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Boston Bruins

Fantasy Chutes And Ladders: A Spooky Edition

  Welcome to our “Halloween Edition” on The Hockey Writers kindly dubbed “Chutes And Ladders”.  Riding the fortunes of a fantasy hockey team can be a lot like the original…

The Morning After: Bruins out-muscle, but can’t outplay Canadiens

Less than 24 hours ago, the Montreal Canadiens were battling the Philadelphia Flyers away from the friendly confines of the Bell Centre, trying to snap their six-game winless streak. They did, of course, win big by a score of 5-1. Naturally, it was expected that the Habs would seem fatigued and come into Boston at a disadvantage.

That was Montreal’s excuse. Now what was Boston’s?

The Bruins may have out-muscled the Canadiens, excelling in the game with their physical-style of play, but it was Montreal who stayed focused and picked up the 2-1 win over the same team that ousted them from the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season.

Bruins look for spark in home-and-home series against the Canadiens

Remember the last time the Montreal Canadiens were in Boston? Sure, you do. It was overtime in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. The Bruins had come from behind in the series, overcoming a two-game deficit to force a final and deciding game. Of course, it went to overtime.

With just over five minutes played in overtime, Adam McQuaid pinched down-low in the offensive zone, blocking P.K. Subban’s effort to clear the puck. Milan Lucic then left his skates to bat-down the deflected puck onto his stick at the bottom of the circle. He went around Tomas Plekanec and Hal Gill’s poke-check attempt to find a wide-open Nathan Horton who had cycled to the top of the zone. Horton received the pass, shifted further down to the slot and unleashed a rocket of shot that went by four Canadiens–five, if you include Montreal goaltender Carey Price.

The Bruins would advance to the Eastern Conference Semifinals while clearing the Canadiens’ schedule for the rest of summer. It was playoff hockey at it’s best. It was the perfect cultivation of a season filled with story lines. It was last season.

The Zoo Crew: NHL Mascots Speak Out

Among the usual emails about new sponsorships, roster moves and promotions was an AHL recall notice. This time it was from Winnipeg. Unlike the announcements about some phenom with a deadly arm or netminder with superhuman flexibility getting a seat at the big boys table, this press release reported the return of a familiar face to Manitoba’s professional hockey arena. Mick E. Moose would be stepping up as the Jets’ mascot.

The Morning After: Bruins return to form, crush streaking Maple Leafs

For now, all seems right with the Boston Bruins. The components that were deemed missing and the efforts that were lacking when the team started the season all showed up at once on Thursday night when the Bruins beat the red-hot Toronto Maple Leafs, 6-2.

The game was all Boston, really. The team showed a full-60 minute effort, had success on the power-play and big games for many role players who had seemed be complacent to start the season. Maybe it was Shawn Thornton’s spirited bout early in the first period with Colton Orr that set the tone or perhaps the Bruins first power-play goal of the night that built the B’s confidence back up. Whatever it was, worked.

No goal support is nothing new for Bruins’ Tuukka Rask

By all accounts, Tuukka Rask is a solid goaltender. – – The Finnish netminder is in his third year as an active member of the Boston Bruins roster and has a career goals-against-average of 2.26 in 81 games-played. In his 2009-10 rookie season, Rask put up strong numbers, posting a 22-12-5 record with five shutouts and a 1.97 G.A.A.. Rask could have very well been a starting goaltender for a team not equipped with a two-time Vezina trophy winner like Tim Thomas at the helm. However since his rookie season, his numbers have slipped.

Last season, Rask finished with a 2.67 G.A.A. and an 11-14-2 record with two shutouts. In the two games he’s started this season, Rask is winless with two losses and a 2.52 G.A.A..

But, this isn’t the problem.
The Hockey Writers THE HOCKEY WRITERS
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