Bruins Beat Rangers, Secure Eastern Conference One Seed

By Jim Chandley

The B’s beat the Rangers on Saturday to seal the first spot in the Eastern Conference.  This means the Bruins will have home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs, with the possible exception of a would-be Stanley Cup Final against San Jose.

The only goal came midway through the first on Saturday. Blake Wheeler scored from Axelsson and Wideman at 9:04 in the period.

The Bruins had many quality chances, but they only scored (and only needed) the lone goal.  They won 1-0.

Perhaps the most entertaining part of the game, however, came when Bruins goalie Tim Thomas was tapped on the back of the head by notorious badboy Sean Avery.  A fracas ensued and Avery wound up in the box.  Video can be seen here.

The B’s will skate again on Tuesday in Ottawa.  They could still overtake the Sharks for the best record overall.  But both teams will likely rest key players, so that battle will largely be up to the third and fourth lines from both squads.

Bruins Forget to Lose, Take Five Point Lead in East

By Jim Chandley

The Boston Bruins hosted the New Jersey Devils in a massive game at the TD BankNorth Garden today.

Boston ultimately prevailed and took a five point lead on the Devils for first place in the East with nine games left to play (the Devils have 10 remaining).

Marc Savard and Mark Recchi set up Michael Ryder on the powerplay in the first for the first goal of the game.  This was the first and only lead change of the game.

Chuck Hobasew and Savard would score early in the second before the Devils finally got on the board with a goal by Andy Greene.  Milan Lucic added another in the the second to close the scoring for the day.

The B’s play seven of their last nine against teams who (at the moment) are not in playoff positions in the standings.  On the other side of the race, New Jersey will play six teams in their last 10 games who are currently in playoff position.

This win puts the Bruins in the driver’s seat to hold home ice throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Quick Standings Update…

By Jim Chandley

So here is your Eastern Conference race for the 1 seed…

Team	Games Played	Points
Boston	69	97
New Jersey	67	91
Washington	69	90

 

 

 

(What if I told you that was coming a year ago today?)

The Bruins still have 13 games left.  On Sunday, April 12th, we will know who gets home ice throughout…

“The Bruins Just Lost and Are in Their Last 10,” said Chicken Little

Is the sky falling on the Bruins?

If Chicken Little told you that the Bruins’ lead in the Eastern Conference has now shrunk to only 6 points, he’d be right on both counts.

The Bruins lost 2-1 to the lowely Coyotes tonight at the Garden.  They came out flat to start the game and didn’t find any energy until the 3rd period.

In the 1st, Chuck Kobasew scored for the Bruins and was answered a few minutes later by Scottie Upshall.  The goal was Upshall’s 2nd in 3 nights as a visitor in Boston.  He was traded at yesterday’s deadline from Philadelphia to Phoenix.

Steve Reinprecht scored mid-way through the 2nd for the Coyotes to make it 2-1.  That finished the scoring.  The Bruins put the pedal to the metal in the 3rd but had no goals to show for it.

New acquisitions Mark Recchi and Steve Montador seemed to mesh well in the Bruins’ system but it didn’t change the outcome as Boston dropped its 3rd straight game at home.

On Saturday, the Chicago Blackhawks will visit the Garden as the B’s attempt to snap their losing streak.