The Bruins Corner

Bruins sign Fata and Sabourin

2009-07-08T17:06:00.002-04:00

Yesterday the Bruins announced that they signed defenseman Drew Fata and goalie Dany Sabourin to one-year contracts. These two players are most likely pickups for the AHL Providence Bruins team, as Tuukka Rask is the probable backup to Tim Thomas this coming season, so Sabourin should get playing time down with Providence. And with Jeremy Reich signing with the New York Islanders, Fata brings toughness to fill that void for Providence with Reich gone.

The 26-year-old Fata split the 2008-09 season between the San Antonio Rampage and the Binghamton Senators, both of the American Hockey League. He skated in 75 regular season games with seven goals, nine assists and 141 penalty minutes. He has played in eight career NHL games and registered 1-1=2 totals with nine penalty minutes, all with the New York Islanders.

The 28-year-old Sabourin appeared in 19 games for the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2008-09 season and registered a 6-8-2 record, 2.85 Goals Against Average and .898 save percentage. On January 17, 2009, he was traded by Pittsburgh along with Ryan Stone and a 2011 fourth round pick to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for goaltender Mathieu Garon. Sabourin did not appear in a game with the Oilers before being waived on January 20, 2009.
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Bruins player moves

2009-07-03T17:50:00.015-04:00

Here is the latest on player moves by the Bruins and some players they have already lost to free agency by signing with other teams.

On June 30th, the Bruins bought out the contract of forward Peter Schaefer.

On July 1st, the Bruins re-signed forward Byron Bitz to a multi-year contract. The Bruins signed ex-Montreal/Dallas forward pest Steve Begin to a one-year contract. If you remember Begin was the one with that cheapshot on Marc Savard which broke a bone in Savard's back. Hopefully Begin can be that same kind of pest for the Bruins against Montreal and everyone else. He's also known for dishing out some big hits. The Bruins re-signed defenseman Johnny Boychuk to a one-year contract. Martin St. Pierre signed with the Ottawa Senators.

On July 2nd, the Bruins re-signed veteran Mark Recchi to a one-year contract. This will be Recchi's last season playing hockey. Forward Jeremy Reich signed with the New York Islanders. Defenseman Steve Montador signed with the Buffalo Sabres. Defenseman Shane Hnidy signed with the Minnesota Wild.

Looking at some Bruins opponents in the Eastern Conference, Montreal and Toronto have changed their team much. Montreal has added forwards Brian Gionta, Mike Cammalleri, and Scott Gomez (through a trade with New York), and defensemen Jaroslav Spacek and Hal Gill so far. Toronto has added a lot more toughness with defensemen Mike Komisarek, Garnet Exelby (through a trade with Atlanta), and enforcer Colton Orr. So now we'll be watching those Toronto games more closer with Lucic and Komisarek going at each other again.

Bruins draft results

2009-07-01T14:31:00.001-04:00

The 2009 NHL Entry Draft was on June 26th and 27th and in case you missed it, here were the Bruins picks. In the first round, the Bruins drafted forward Jordan Caron with the 25th overall pick.

Caron, a 6-2, 202-pound forward has spent the past three seasons playing with the Rimouski Oceanics in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). In 2008-2009 Caron was his team’s leading scorer, notching 36 goals and 31 assists for 67 points in 56 regular season games. His 36 goals ranked him 11th overall in scoring in the QMJHL. From October 6-October 12, Caron scored five goals, including two game-winners and was named the QMJHL offensive player of the week.
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On day 2 of the NHL draft, the Bruins drafted defenseman Ryan Button, forward Lane Macdermid, forward Tyler Randell, and forward Ben Sexton.

In the third round, with the 86th overall pick, the Bruins selected 18-year-old defenseman Ryan Button. The 6-0, 185 lb. Edmonton, Alberta native spent 2008-2009 with the Prince Albert Raiders of the Western Hockey League (WHL). With the Raiders, Button tallied five goals and 32 assists, for 37 points in 70 games, making him his team’s highest scoring defenseman. He finished the season tied for second on the Raiders in assists, while his 32 assists tied him for 18th in the WHL out of all the league's defensemen. Button has appeared in 128 career games in two seasons with Prince Albert, registering 5-40=45 totals and 73 penalty minutes.

Boston used its fourth round pick, 112th overall, to select 19-year-old Lane Macdermid, a forward from the Memorial Cup Champion Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He split his 2008-09 season with the Owen Sound Attack and Windsor. With Owen Sound, he played in 26 regular season contests with eight goals, six assists, and 14 points before being traded to the Spitfires on December 8, 2008. With Windsor, he played 38 regular season contests with 7 goals, 14 assists, and 21 points. He also appeared in 20 playoff games during Windsor’s Memorial Cup run with 4-5=9 totals and 38 penalty minutes. In 2008-2009, Macdermid was assessed 17 fighting majors and has collected 502 penalty minutes in 187 career regular season games in the OHL. Macdermid is the son of former NHLer Paul Macdermid, who is a veteran of 690 career NHL games.

The Bruins returned to action in the sixth round (176th overall) by selecting Tyler Randell, a 6'1, 191 pound 18-year-old forward from Brampton, Ontario. Randell spent the beginning of his 2008-2009 season with the Belleville Bulls of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) where he had a total of 10 goals, five assists and 15 points in 36 games. He continued the 2008-2009 season with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL after being traded on December 17, 2008 where he played in 37 regular season games with 14 goals, 8 assists, and 22 points. In 2008 Randell was also a member of the 2008 Gold Medal Ontario U17 team. In 135 career games over three seasons in the OHL, Randell has compiled a 29-19=48 line.

Boston’s final pick in the draft was used to select forward Ben Sexton, 206th overall. The 5'11, 182-pound native of Ottawa, Ontario spent 2008-2009 with the Nepean Raiders of the Central Junior A Hockey League (CJHL). He played in 87 regular season games in two seasons with the Raiders totaling 30-38=68 career totals. Sexton has committed to Clarkson University for the 2010-2011 season.
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Bruins win some award hardware

2009-06-21T17:43:00.004-04:00

In case you missed it, coach Claude Julien, defenseman Zdeno Chara, goalie Tim Thomas all won some awards at the NHL awards.

Julien was named the winner of the 2009 Jack Adams Award, which is awarded "to the head coach who has contributed the most to his team's success."

Chara was named the winner of the 2009 Norris Trophy, which is awarded "to the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position."

Thomas Thomas was named the winner of the 2009 Vezina Trophy, which is awarded "to the goalkeeper adjudged to be the best at his position."

Ference has successful surgery

2009-06-17T18:22:00.004-04:00

Today Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference underwent successful surgery to repair an abdominal hernia and to perform an adductor release. Ference will be forced to miss approximately four to six weeks. Ference has always been a dependable defenseman and I hope he's ready to go when training camp starts for next season.

Bruins extend GM Chiarelli's contract

2009-06-17T18:09:00.005-04:00

On Monday it was announced that the Bruins extended GM Peter Chiarelli to a 4-year contract. I have to say good move by the Bruins to extend Chiarelli to a long-term contract as he has done a great job since he's been here. I didn't know anything about Chiarelli before he came to Boston but now everyone should know his name as what he has done here in Boston with the Bruins.

Chiarelli's club enjoyed one of their best regular seasons in team history in 2008-09, as they posted an Eastern Conference leading 53-19-10 record. Their 53 wins and 116 points were both their third-highest totals in team history, while their 116 points ranked second overall in the NHL, one point behind the San Jose Sharks (117). The Bruins led the NHL in goals against (196) and goal differential (+78) and led the Eastern Conference in goals for (274), second overall in the NHL to the Detroit Red Wings (295). His club swept the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs and earned their first Eastern Conference Semifinals berth since 1999. He was honored by The Sporting News as the 2008-09 NHL Executive of the Year from a poll of his peers, which included 39 coaches and executives.
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Bruins re-sign Krejci to 3-year contract

2009-06-05T17:58:00.000-04:00

The Bruins re-signed forward David Krejci to a 3-year contract (worth $11.25M, $3.75M per year, source).

Krejci established a career high in games played, goals, assists and points this season with 22-51-73 totals in 82 games. His 51 assists ranked him second on the team behind Marc Savard, and he led the NHL with a plus/minus rating of +37. In 2009, Krejci also received the Bruins Seventh Player Award, given to the player who performs above and beyond expectations.
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This is good getting Krejci signed for a long-term contract as he is probably going to improve every season. Next season should be exicting. On Thursday Krejci underwent success hip surgery. Krejci will be forced to miss approximately four to six months.

Chara named finalist for Messier award

2009-06-02T18:36:00.003-04:00

Today Bruins Captain Zdeno Chara was named a finalist for the 2008-2009 Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award. The other two finalists are Flames' Jarome Iginla and Penguins' Sydney Crosby. The Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award is an award that honors an individual who leads by positive example through on-ice performance, motivation of team members and a dedication to community activities and charitable causes.

Mark Messier solicits suggestions from club and League personnel and NHL fans in compiling a list of potential candidates. However, the selection of the three finalists and the ultimate winner is Messier’s alone.
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Bruins injury update

2009-05-18T14:40:00.005-04:00

Besides the known injuries with Marco Sturm, Andrew Ference, and Matt Hunwick, other Bruins players have had injuries while in the playoffs.

And just revealed today, a problem with Phil Kessel's shoulder, David Krejci's hip and a quick kidney stone surgery for Mark Recchi -- just to name a few – probably didn't help either.

It's becoming clear that Boston was a MASH unit by the second round. Mark Recchi had a rib injury and also had kidney stone surgery before Game 7. Krejci will have hip surgery that will sideline him for 4-6 months.

Phil Kessel revealed that he injured his labrum and rotator cuff in the game in Columbus. He will have shoulder surgery and he said he could be out as long as six months.
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I remember the game in Columbus when Kessel got layed out with a big hit and he landed against the boards awkwardly hitting his shoulder and missed some of the game after that hit.

Bruins vs Hurricanes game 7 summary

2009-05-14T23:58:00.003-04:00

The Bruins have lossed game 7 in overtime by the score of 3-2 and are now out of the playoffs as the Hurricanes will move onto the Conference Finals to take on the Pittsburgh Penguins. And guess who scored the series winner... none other than sucker puncher Scott Walker. I can only imagine what would have been if the league actually did their job and suspended Walker for 2 or more games. It hurts to see the Bruins lose, but seeing Walker score the series clincher just makes it more painful. The scoring summary for game 7 is below.

In the first period, at 7:42, Byron Bitz scored his first ever NHL playoff goal, assisted by David Krejci and Michael Ryder making it 1-0 Bruins. At 13:59, Rod Brind'Amour scored to tie the game 1-1.

In the second period, at 7:45, Sergei Samsonov scored to make it 2-1 Hurricanes.

In the third period, at 6:19, Milan Lucic scored (3) assisted by Marc Savard and Phil Kessel to tie the game 2-2.

In overtime, at 18:46, Scott Walker scored to win the game and end the series.

Tim Thomas made 34 saves on 37 shots against him. Cam Ward made 34 saves on 36 shots against him.

You can watch post-game interviews with Bruins players and coach Julien on bostonbruinsTV.

Bruins players line up to shake hands with Hurricanes players
Photo courtesy of Getty.

Bruins sign Jamie Arniel

2009-05-14T11:33:00.001-04:00

Yesterday the Bruins signed center Jamie Arniel to an entry-level contract.

Arniel, a 5'11", 183-pound center was selected by the Bruins in the fourth round (97th overall) in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. He spent the 2008-09 regular season with the Sarnia Sting of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) where he tallied 32-36-68 totals in 63 games, ranking third on the team in both goals and assists. In five playoff games this season he posted 1-2-3 totals for Sarnia. Arniel is currently playing for Boston's American Hockey League affiliate - the Providence Bruins - where he has skated in two postseason games to date.

The 19-year-old from Kingston, Ontario, split time between the Sting and the Guelph Storm during the 2007-2008 season. He played in 20 games for Guelph with 9-4-13 totals before finishing the year with the Sting where he notched 18 goals and 16 assists for 34 total points. His 27 regular season goals were enough to rank him third overall on the Sting.
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Julien says Marc Savard will play game 7

2009-05-13T12:17:00.003-04:00

Good news for the Bruins. Marc Savard will be ready for game 7 despite getting hurt in game 6 by a knee-on-knee hit from Hurricanes' Chad LaRose.

Boston center Marc Savard left early in the third period of Tuesday's Game 6 against Carolina after a knee-to-knee hit with Hurricanes forward Chad LaRose -- but coach Claude Julien said he'll be ready for Game 7.

Savard didn't play after the collision at 6:12 of the third period. He went right to the bench, tried to skate during a timeout, and finally went to the locker room.

"I'm the one who sent him off," Julien said in his postgame news conference after Boston's series-tying 4-2 victory at the RBC Center, adding that the time left in the game was a factor in the decision.

Savard's goal midway through the second period proved to be the game-winner. He's tied with Michael Ryder for the team lead in playoff points with 11 and averages more than 19 minutes of ice time.

"He’ll be fine for next game," Julien said.
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Bruins vs Hurricanes game 6 summary

2009-05-13T01:04:00.005-04:00

Tonight the Bruins looked good, despite the end of the first period and the start of the second period, as they won 4-2 and have tied up the series 3-3 to force a game 7 on Thursday night. The scoring summary for game 6 is below.

In the first period, at 2:01, Mark Recchi scored (3) assisted by Patrice Bergeron and Chuck Kobasew, making it 1-0 Bruins. At 5:04, Steve Montador scored (1) assisted by David Krejci and Michael Ryder, making it 2-0 Bruins.

In the second period, at 2:49, Matt Cullen scored for the Hurricanes to make it a 2-1 lead for the Bruins. At 8:53, Marc Savard scored (6) assisted by Milan Lucic and Dennis Wideman, making it a 3-1 Bruins lead. The pass by Lucic was sweet. I will post this goal on the site when I get a chance. At 18:03, Chuck Kobasew scored (3) assisted by Patrice Bergeron and Mark Recchi, making it a 4-1 Bruins lead.

In the third period, at 7:20, Sergei Samsonov scored to make it a 4-2 game. The game would end at 4-2.

Tim Thomas made 31 saves on 33 shots against him. Cam Ward made 15 saves on 19 shots against him.

Hopefully Marc Savard will be ok enough to play in game 7 on Thursday as in the third period, Chad LaRose hit Savard with a knee-on-knee check. No penalty on the play but Savard went off the ice. He tried coming back on but couldn't and went to the locker room when there was a TV timeout. The Garden on Thursday is going to be jumping. I can't wait to watch that game on TV.

Hey look bandwagon Hurricanes fans holding up stupid signs like "Aaron 'One Punch' Ward", and another sign saying something about Zdeno Chara.

Photo courtesy of Getty. Hosted by Imageshack.

I guess moron Hurricanes fans enjoy sucker punches and approve of them. And wow Aaron Ward was a big part of their Cup champion season a few years back. Wow how quick they forget or maybe they didn't even know he was on their team. Don't you hate bandwagon and dumb fans? :)

Bruins-Canes bad blood

2009-05-12T17:56:00.013-04:00

Well if there was a question about bad blood between these two teams, now we all know that there is some bad blood. It started in game 5 on Sunday with a few incidents. First there was Jussi Jokinen using his stick, as most Europeans do instead of their fists, to slash at Zdeno Chara's ankle which sent the Bruins captain down to the ice in pain. After the game Jokinen basically said that Chara was faking it. Well that was the first time I've seen Chara go down like that and guys are always taking shots at him to get him off his game. Then there was the sucker punch I'm sure everyone has seen by now, by Scott Walker on Aaron Ward.

So Scott Walker was not suspended for his sucker punch and here are responses by members of both teams/organizations.

Quotes from Aaron Ward:

"If you see the video, I didn't see him, I didn't talk to him, my hands were by side," said Ward at the Bruins' morning skate before tonight's Game 6 at RBC Center. "It was the usual scrum (with Carolina's Matt Cullen), gloves on, you take a punch, no big deal, it's three minutes left in the game, nothing's going to happen."

"Out of convenience, (Carolina) went to another story and I obviously feel it's a convenient story that the NHL accepted. And I think if you as the media accept that, you're a bunch of sheep. It's a convenient excuse and in the moment it allows people to get off scott-free and not have to deal with it."

"It's a joke. It's honestly a joke."

Asked directly about the ruling, Ward said, "I don't feel like getting a bigger fine than Scott Walker did for voicing my personal opinion. They showed me based on their decision that I don't matter, so to voice my opinion now isn't worth it."
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Quotes from Scott Walker:

"I went over there, pushed him and I thought he punched me and I dropped my gloves and swung," said Walker this morning. "You never want to see anyone get hurt or go down like that and for that I'm sorry. But I've been on the other end, where you think nothing's happening and you get punched. So I think you have to defend yourself."

"But it's not something I'm proud of, that's for sure."

"I think it's tough watching that game," said Walker. "If you watched Tim Conboy's fight with (Shawn) Thornton, if you watch it closely, (Conboy) didn't have his gloves off halfway through the fight, but he was still doing the job of protecting himself. He knew there was a fight going on. I guess I feel the same way."
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Aaron Ward will play tonight. Doctors said he should wear a visor, but he doesn't want to.

"I haven't worn one in 16 years and I'm not going to start now," said Ward.

Scott Walker fined, not suspended for sucker punch

2009-05-11T14:22:00.009-04:00

Well the NHL seems to be more of a joke when it comes to discipline as Hurricanes Scott Walker was only fined $2,500 and not suspended for his sucker punch on Bruins Aaron Ward in the final five minutes of game 5 yesterday.

Walker received a five-minute fighting major, a two-minute instigation minor and a game-misconduct penalty for the altercation, with the instigator penalty carrying an automatic one-game suspension because it was levied in the final five minutes of regulation. However, the suspension was rescinded after a hearing with the NHL earlier Monday.

"I accept the league's decision," Walker said in a statement. "Based on what was said on the ice as I was dropping my gloves, it was my understanding that I was engaged in an altercation."
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This is such a joke. Milan Lucic gets suspended for what he did to Lapierre in the Bruins-Canadiens series, but this sucker punch gets no suspension? So what this tells other players is, hey go ahead and sucker punch people, just don't get your stick high on players. If that's the case then if the Bruins are up by four or five goals on the Hurricanes in the next game then go ahead and sucker punch Scott Walker, or better yet take out one of their good players. I know that won't happen because the Bruins don't have cheap shot artists like Walker. Even though there is a rule that says if you get an instigating penalty in the final five minutes of a game, you will be suspended for one game, that did not happen as well. I don't know what is going on with the NHL.

Here's a video clip of Milan Lucic answering questions after last night's game.

Bruins vs Hurricanes game 5 summary

2009-05-11T00:56:00.024-04:00

The Bruins finally looked like them old-selves in game 5 Sunday night playing a great game Bruins style. The Bruins won game 5 by the score of 4-0. The series is now 3-2 Hurricanes and game 6 will be on Tuesday night at 7:00 pm EST. The scoring summary for game 5 is below.

In the first period, at 14:48, Mark Recchi scored (2) a power-play goal assisted by Zdeno Chara and Dennis Wideman making it 1-0 Bruins. Just before the power-play Milan Lucic layed out Dennis Seidenberg with a huge hit which ignited the fans and the Bruins. Seidenberg then took a slashing penalty which was the power-play the Bruins scored on. At 18:36, Phil Kessel scored (5) assisted by Marc Savard and Milan Lucic, making it a 2-0 Bruins lead.

In the second period, at 4:40, Phil Kessel scored (6) assisted by Marc Savard and Zdeno Chara, making it 3-0 Bruins.

In the third period, at 12:21, Milan Lucic scored (2) assisted by Michael Ryder and Patrice Bergeron, making it 4-0 Bruins.

Tim Thomas made 19 saves on 19 shots against him, earning his first career playoff shutout. Cam Ward made 36 saves on 40 shots against him.

With the score being so lopsided, the third period got nasty. Shawn Thornton and Tim Conboy dropped the gloves and it was a one-sided fight with Thornton getting the decision. Later there was Mark Stuart dropping the gloves with Tim Conboy and Stuart getting the upper hand in that fight. Conboy went 0 for 2 in this game. Then next we had some cheapshot shit. Aaron Ward roughed up a Hurricanes player, I think it was Matt Cullen, with his famous push/shove with one arm. Scott Walker didn't like that, came over, dropped his gloves and sucker punched Aaron Ward who went down to the ice and looked hurt (scroll down to watch the video). Milan Lucic tried going after Walker but everyone including the linesmen got in there so nothing came of that. Walker got lots of penalties and was done for the night. Near the end of the game, Wallin and Chuck Kobasew had a cross checking match where both players got minors. At the end of the game, apparently Chad LaRose came out of the penalty box and went over to Lucic trying to start something but linesmen broke them up and Lucic got a 10-minute misconduct.

Aaron Ward is a huge part of the Bruins defense and if he is out for the next game or more, it's going to be tough for the Bruins. This is a big loss for the Bruins. From AP after the game on Aaron Ward:

BOSTON (AP) - Boston Bruins defenseman Aaron Ward left Sunday night's playoff game with what team doctors fear is a broken orbital bone after he was punched by Carolina's Scott Walker.

Bruins coach Claude Julien asked the NHL to look into the play, and complained about Jussi Jokinen's slash that sent Zdeno Chara to the locker room with less than a minute left in the second period.

"The slash on Zdeno is a cheap shot; we all know that. The Walker incident is not something they should be proud of," Julien said after Boston beat Carolina 4-0 in Game 5 to avoid elimination in the Eastern Conference semifinals. "Something like that is not what you want to see, your player put in that position. Hopefully the people in charge will see that play and decide what they want to do about it."

Ward left the game with 2:47 remaining after Walker punched him in the face. Walker was given a misconduct, a fighting major and an instigator penalty.

Hurricanes coach Paul Maurice laughed off the possible repercussions.

"Scott probably has sore knuckles," he said.

Asked whether there will be a fine, he added: "I may have to sell my truck."
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It seems Paul Maurice thinks it's a joke what happened. Will he still be laughing if Walker is suspended for game 6? Anyways who knows if Walker will be suspended for game 6 or longer. If you watched the other games in the playoffs, with Red Wings' Tomas Holmstrom elbowing Ducks' James Wisniewski in the head and Capitals' Alex Ovechkin's knee-on-knee hit on Penguins' Sergei Gonchar, both players were not suspended, so I wouldn't guarantee Walker will be suspended. But Walker has been known for losing his cool at times and doing stupid stuff like this and he has been suspended before, so who knows. And I look back at Lucic getting suspended for what he did to Montreal's Maxim Lapierre but I see these other incidents which are far worser and have caused injuries and no suspensions. The NHL can be a joke at times.

Scott Walker sucker punches Aaron Ward

Response to TSN's Pierre Maguire saying Aaron Ward should be ready (on the TSN telecast), well you know hockey so you should know that Aaron Ward is not a fighter and is not going to drop the gloves. And why drop the gloves? It's 4-0 and the game is over. It's just a gutless cheapshot sucker punch by Scott Walker. I forgot to mention the cheap slash by waiver pick-up Jossi Jokinen on Zdeno Chara near the end of the second period. Chara looked to be in a lot of pain and Jokinen got no penalty for that cheap shot. Chara did come back a few minutes into the third period. I don't expect any suspension from this incident since Chara came back and the way the NHL is doing their discipline actions during the playoffs.

Update @ 2:10 AM
I just remembered, with the new rules about instigating, that any instigating penalties in the final 5 minutes of a game gets a player automatically suspended for a game, so Scott Walker will be suspended for the next game.

Bruins vs Hurricanes game 4 summary

2009-05-09T14:30:00.006-04:00

The Bruins lossed 4-1 in game 4 to the Hurricanes and will be facing playoff elimination on Sunday when game 5 takes place in Boston at 7:30pm EST. The stats for game 4 are below.

In the first period, at 4:54, Eric Staal scored a power-play goal to make it 1-0 Hurricanes.

In the second period, at 2:37, Marc Savard scored (5) a power-play goal, assisted by Mark Recchi and Michael Ryder to tie the game 1-1.

In the third period, at 2:52, Jussi Jokinen scored a power-play goal to make it 2-1 Hurricanes. At 14:31, Sergei Samsonov scored to make it 3-1 Hurricanes. At 15:41, Eric Staal scored to make it 4-1 Hurricanes.

Tim Thomas made 27 saves on 31 shots against him. Cam Ward made 20 saves on 21 shots against him.

Chuck Kobasew and Rod Brind'Amour got into a semi-fight at the end of the game. I'll post that up on the site when I get a chance to create video clips of the other fights from this season and playoffs. I'll also be posting other stuff like some goals and hits from this season and playoffs from the Bruins so stay tuned for that.

Eric Staal and Zdeno Chara roughing
Photo courtesy of AP

I'm just in total shock of this series as the Bruins have not looked like themselves in this series. I don't know what is wrong, but they got to bring it in game 5 on Sunday night or they are out. The Hurricanes are just playing great and mistake-free. The Bruins got to get back to their ways from the season.

Looking at the playoff stats for the Bruins, I found some interesting numbers. Zdeno Chara, Marc Savard, and Stephane Yelle are all a -2. P.J. Axelsson is a -4 in the playoffs. Blake Wheeler has no points in the playoffs (8 games played).

Bruins vs Hurricanes game 3 summary

2009-05-07T02:31:00.014-04:00

The Bruins lossed game 3 in overtime with the final score 3-2. The Carolina Hurricanes now lead the series 2-1. Game 4 will be on Friday at 7:30pm EST. The stats for game 3 are below.

In the first period, at 8:43, Milan Lucic scored his first goal of the playoffs, assisted by Dennis Wideman and Marc Savard.

In the second period, at 16:39, Eric Staal scored to tie the game at 1-1. At 17:58, ex-Bruin Sergei Samsonov scored to make it a 2-1 lead for Carolina.

In the third period, at9:03, Mark Recchi scored his first goal of the playoffs, to tie the game 2-2. Recchi's goal was assisted by Chuck Kobasew Steve Montador.

In overtime, at 2:48, Jussi Jokinen scored to end the game.

Tim Thomas made 38 saves on 41 shots against him. Cam Ward made 21 saves on 23 shots against him.

One thing to note, defenseman Andrew Ference did not play in the third period.

Ference, who missed the final eight days of the regular season and then the Montreal series with a lower body injury, had to leave last night's Game 3 against Carolina with what appeared to be either a new lower body injury or a re-aggravation of the old one.

Early in the second period, Ference was checked hard by the Hurricanes' Scott Walker in the corner of the Bruins defensive zone. He got up slowly and skated gingerly to the bench.
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So it seems that Ference will be out for Friday's game 4. Then we would see Shane Hnidy probably dress and play in game 4 for the Bruins.

Bruins vs Hurricanes game 2 summary

2009-05-04T01:17:00.005-04:00

The Bruins lossed 3-0 in game 2 to the Hurricanes. Game 3 will be on Wednesday night. The stats for game 2 are below.

In the first period no scoring took place.

In the second period, at 2:30, Joe Corvo scored for the Hurricanes making it 1-0. At 7:32, Matt Cullen scored a shorthanded goal to make it 2-0 lead for the Hurricanes.

In the third period, at 19:32, Eric Staal finally scored a goal against the Bruins this season and playoffs, but it was an empty net goal though. So the final score was 3-0 Carolina.

Tim Thomas made 22 saves on 24 shots against him. Cam Ward made 36 saves on 36 shots to get a shutout.

Bruins vs Hurricanes game 1 summary

2009-05-01T23:00:00.003-04:00

The Bruins won 4-1 in game 1 against the Carolina Hurricanes. Game 2 will be on Sunday night. The stats for game 1 are below.

In the first period, at 1:34, David Krejci scored (3) assisted by Aaron Ward and Michael Ryder. At 18:50, Jussi Jokinen scored for Carolina to tie the game 1-1.

In the second period, at 7:21, Marc Savard scored (3) assisted by Phil Kessel and Milan Lucic to make it 2-1 Bruins. At 12:41, Michael Ryder scored (5), unassisted, to make it a 3-1 Bruins lead.

In the third period, at 7:21, Marc Savard scored (4) his second goal of the game, which was assisted by Phil Kessel, making it a 4-1 Bruins lead.

Tim Thomas made 26 saves on 27 shots.

Bruins to face Hurricanes in round 2

2009-04-29T01:59:00.005-04:00

With the Carolina Hurricanes upsetting the New Jersey Devils in game 7 on Tuesday night, and the Capitals defeating the Rangers in their game 7, the round 2 playoff series are set. The Bruins will be playing against the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoff Eastern Conference Semifinal series.

Here is the schedule for the upcoming round for the Bruins:

Game 1 - Friday, May 1st @ Boston, 7:30 PM, TV: NESN, TSN

Game 2 - Sunday, May 3rd @ Boston, 7:30 PM, TV: VERSUS, TSN

Game 3 - Wednesday, May 6th @ Carolina, 7:30 PM, TV: NESN

Game 4 - Friday, May 8th @ Carolina, 7:30 PM, TV: NESN

Game 5 - Sunday, May 10th @ Boston, 7:30 PM, TV: VERSUS

Game 6 - Tuesday, May 12th @ Carolina, 7:30 PM, TV: NESN, TSN

Game 7 - Thursday, May 14th @ Boston, 7:30 PM, TV: TBD

Source

Bergeron and Ference healing during break

2009-04-28T12:25:00.004-04:00

While the Bruins wait to find out who will be their next opponent in the playoffs, players are healing with injuries that have had. Patrice Bergeron has a bruised and still-sore right foot; Tim Thomas is getting over the flu; and Andrew Ference is healing from a suspected groin injury. Good news is that all three will be ready for round 2 of the playoffs. There is speculation that the first game of round 2 for the Bruins won't start until Friday or Saturday.

Andrew Ference, out with a suspected groin injury, joined his teammates for practice for the first time since getting injured late in the regular season. The defenseman had been skating on his own the last week or so.

"He's very close to having a full practice with us," Julien said. "(Yesterday) he did almost everything. We predict that if everything goes well he should be ready for the next round."
Source

Tim Thomas named a Vezina finalist

2009-04-28T12:07:00.005-04:00

Yesterday the NHL announced that Bruins goalie Tim Thomas was named as one of three finalists for the Vezina Trophy, which is awarded to the goalkeeper adjudged to be the best at his position. The other two goalies who are finalists for the award are: Wild's Niklas Backstrom and Blue Jackets' rookie Steve Mason.

Thomas - who set a career high with 36 wins this year and played in his second straight NHL All-Star Game - finished the 2008-09 regular season as the league leader in Goals Against Average (2.10) and Save Percentage (.933). He helped lead the Bruins to their highest victory (53) and points (116) totals since 1971-72, and he and teammate Manny Fernandez shared the NHL’s William Jennings Trophy as the goaltenders for the club finishing the regular season having surrendered the fewest goals (196).

The general managers of the 30 NHL clubs submitted ballots for the Vezina Trophy at the conclusion of the regular season, with the top three vote-getters designated as finalists. The winner will be announced Thursday, June 18, during the 2009 NHL Awards that will be broadcast live from the Pearl Concert Theater inside the Palms Hotel Las Vegas on VERSUS in the United States and on CBC in Canada.
Source

Zdeno Chara named finalist for Norris Trophy

2009-04-23T21:59:00.005-04:00

Today the NHL announced that Bruins captain Zdeno Chara has been named one of the three finalists for the 2008-09 Norris Trophy, which is awarded "to the defensive player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position." The other two finalists are: Red Wings' Nicklas Lidstrom and Capitals' Mike Green.

Chara anchored a Bruins blue line that allowed the lowest goals per game figure in the NHL this season (2.29). He led the Bruins and ranked sixth overall in the league in average ice time (26:04) and finished the regular season with a career-high 19 goals, 31 assists and a +23 rating. His 19 goals ranked fourth in the league amongst all defensemen, while his 11 power play strikes ranked third.

Chara's average ice time (26:04), hits (169) and blocked shots (123) are the highest amongst the other two Norris finalists.

Members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association submitted ballots for the Norris Trophy at the conclusion of the regular season, with the top three vote-getters designated as finalists. The winner will be announced Thursday, June 18, during the 2009 NHL Awards show that will be broadcast live from the Pearl Concert Theater inside the Palms Hotel Las Vegas on VERSUS in the United States and on CBC in Canada.
Source

Bruins vs Canadiens game 4 summary

2009-04-22T21:46:00.005-04:00

The Boston Bruins won 4-1 in game 4 against the Montreal Canadiens and have swept the Canadiens and move on to round 2. The stats for game 4 are below.

In the first period, at 0:39, Andrei Kostitsyn scored for a 1-0 Montreal lead. At 17:27, Michael Ryder scored (3), an unassisted goal, to make it a 1-1 game. At 19:25, David Krejci scored (2) assisted by Michael Ryder and Milan Lucic to make it 2-1 Bruins.

In the second period, at 11:58, Phil Kessel scored (4) assisted by Patrice Bergeron, to make it 3-1 Bruins. At 12:43, Michael Ryder scored (4) assisted by David Krejci and Dennis Wideman, to make it 4-1 Bruins.

In the third period, no scoring happened.

Stay tuned as we wait to see who the Bruins will play in the next round of the playoffs. Right now it looks like it may be the New York Rangers in round 2, but you never know.

12 more wins to go.