious note, in order to have the best chance to win the Bruins need a high amount of energy very early on. Best case scenario: Chara does end up playing tonight (game time decision) and the crowd erupts just from the captain's presence. The Bruins need a big hit, an early goal, a big save, even a fight from one of the 4th liners wouldn't hurt. The crowd needs to be into the game to override those "ole, ole, ole" idiots from up north. The time is now, and there is no bigger opportunity. Let's go boys!

Line-up (With Chara)
Axelsson-Savard-Murray
Sturm-Krejci-Kobasew
Lucic-Metropolit-Kessel
Reich-Nokelainen-Thornton

Chara-Wideman
Ference-Ward
Stuart-Hnidy

Thomas

Fernanadez Cleared/Chara Improving

The Boston Bruins medical staff have cleared Manny Fernandez to full practice and play with the team earlier today. Zdeno Chara has apparently been improving drastically and we may be seeing him in uniform during a crucial series against Montreal on Thursday and Saturday. John Bish stated that Chara was giving Thomas and Fernandez all they could handle with both wrist shots and slap shots. Chara's shooting strength has increased drastically since yesterday's practice which is a terrific sign for the captain.

***UPDATE Wed 12:32 pm***
Zdeno Chara has taken the ice with teammates this morning and is wearing the tradiational black jersey that is worn by all defensemen. It seems as if he will be ready to go tomorrow night. Patrice Bergeron and Andrew Alberts were in the red non-contact uniforms. I am assuming that Manny Fernandez was in full uniform as well per the announcement yesterday.

B's Sign LoVecchio

This evening, the Boston Bruins announced that they had signed Jeff LoVecchio to an entry level contract. Obviously, the terms to his contract were undisclosed. According to the Bruins website, LoVecchio is a defensive forward and was voted as one of the best in that category by the CCHA while still scoring 19 goals two seasons ago. LoVecchio is expected to work on his game in Providence prior to coming up to Boston in the future.

LoVecchio, a 6'2, 200-pound left wing was a free agent who played the last three seasons for Western Michigan University. This year, LoVecchio scored nine goals and had 12 assists in 36 games for the Broncos.

State Of The Nation Address

Dear Bruins Fans,

The Bruins have fought through a losing streak that has seemingly passed. It was truly a difficult time as the Bruins were fresh off of a strong winning streak and the golden flash of the Spoked B began to catch in the peripheral of the existing Boston area. However, that flash began to dim and once again the Bruins were put on the back burner after their most recent slide south. The biggest hit during all of this was the absence of the captain and the lack of presence that comes with Zdeno Chara. It became apparent that this team's success starts with Big Z on the blue line. He is a force on the power play, he shuts down big name scorers, and his long reach cuts off passing lanes better than anyone else in the league. Being listed at six foot nine doesn't hurt him either.

Without Chara the Bruins faced scoring woes and defensive woes. All the while they still managed to keep the pace and are tied with the New York Rangers with 83 points (Rangers take 6th with one game in hand on Boston). It is remarkable that the Bruins remain tied with a team that has been on such a hot streak lately.

With all this being said, the Bruins have a major opportunity on their hands. They have the chance to blast preseason expectations (projected 11-14th) and they have a chance to do some damage in the playoffs with defensive minded hockey. The rest of the Bruins will realize the real importance of Big Z in the line-up when he returns on Thursday versus the Habs (keep your fingers crossed). If the Bruins can find a way to take three of four points from the home and home with Montreal this week, they could really open some eyes in Boston again.

Cordially,

-McKeon

Quick Monday Notes

First off, I need to apologize for not having much on the Flyers game Saturday night and having absolutely nothing on Sunday's game vs. Washington. Sunday was one of the worst hangovers I have had in my lifetime. I was in bed until at least 6:30 pm. An extremely fun Saturday night (so I'm told) turned into an awful Sunday with very little movement, lots of water, and a solid dosage of Ibuprofen. Anyhow, here's your practice notes from today...

Since the Bruins do not play until Thursday, the regulars received a much needed day off. Zdeno Chara, Andrew Alberts, Patrice Bergeron, Vladimir Sobotka, Petteri Nokelainen, and Manny Fernadez were present on the ice at Ristuccia Arena in Wilmington.

To answer the Chara questions from the comments in the previous post, "Chara looked more comfortable taking wrist shots today than he did Friday" per Fluto from the Boston Globe. If there was any remnants of a shoulder separation he would not be taking any sort of wrist shots. I have seen nothing about slap shots which would tell a major story about the whole situation as I recall he aggravated/reaggravated his "upper body injury" on a slapshot situation. I can recall an injury to his shoulder in the preseason from a fight early on where he had to miss preseason games. It is possible that this is the same shoulder and the same injury showing up again. However, we don't know as he and the team have been fairly hush about the whole situation.

Enjoy your Monday everyone and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Bruins-Flyers Postgame Thread

Unfortunately, there will be no post game recap as I am attending the hockey banquet for the team I coached this winter and then celebrating my Irish heritage later in the evening (I give all of you who are not Irish permission to celebrate in my honor). If you need to vent/rejoice, the comment box will be the place to do it. Let's hope the Bruins can come back in the third period...

Morning Practice Notes

Fluto's blog from the Globe...

Patrice Bergeron was the first skater on the ice at Ristuccia Arena this morning, joined by strength and conditioning coach John Whitesides.

Also on the ice: Zdeno Chara, Andrew Alberts, Petteri Nokelainen, Alex Auld, Manny Fernandez.

Chara is skating fine and taking light shots on goal off feeds from Whitesides.

Glad to see Chara doing that. I love Bergy's hunger to get on the ice every day. You have to love the guy who is on the ice first every morning. Man, what would this season be like with him in the line-up the whole time?

Lightning Preview

The beast of the east come to town tonight to face the Boston Bruins. That's right! The Tampa Bay Lightning come to Boston this evening. Alright, the Lightning are not the "beast of the east" but, they do scare me quite a bit. They have these two guys, Vinny Lecavalier and Marty St. Louis, not sure if you have heard of them. If you haven't, they are two incredibly potent scoring threats who have the speed and the hands to make a slumping Bruins team look like lifeless puppets.

Tonight, the Bruins scoring drought will be facing either the newly acquired Mike Smith or member of the merry-go-round of goalies coming to and from the AHL (Karri Ramos maybe? He played in Springfield for the Falcons last year when Tampa was an affiliate there). Smith shouldn't be taken lightly as he is an up and coming star that has had some very strong showings in Dallas and in Tampa this season.

I have two keys two tonight's game as the Bruins really need to KISS (keep it simple stupid!!!)...

1. Crash With Traffic: The Bruins need ugly goals like the class geek needs his Advanced Honors Aeronautics book and his Magic cards. The best way to create goals is to screen the goaltender, put pucks on net, and scramble for the rebound. It's simple, and very easy to take advantage of it.

2. Defense first: All five guys need to back-check and get back into the zone to play sound defense. Offensive rushes start with shutting down the other team and breaking out of your own zone. No one should be lagging back looking for a turnover and a home run pass. This team is not designed for that. The guys in front of Thomas (he's starting tonight) need to pick up bodies and clear loose pucks away from the danger zone in the low slot.

This is a major two points tonight and it needs to come in regulation. The Bruins need a confidence boost right now and a convincing regulation win and a strong showing by Thomas could do the trick. We'll see come 7:00 pm if this team can take advantage of a low-end Eastern Conference team. God knows they haven't been able to take care of non-playoff teams lately. Let's go boys!

A Sign From the Hockey Gods?

I think I may have received a sign from the hockey gods as a black bear just waltzed into my backyard and attacked my bird feeder. Ok, maybe not but, it's a thought. This is the second bear sighting in a week between myself and my next door neighbors. We have never seen bears in this area before. Maybe the Bruins are becoming more relevant in New England...

Go B's!

*Update 9:59*
...Clearly not a sign, that game was awful...

Tonight's Line-up vs. Ottawa

Sturm-Savard-Kobasew
Axelsson-Metropolit-Kessel
Lucic-Krejci-Murray
Schaefer-Sobotka-Thornton

Stuart-Wideman
Ference-Ward
Lashoff-Hnidy

Auld

Just a few things...

1. Auld will be making yet another start between the pipes. Auld definitely deserves this as Timmy needs more than a night off and Auldy has been hot keeping the last three starts very close. All you can ask of your netminder is to keep the goals down below 3, and he's done just that.

2. Chara is out but, Ward is back. Hopefully, Ward can police Ference and get him to wake up.

3. Check out that potent first line. Ohhhh baby! It's about time Julien put a line like that up front. I can def see at least 2 goals from this line tonight.

4. Gerber will start in goal for the Sens.

*Update 5:42 pm*
5. Shane "The Sheriff" Hnidy will be playing in his 400th career game. Hnidy is a former member of the Ottawa Senators.

Dear Bruins Fans,

Dear Bruins fans,

There is no need to worry about the current streak of unacceptable games. Yes, they took 3 of 4 points in the last two games but, wasn't it a little difficult to watch the offense go brain dead? Well, I am here to say...

'Fear not: for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all Bruins fans. For unto you is born this day in the city of Boston a new beginning, which is the remaining 13 games of the regular season. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the puck wrapped in ice shavings, lying in an opponents net.' And suddenly there was with the hockey gods a multitude of the heavenly host, praising the Spoked B, and saying, 'glory to the Bruins in the highest, and in the Garden, peace, good skills toward Black and Gold.'

That's what playoff hockey is all about Bruins fans.

Alright, so I completely ripped off one of my favorite Christmas movies but, I feel as if it is appropriate. Let's have some faith in this team. We should be glad that they had a rough patch before the playoffs began and that it did not happen in the last four games of the season. I have the utmost confidence that the Bruins will finish the season strong and catapult themselves into the playoffs. You should feel the same way. Defense wins championships, er, defense gets teams into the second round.

Regards,
McKeon

Lashoff Recalled From Providence

The Boston Bruins have recalled defenseman Matt Lashoff from the Providence Bruins. He has joined the club and will travel with the team to New York City, where the B's will take on the Rangers.

Bruins 2 - Capitals 1

Once again, a Saturday matinée game leaves me to be short as I am playing hockey and practically running out the door. I am very happy with this win. Is it lucky? Of course it is. However, I am very proud of the way the guys played. The intensity of the fights that started the game and the don't quit attitude the whole way through. Alex Auld was huge once again and Hnidy had a great game on D. I'm out to go stop some pucks, Alex Auld style! Leave your thoughts in the comment box...

Leafs 8 - Bruins 2?

OK, here's my story. My friends asked me to go out to eat at Chili's tonight. Reluctantly, I said yes as it would be a jolly good time. We walk into the place and one television is showing the Bruins game, no big deal. The score is 1-1 in the first period. Terrific! A good game! I get up to take a peak at the score a bit later (our table had a terrible angle in regards to the flat screen) and it's 3-1...We just sat down 10 minutes ago! What the...?! Time passes and I can tell it's intermission so, I wait to check the score. I see the ice looks fresh, I take a few bites of my bacon burger and BAM, it's 5-1. What a joke, right?! On the way home I get a text message from my buddy, "Uh, y did the b's just lose 8-2?" I wish I knew...

Could someone explain this utter nonsense to me?

Maple Leafs, Tonight, Must Win

The Boston Bruins face-off against a division rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs, tonight at the TD Banknorth Garden. The Leafs have been streaking a little bit lately(6-3-1 in their last 10 games) and the Bruins have been going through a two game brain fart (outscored 11-2 in their past two games, we all know the results). The Bruins are currently going through a six game stretch over the course of nine days and through the first three games they have taken three points, a win, and an overtime loss. This will be the sixth meeting between the two clubs with the Bruins taking the first three and Toronto the previous two. However, the Bruins took points in the two losses as they lost one in overtime and the other in a shootout.

McKeon's Key's to the game:

1. Hit 'em hard, hit 'em early, hit 'em often. This is advice I enjoy giving the kids on the team I coach. Throwing a huge body check has the ability to do one of two things (or both). 1. It can help you settle down and knock out some of the nerves of playing in a crucial game. 2. A big hit early could possibly rattle your opponent putting them back on their heels. Hockey is a beautiful sport in a sense that you can legally go out and hit the snot out of someone just to feel better about yourself and install some confidence in your friends. Outside the rink, this situation is a gang war.

2. Shoot hard, shoot low. Toskala has been an up and down goaltender all year. The Bruins need to shoot the puck hard and low to create rebounds. To complete this, they need to crash the net! A good way to chip at a goaltender's confidence is make the goalie give up second chances on ugly rebounds out in front.

3. Pepper Toskala. The Bruins put 40 shots on goal against the Panthers however, Craig Anderson was on fire. The Bruins can't get discouraged (which I'm sure they aren't), they need to keep putting the puck on net. Good things happen in front of the net.

4. Stick to the plan. This team needs to stick to the plan that Claude Julien has set for them. If the team can fall back on this plan and play solid defensively, tonight will surely be a victory.

Panthers 1 - Bruins 0 OT

There isn't much to say about this game besides "wow" in the aspect of goaltending. Craig Anderson and Alex Auld played outstanding in net for both teams tonight. The lone goal, not a goaltender's fault. Alex Auld had no chance on a shot that look to slightly change direction off of his defenseman, Mark Stuart. Plus, it was the type of shot that was released behind the skate of Stuart which makes it very difficult to see the angle at which the shot is going, along with the redirection.

I know this is not the main reason why the Bruins lost, however, Phil Kessel tried to maneuver through three Florida guys breaking into the offensive zone, and lost the puck which lead to the odd-man rush that resulted in the game-winning goal for Florida. Kessel is young but, he really needs to start taking it to the outside or dumping the puck in because this exact situation is constant three strides over the blueline. I remember saying to myself late in the third, "wow, Kessel just dumped the puck, maybe he turned the corner." Wrong. This kid has a ways to go yet.

Say what you want about Alex Auld but, he has been a marquee acquisition by Chiarelli. He has made some big starts filling in for Thomas when he needed rest and like tonight, he gave the team a chance to win. Tonight, he was poised on all 31 shots that he stopped. Anyone who wants to blame Auld is just plain ignorant. He made a huge save with 1:04 left in regulation to even salvage a point in this game.

Overall, I liked the intensity. Unfortunately, the Bruins ran into a hot goalie who set a record for saves in a shutout (53 I believe) against the Islanders in Florida's last game (1-0 W) and 40 stops against the Bruins tonight (1-0 OTW). Frankly, the Panthers are lucky to gain four points in the last two games. Congrats to Anderson though, 93 shots, 93 saves.

Injury Notes 3-4-07

-Ward apparently took a shot off of his right foot last night and is unable to put his skate on. He is on crutches with a foot bruise and will be replaced by Bobby Allen tonight who has not played since December 22.

-Patrice Bergeron joined some teammates on the ice for the first time today. He also worked out for 28 minutes and got his heart rate up to 175 beats per minute.

-Manny Fernandez faced shots for over a half hour today in full gear. He did the same thing yesterday but, only faced Bergeron. He is not yet able to go into a full butterfly position but, Fernandez said that is just a few days away.

Washington 10 - Bruins 2...

A very out of character and disturbing game. I am shocked I watched that shenanigans all the way through. It was like a car accident, ugly but, you can't look away. I really do not know where to begin. Goaltending was bad but, only because Timmy and Auldy had zero help in front of them. Just a weird game all around.

Was this an episode of Punked? I was waiting for the camera to zoom into the last row of seats to have Ashton and his crew laughing hysterically at the miserable look on all of our faces. Obviously that was not so and the Bruins really need to bounce back and play strong tomorrow night. Tonight's game showed that this team is built on a defense first mentality and when that breaks down well, you saw the result.

Congrats to one of the most exciting and dynamic players in the game in Alex Ovechkin on eclipsing the 50 goal mark. Here's hoping you get above 60 all while getting shut out this Saturday in the rematch.

Washington Preview

Tonight's expected lineup:

Axelsson-Savard-Murray
Sturm-Metropolit-Kessel
Lucic-Krejci-Kobasew
Reich-Sobotka-Thornton

Chara-Wideman
Ference-Ward
Stuart-Hnidy

Thomas

Of Note: Kessel and Kobes flip flopped as Julien says he is doing some minor "tweaking. "So much speed...You've got a double whammy on the wings" Metro said about the new second line.

McKeon's Take: From now (March 3rd) until March 16 the Bruins play nine games. They have 4 on the road and five at home. The Bruins need to remain playing as if tomorrow is not a guarantee in order to continue flying high. Now, do I think the Bruins will continue to win and take the next 9? No, but, I do expect them to perform well. This team needs to put as much room as possible between themselves and teams like Buffalo and Philadelphia.

For tonight, Z and D-Wide (I just made that up, not sure how I feel about it) have another big test in shutting down a very hungry Alex Ovechkin. The young gun broke a goal scoring drought last game against Toronto after not putting the puck in the net for 6 or 7 (i forget which) games. However, when Ovechkin was not scoring, he was still setting guys up. Ovechkin is leading the league in goals with 49.

The Bruins will likely face the newly acquired, Cristobal Huet, who beat the Bruins in all three attempts this season with a 1.67 goals against average and a .943 save percentage. The Bruins seem to struggle against Huet as they alway seem to struggle with guys like him, Johan Hedberg and Cam Ward.

For those who gamble, go with the under in this game. Ironically, the last time the Bruins lost, I chose the score with the Bruins coming out on top. When they won the following game I decided it would be good luck (sorry, it's the goaltender's superstition in me) to no longer predict the Bruins to win. The winner of this game will win either 2-1 or 3-1.

PS. I just noticed the top of the Capital building in the Washington logo. Props to the folks in Washington who came up with this new logo and going with colors that should be represented by a team in this nation's capital and changing the logo for a team that is trying to turn a corner. Also, I want to send out props to Head Coach Bruce Boudreau who has done a phenomenal job since "coming in for relief" (I'm so excited baseball season is here). Boudreau is also a fellow product of the Manchester Monarchs AHL hockey club.

Operation Lockdown

Boston Globe, Fluto Shinzawa

During Boston's six-game winning streak, here are the forwards Zdeno Chara and partner Dennis Wideman have been asked to shut down: Ilya Kovalchuk (Atlanta), Evgeni Malkin (Pittsburgh), Jason Spezza (Ottawa), Vincent Lecavalier (Tampa Bay), Olli Jokinen (Florida), and Eric Staal (Carolina).

The results: zero even-strength goals. Kovalchuk scored on a penalty shot, Lecavalier recorded one helper, and Staal registered two assists.

"He's such a fierce competitor," said Shane Hnidy of Chara. "That's the key to it. A guy like him, with his size and ability, who shuts down the other teams' top guys, that gives us a lot more room on the ice. I know how frustrated he was from last year when they didn't make it and how hard he wants to make the playoffs, as does everybody. He takes being the captain of this team seriously."

* The Bruins didn't practice today. They will travel to Washington this afternoon and skate at the Verizon Center at 11:30 a.m. tomorrow.

Bruins 3 - Thrashers 2 SO

The streak continues in front of a sell out crowd (what?! Sell out?! No way!). I am out the door to go stop some pucks. I'll do a recap upon my return. In the mean time, leave your thoughts on the game in the comment box.