Bruins Still hoping for Playoff Spot

The Boston Bruins go into the game this afternoon still vying for a playoff spot. With 2 more games left, the B's still don't have a playoff berth. At 1 o'clock this afternoon, the Bruins take on the Carolina Hurricanes, playing at home, a place they have had some struggles.

This game is the last of four meetings between these two teams. The Bruins took 2 out of those 3 games, the last one coming on March 16 at Carolina.

For the Bruins, Patrice Bergeron has a goal and an assist in three games, Miroslav Satan has 3 goals in three games, Dennis Wideman has 2 goals and an assist in three games, and Zdeno Chara has 3 assists in three games.

For the Bruins, Marc Savrd (concussion) is on injured reserve, and Andrew Ferrence (groin), Dennis Seidenberg (wrist), Mark Stuart (hand) and Shawn Thornton (upper-body) are day-to-day.

The puck drops at 1:00 p.m., with coverage starting at 12:30. The game will be on NESN.

Bruins Hope for a Win Against Toronto

Tonight is the final of six meetings between the Boston Bruins and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Bruins lead the series 3-2. The last time these two teams played was on March 9, with Toronto taking the win.

The race for the last three playoff spots in the Eastern Conference will come down to a photo finish as the Bruins, the Flyers and the Canadiens have flip-flopped spots over the last few weeks. Montreal is currently in 6th place, with a win over the Flyers last night, and currently have 84 points. The Bruins and the Flyers are both 2 points behind with 82 points.

Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask leads the League with a goals-against average of 1.99 and a save percentage of .930. He is 3-2-0 in his last six with a 1.26 GAA and two shutouts. Patrice Bergeron has four points in his last five games. For the Leafs, Stalberg has three goals in his last two games, while former Bruin Phil Kessel leads Toronto with 55 points, but has yet to score against his former team this season.

Defenseman Andrew Ference (groin/hernia) did not make the trip to Toronto. Shawn Thornton missed Thursday’s game with an upper-body injury, but practiced on Friday. Maple Leafs defensemen Mike Komisarek (shoulder surgery) and Mike Van Ryn (left knee surgery) will not return this season.

The puck drops at 7:00 P.M. The game can be caught on NESN with coverage starting at 6:30 as usual.

6 games left, Bruins take on Panthers

With 6 games left in the regular season, the desperate Boston Bruins take on the Florida Panthers. This will be the fourth and final meeting between these two teams. The B's took 2 out of the first 3 games.

Even though there are only 6 games left, the Bruins have not clinched a playoff spot yet. They enter tonights game just 2 points ahead of the Atlanta Thrashers,who are in 9th place, and are currently tied with two other teams in points: Philadelphia and Montreal.

The Bruins are coming off an amazing win against the New Jersey Devils, where Patrice Bergeron scored the game winning goal (the only goal in the game by the way) with 18.3 seconds left in overtime. The Panthers on the other hand are coming of their fourth sraight loss, in which they were pummeled 6-2 by the Buffalo Sabres.

Florida forward David Booth (concussion) is done for the season. Gregory Campbell (foot) and Byron Bitz (elbow) are day-to-day. For the Bruins, defenseman Andrew Ference (groin) and center Marc Savard (concussion) are out.

The Bruins are just 3-10-3 in their last 16 games at TD Garden. So this game becomes even more important, as the Bruins remain desperate to stay in playoff postion. If anything good happens, the Bruins will come out with a win tonight (hopefully).

The puck drops at 7:00 pm. It can be caught live on NESN and 98.5 The Sports Hub. Be sure to watch.

The Mayor's Cup is Ours!

Blogger is being difficult and not letting me upload the picture of Youk that I wanted to put here so imagine if you will that there is a picture of Youk over to the left hand side.

It was a banner day yesterday for our much maligned offense. Youk, Pedroia, and Martinez together had seven runs and 4 RBIs. Ortiz hit a beautiful homerun and even Tug got in on the homerun action in the 7th, causing the inevitable Tug chants to start up. Youk was on fire yesterday to the point that every time he stepped up to the plate I just knew he was going to do something awesome. It was perfect Sunday afternoon baseball. The Sox won 11-5 in the end.

Big doings tonight with the Red Sox taking on the Tampa Bay Rays who are shaping up to be the team to beat this year. It is NESN's last televised Spring Training game and Josh Beckett is pitching so I expect you all to be watching.

Calgary @ Boston

Today, the Calgary Flames and the Boston Bruins will be playing each other at the TD Garden, each vying for a playoff spot. This is the only meeting this season between these two teams. Boston is clinging to a two-point lead over Atlanta for eighth in the East while the Flames entered Friday ninth in the West, four points back of the Red Wings, who were in action.

Bruins forward David Krejci has four points over the last two games and 13 since the Olympic break. Nystrom, of Clagary, had a goal and an assist for the Flames in his first-career game at Nassau Coliseum, where his father, Bob, rose to fame. It was Nystrom's first multi-point game since Nov. 14.

Again, the Bruins could again be without Vladimir Sobotka, who suffered a head injury in the game on Tuesday. Both teams are the lowest in the pack in scoring, so this will not be a high-scoring game. Before Thursday night, the last time the Bruins scored at least three goals in regulation at TD Garden was Dec. 30 in a 4-0 win over Atlanta.

The puck drops at 1:00 PM live on NESN. Coverage starts at 12:30.

Lightning @ Bruins

Tonight the Bruins take on the Tampa Bay Lightning for the fourth and final time, playing at home at the TD Garden. The B's currently lead the series with 2 wins.

Just last week, the B's looked like they were about to be kicked out of the playoff picture. Now rolling on 2 wins in a row, they hope to continue this streak to keep their spot in playoff postion.

For the Bruins, Satan has goals in each of his last two games, Lucic has three points in his last two and Krejci has nine points in his last seven games. Let's hope these 3 keep their hot streaks going and others are able to start their own.

Lightning defenseman Mattias Ohlund is out with a sprained left ankle, while left wing Ryan Malone (arthroscopic left knee surgery/upper body) is out for at least another week. ... Boston center Vladimir Sobotka is doubtful for Thursday with a head injury and Marc Savard is expected to miss to rest of the season with a concussion.

This game is the first of the last 10 games of the season. Coverage starts at 6:30 and the game starts live at 7:00 PM on NESN.

Bruins @ Thrashers Preview

Tonight, the Bruins take on the Atlanta Thrashers in their last meeting of the season, and a fight for the eighth spot in the standings. This game, along with the rest of the season, is a must win for the B's in order to stay in the playoff run.

For all intents and purposes, this is a playoff game. The Bruins occupy the eighth and final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference with 76 points. The Thrashers are in ninth place, one point behind. Atlanta is 18-13-5 at home, while Boston is 17-13-6 on the road.

For the Bruins, David Krejci has 2 goals and 5 assists in six games, Bergeron has 4 goals and 3 assists in seven games, Ryder has a goal and an assist in three games, and Mark Recchi has 3 goals and 3 assists in seven games.

For the injury report, you all know the story of Savard. Or at least you should anyways. For the Thrashers, Evander Kane (broken foot) and Christoph Schubert (hip) are out indefinitely, and Boris Valabik (torn ACL) is on injured reserve.

Really all the B's need to do tonight to win is play like they did on Sunday. Play with emotion, be physical, and most importantly put up a full 60 minute effort. The only thing that should be fixed is to make sure to try to stay off the power kill.

The puck drops at 7:00 PM. Coverage starts live at 6:30. All can be caught on NESN. Now what do you think the outcome of this game is going to be?

Rangers @ Bruins

Tonight the Bruins take on the New York Rangers at the TD Garden. So far, the Rangers have swept the season series, winning all three games so far. Sure, the Rangers' loss to the Blues on Thursday night was a break for the B's, but the fans in TD Garden had other things on their minds that night, booing their team off the ice in the aftermath of what they saw as a lackluster performance in a 3-0 loss to the Penguins, their first shutout in Boston since their inaugural season of 1967-68. Marian Gaborik, of the Rangers, is hot for this game. His three-point performance against the Blues on Thursday was his second in four games and his eighth of the season. Savard we know about, but otherwise neither team has significant injuries to report going into Sunday.

The game starts at 12:30 on CBS, instead of NESN. Let's hope for a full 60 minute effort tonight.

Devils defeats Bruins

As the New Jersey Devils take a win against the Boston Bruins, the B's take their second loss in as many games. The Devils are now finding their way to the top of the Atlantic Division, while the Bruins are trying to find their way to the playoffs. With a final score of 3-2, Tim Thomas gets the loss, as he was the starting goaltender for the B's, but was taken out after the first period in the place of Tuukka Rask.

Blake Wheeler scored a goal for the third consecutive game in a row. Patrice Bergeron, who has been playing extremely well in the absence of Marc Savard, scored the other goal.

Tim Thomas didn't make it out for the socond period, making it the fifth time he has been pulled this year. Bruins coach Claude Julien said "We didn't help him. We talked it over at the end of the period and decided it was the right thing to do. It changed the momentum, and gave the team a bit of a wake-up call."

Yes I agree, it gave the team a wake up call, but it wasn't enough to pull off a needed win. Every game from now to the end of the regular season is a very important one. If the Boston Bruins plan to be in the playoffs, they need to be able to step up their game, pull some pressure off their goalies, and hope to God that they win the game.

The next game is Tuesay night against the Carolina Hurricanes, the last away game on this road trip. Game time is 7:00 PM on Nesn, with coverage starting at 6:30.

Bruins @ Devils

Tonight the Boston Bruins take on the New Jersey Devils. The Devils lead 2-0 in the season series. Both teams are in the playoff race, and are hoping for a win to get ahead. Tonight is the 6th game in a 7 game road trip for the Bruins. Boston's line of Patrice Bergeron, Mark Recchi, and Marco Sturm have been hot and have combined for 13 points in the last 3 games.

For Boston, Savard is out, Miroslav Satan (groin) is questionable, and Andrew Fernence (groin) is doubtful. The puck drops at 7:00 pm. Coverage starts on NESN at 6:30.

Catching up on Red Sox News

It was a slow news week in Red Sox Spring Training for the most part and the Bruins appear to have been very busy during that time. Luckily though, after a week there is enough Red Sox news to fill a blog entry.

First up, we had the first televised NESN game this past Saturday (well we had one on Thursday too, but it was the Met's feed). Unfortunately, NESN had "technical difficulties" into the 7th inning leaving us with an bad audio feed and two commentators who are more suited to TV work than radio work. By all accounts, it was a good game though, with Clay pitching well and a spectacular triple play to end the whole thing.

I know I was not the only one who was looking forward to watching Josh Beckett pitch on Sunday against the Twins and hopes were high that NESN would have no technical difficulties for the game. NESN figured out their problems but Josh got the flu that has been going around the clubhouse and was scratched from his start. Gordon Edes says in his blog over at ESPN that Josh had consumed several hard boiled eggs that morning before becoming ill. I would hate to have eaten many hard boiled eggs and then gotten the flu. Nevertheless, the Red Sox won the game putting them one game away from winning the coveted Mayor's Cup.

In other Josh Beckett news this week we have heard more reports that he and the Red Sox are nearing a deal and hope to have it in place by Opening Day. As much as I am hoping for that, I can only think back to how often we heard a deal was almost in place for JayBay last year and we all know how that worked out. So until I see Josh on my TV screen assuring me that he will be playing for the Red Sox beyond this year, I'm remaining skeptical.

This week the Red Sox send a number of players off to the minor leagues, including Casey Kelly, Jose Iglesias, and Lars Anderson. It will be exciting to hear how they all do this year and I look forward to seeing them next year at Spring Training. Pete Abraham has a nice article about it here.

Mike Lowell is anticipated to play 1st base today against Baltimore. The whole Mike Lowell situation is so awkward. I wish it would just resolve itself but there is no logical way that could happen. Frankly, I would rather see Mike go to another team where he can get regular playing time and end his career in dignity rather than go through this farce. However, with Ortiz batting the way he has been in Spring Training maybe the Red Sox should keep Lowell around as DH insurance.

Finally, please keep Red Sox prospect Ryan Westmoreland in your thoughts and prayers tomorrow as he undergoes brain surgery for a “cavernous malformation."

Boston Bruins @ Montreal Canadiens

Tonight marks the next chapter for these bitter rivals with the final game of the season between these 2 teams in the regular season. The B's and the Habs have met 5 times so far and Boston has won only 1 of those games. Hoping to move ahead in the standings, expect both teams to play even harder then they normally would. Patrice Beregeron has been hot ever since taking over for Marc Savard in the first line. With Savard, Andrew Ferrence will not being playing tonight. Miroslav Satan did not play on Thursday and will be a game-time decision. Michael Cammalleri (knee) and Marc-Andre Bergeron (knee) remain out for the Habs. Look for Halack to start in goal for the Habs. I say this is a game to watch as these arch-rivals go head-to-head trying to climb in the standings. Both have a winning streak going. Who do you think will pull out this ever so important win?

Gametime: 7:00 P.M. Coverage starts at 6:30 on NESN

Bruins @ Flyers Preview

This will be the fourth and final meeting between the 2 teams, but the first since the Winter Classic on January 1. That's almost 2 months. 2 months since that magical day at Fenway. 2 months for the Flyers to come up with some sort of plan to beat the Bruins, this time on the Flyers home turf. With Marc Savard out for who knows how long, Patrice Bergeron needs to step up as the #1 center. Jeff Penner has been called up in Chara's absence due to a lower back injury, while Dennis Wideman and Mark Stuart need to step up as top defenseman. Tonight the bruins will also be without Andrew Ferrence. All-in-all the B's will have it tough tonight without their 2 top players. Also add in the fact the the Flyers will be playing for the win. We'll just have to wait and see if the Bruins can break their 2-game losing streak against Phillie. The puck drops at 7:00 PM on NESN.

Bruins @ Toronto Preview

Tonight the Bruins will be squaring off with the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre. This game is the 5th out of 6 meeting between the 2 teams, and the 4 previous 4 games were won by the host team. The Bruins have won 6 out of their last 8 games moving them into the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference. Who's hot for this game is Toronto's Tomas Kaberle, who is the only defenseman in the NHL to currently lead his team in scoring this season (46 points). No Leaf defender has ever finished the season leading the club in scoring. Marc Savard will be sidelined indefinitely with a concussion. Andrew Ference(groin) is in Boston. The Maple Leafs will be without forward Fredrik Sjostrom (shoulder) while center Mikhail Grabovski (broken wrist) could make his return. Defensemen Mike Van Ryn (knee) and Mike Komisarek (shoulder) are out for the year. Tonight will be an interesting game, to say the least, between these two Northeast Division Rivals. The puck drops at 7:00 PM, with covereage on NESN beginning at 6:30. Which team do you think will be coming out on top?

Bruins @ Penguins Preview

Today, in their second game of this very long road trip, Zdeno Chara and the Boston Bruins will be bringing it against Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins at Mellon Arena. The season series between the teams is tied thus far, this being 3 out of 4 between each other. Tim Thomas will be getting the start in goal again for the 3rd straight game. Tuuka Rask (knee) and Andrew Ference (groin) are listed as day-to-day and will miss todays game for the Bruins. Both teams are coming off winning streaks, which will end for one team tonight. Let's hope its not the Bruins streak ending. The puck drops at 3:00. Coverage start a 2:30 on NESN. Who do u think will pull out the win today: the Bruins, who have done well on the road, or the Penguins, who are the defending Stanley Cup Champions?

Where did Cinco Ocho go?

I was catching up on some shows I had DVRed while I was away last weekend and came across NESN's Spring Training Live from last Sunday. I had heard that there was a good Josh Beckett interview in it so I watched it to find that interview. I was pleasantly surprised to find a Jonathan Papelbon interview during that episode as well but upon watching it I was struck by one thing. Who was that guy? That wasn't the Papelbon we all know and love. There was no crazy talk about one of his potential new teammates being like Eric Gagne. There was no Papelbon-isms like naming is soon to be born son Gunner just because it sounds cool. Heck, I'm not sure he even cracked a smile in this interview. I'm not sure if Pap is feeling humbled because of the ending to last season or he was just having an off day but I sure hope we see his alter ego Cinco Ocho soon.

Bruins Defeat Islanders 3/6/10

The Boston Bruins defeated the New York Islanders in regulation with a score of 3-2. Bruins scorers were Lucic (6), David Krejci (12), and Marc Savard(10). Rangers scorers were Josh Bailey (14) and Matt Moulson (23). Tim Thomas made 37 total saves. With this win, the Bruins move on to 2 wins in a row. They hope to continue this streak with game tomorrow at Mellon Arena against the Pittsburgh Penguins at 3:00 PM. Coverage on NESN starts at 2:30.