Boston Bruins

You know what they say: the 3-0 series lead is the most dangerous one in playoff hockey. What's that now? No one actually says that? You clearly haven't met many pre-2011-Cup Boston hockey fans, then. Or fans of the late 1930s-era Bruins, for that matter, who also watched while their team give up that same mammoth series lead. It's possible there's a bit of history to Bruins fans' current state of caution and/or paranoia. As you have no doubt seen mentioned once or twice or 17 million times now, this situation -- the Bruins being up 3-0 in a series against the New York Rangers -- hasn't happened since 1939. The current matchup hasn't gone the way many predicted it would; pundits and twitter-ers and yours truly all foresaw a tough, grinding series with a bunch of overtimes and going the full seven games. While there have been two one-goal games this far -- game 1 and last night's game 3 -- and one game decided in OT, the series has felt more and more lopsided in favor of the Bruins as it's gone on. Much the same could be said, however, of the last time the Bruins found themselves in this exact situation against the Rangers, during that aforementioned series of 1939. That one saw the Rangers take the Bruins to OT in games 1 and 2 before eventually losing, but then the B's just creamed the Rangers in game 3, winning by a score of 4-1 . The Bruins were on a roll, and series victory seemed assured at that point, based on history and logic and the laws of probability. These things rarely go quite the way you expect, however (*coughLeafscough*). If by game 3 in 1939 the Bruins seemed to have the series firmly in hand, that wasn't necessarily the case at the start of the series. The tightly played game 1 was one for the ages -- a triple overtime affair that lasted a whopping 119 minutes and 25 seconds. Playoff hockey, folks! Rookie Mel Hill ended that game for the Bruins, then played hero again in the overtime period of game 2, breaking a 2-2 deadlock and giving the Bruins a (commanding?) 2-0 series lead. Making matters worse for the Rangers, two veteran members of their squad were ruled out going into game 3. It was a desperate situation for the New York team, and "now or never" was the feeling among players, coaches, and reporters on both sides of the series:: If they [the Rangers] should lose the third game, there's every reason to believe that they wouldn't be too tough in the fourth one in New York Tuesday. Should they win tonight, however, the series might well go the limit. Win, they did not, as the Bruins handed them a defeat in regulation for the first time in the series. Milt Schmidt had two goals, and goalie Frank Brismek effectively stopped any momentum the Rangers managed to build during the game. The Bruins, it could safely be said, were dominating the series -- they needed only one more win to advance and expectation everywhere was that they would get one easily in game 4: as Victor Jones observed, "hardly any one of the new record crowd of 16,981 which witnessed their latest triumph believes that the B's can be beaten." Apparently, whatever wood fans in 1939 knocked on after that ballsy statement was actually fake wood paneling or something, because the Bruins did not in fact win the next game in New York. Nor did they win the one after that. Or the one after that. The games remained close -- the Rangers won by 2-1, 2-1 (OT) and 3-1 over the course of those three contests -- but by the end of game 6 it was clear that something unprecedented was happening. No hockey team in the history of the NHL had ever forced a game 7 after losing the first 3 games of a series, and yet the Rangers had managed to do just that. The Bruins reporters of the era were noticeably subdued about this third loss. The reporting on the game was stoic -- laconic, even. It was done with the air of finality, as if destiny had firmly landed on the side of the Rangers in this series, a series that should have ended 2 games before. Ther

On March 3, 2010, the same day the Bruins traded Derek Morris, they also traded Byron Bitz, Craig Weller, and a draft pick to the Florida for Dennis Seidenberg and some prospect named Matt Bartkowski. Three years later, on the surface, this seems like a really, really bad deal on Florida's end. Sure, draft picks can pan out to be big deals or busts, there's always a gamble there. If we're making gambling analogies though, Florida in this trade is the dude who brought $5000 to Vegas and is headed home without any of his $5000 and probably also his pants. To Florida: Craig Weller Craig Weller was a Providence Bruin for the hottest of seconds. He came over earlier in the 2009-2010 as part of the Chuck Kobasew trade, an exchange with the Minnesota Wild that also landed the Bruins Alexander Fallstrom (note: still with Providence) and the draft pick that would become Alexander Khokhlachev (note: also still with Providence.) Weller scored a few goals and played in a bunch of AHL games for three teams in 2009-2010. In the offseason after the Seidenberg trade sent him to the Chicago Wolves, he bolted for the UK, where he played with the Cardiff Devils of the EIHL for a season. From a couple of EIHL fans: @sarah_connors He played in the British league a few years ago. He was great by our standards. Which aren't very high. — Nathan Greasley (@cricketcelt) May 22, 2013 @sarah_connors played over here a couple of seasons ago and pretty much lit up the league. Though that's not too difficult over here. — Sarah (@defencechooken) May 22, 2013 So that's fun. Craig Weller: NOT a successful piece of the trade for the Florida Panthers. To Florida: Byron Bitz Byron Bitz didn't even play hockey this season at all, you guys. After parts of two pretty good seasons as a Bruins' fourth-liner (except that one time Claude put him on the first line...oh 2009-2010 season, you were a comedy of errors) including that one time he scored two goals and the Garden chanted we want Bitz (against FLORIDA! wow, Panthers, you are terrible), the Bruins dealt Bitz. Since then, he's played 41 hockey games in four seasons - including a grand total of seven for Florida. He didn't play at all in 2010-2011, then signed with Vancouver in 2011-2012, where he played 10 games in the NHL, 24 in the AHL, then dropped off the face of the earth; Bitz battled injuries his whole career. Florida: 0-for-2. To Florida: Tampa Bay's 2010 second round pick The Bruins acquired this pick as part of the deal that sent Martins Karsums and Matt Lashoff to Tampa for Mark Recchi. The Panthers used it to draft Alex Petrovic; they passed up Ryan Spooner, Justin Faulk, Devante Smith-Pelly, Tyler Toffoli...etc. Petrovic has played six games in the NHL so far, so maybe he'll pan out as a successful defenseman for Florida, but it's far more likely that some of these other players will develop into far better NHLers, so...yeah, sort of a fail again, Florida. To Boston: Dennis Seidenberg and Matt Bartkowski Is it wrong that I want Seids and Bartkowski to be a d-pair for some time just so I can laugh more at Florida? Seidenberg was a successful NHL player before he came to Boston; he broke himself in time for the 2010 playoffs, and Bruins fans didn't think much of him until the following season, when he emerged as a solid second pairing anchor. He had career numbers that season, including a goal and ten assists in the playoffs, helping the Bruins to their first Stanley Cup since 1972. Matt Bartkowski was the unknown in this trade, and it's looking more and more like that piece is panning out successfully for the Bruins. After two great seasons at THE Ohio State University in 2008-2009 and 2009-2010, Bartkowski made the jump to the AHL in 2010-2011. He's gotten a look at the NHL level in all three seasons since, but it's not until this playoffs that he really emerged. He played a forgettable 11 games in the regular season this year. His game has developed in

So - The Broad Street Hockey boys need a couple of GMs for our upcoming Xbox season. This is a very fun and active league that has 30 players (28 at the moment), a dedicated Google group, and small contingent of Bruins fans along with a German and some hosers . We advance the schedule every Wednesday and Sunday, the league is entering it's 4th season. The teams that are available are the LA Kings and NJ Devils. The Devils do not have Broduer as he retired, but they do have Jacob Markstrom. If you want some more info and are interested in playing shoot me an email, tjs2979@comcast.net Thanks, Tom So - The Broad Street Hockey boys need a couple of GMs for our upcoming Xbox season. This is a very fun and active league that has 30 players (28 at the moment), a dedicated Google group, and small contingent of Bruins fans along with a German and some hosers . We advance the schedule every Wednesday and Sunday, the league is entering it's 4th season. The teams that are available are the LA Kings and NJ Devils. The Devils do not have Broduer as he retired, but they do have Jacob Markstrom. If you want some more info and are interested in playing shoot me an email, tjs2979@comcast.net Thanks, Tom

The Rangers had the most convenient excuse in the world following the club’s 5-2 loss to the Bruins in Game 2. Not only did they play a poor defensive game with a ton of mistakes, but Henrik Lundqvist also had one of the worst games of his career. Surely Lundqvist would bounce back in Game 3 with a much better effort, perhaps a sterling showing that would steal New York a win and get them right back in the series. But Lundqvist was damn good Tuesday night in Game 3, and even that wasn’t enough. The Bruins, despite being frustrated by big save after big save, eventually did just enough and got enough good fortune to beat Lundqvist and the Rangers. Boston took Lundqvist’s best shot, and they were even a little bit better. And now, the series is over. The Rangers’ best chance to win this series was for Lundqvist to play like the best goalie in the world. For two games, he was far from that, but on Tuesday, he started to resemble a Vezina finalist again. He was there to turn away both Chris Kelly and Tyler Seguin on breakaways in the first period. He stopped Jaromir Jagr point-blank. Twice. There was a stunning glove save on Gregory Campbell in the second, perhaps only bested by another glove save on Seguin in the third. There were only two ways that the Rangers were going to win this series. The New York power play is a train wreck right now, the Rangers have a dearth in depth compared to the ultra-deep Bruins, and, quite frankly, Claude Julien is outcoaching John Tortorella right now. One of the only ways for New York to win was to have the Bruins fall back into that whole Jekyll and Hyde thing and cough up a game or four. The second, of course, would have been to have Lundqvist steal a game or two or the entire series. He tried — boy, did he try — to steal Game 3. For much of the game, it looked like he was going to do it. The Rangers got the game’s first goal in the second period, and it looked like one was going to be good enough. But one of the differences in the series through games has been the Bruins’ ability to do more of the little things than the Rangers. The B’s, especially the fourth line, started to get to the net. They started to get traffic in front of Lundqvist. As we saw in Game 2, sometimes beating a world-class goalie is as simple as getting in front of him. They tied it up with tremendous net-front traffic, and Boston won it with more traffic and a lucky bounce. “It hasn’t been our game so far,” Lundqvist said after the game. “We have to work a little harder to get the bounces. We got closer, but again I’ve got to give them some credit, too, the way they play and the way they show up in front of the net and make it pretty tough.” Arguably the best chance for the Rangers to win the series was to have Lundqvist stand on his head night after night. While he didn’t do that in Games 1 or 2, he brought his best when his team needed it most in Game 3. He was good — he was really good — and it wasn’t enough. They needed his best, they got his best, and they still lost the game. That, along with a 3-0 series deficit, is just something you just don’t come back from.

One and done? The Boston Bruins can eliminate the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday at 7:00 The Merlot Line was the difference, and Daniel Paille's speed was key in his game winning goal. He was also sporting the Army Rangers jacket postgame. "Campbell is the earth. Paille is the wind. Thornton is the fire." [ESPN] Not-Seventh-Player-Award-Worthy Paille scored the game winning goal after a faceoff win by Shawn Thornton. In playoffs, the Bruins are 6-0 when Paille scores. [BruinsDaily] The Bruins' fourth line > most teams' third. Tuukka Rask squashed the Rangers' initial surge. Johnny Boychuk is on fire. [ESPN] Starstruck Boychuk asked Jaromir Jagr to introduce him to Wayne Gretzky, who was at the game. [ProHockeyTalk] Don't count out Jagr. Praise for the Fourth Line. Keeping focus. Rookie Ds remain solid. [ProvidenceJournal] A rusty Bob Essensa took to the ice at yesterday's morning skate in place of Rask in a mishmash of borrowed equipment... [ESPN] ... if there's no picture, it didn't happen, so here's the proof. [@mike_p_johnson] It wasn't just us. Others were left questioning the officiating, as the stellar, squeaky-clean Rangers achieved 162 minutes on home ice without a single penalty call. [WBZ,CBSLocal] The Rangers vow to "try again," and acknowledge the spilled blood and lack of penalty calls (and hence the void of Bruins power plays.) [NewYorkTimes] The Bruins are left in a commanding position, despite 'swallowed whistles.' Dan Girardi continued to struggle, and Chris Kelly was almost the beneficiary. [SportingNews] But there was no equivocating in the praise for Henrik Lundqvist's performance. [BostonHerald] The Rangers appeared to be gassed, mentally and physically. Shawn Thornton 's declined challenge to Derek Dorsett, who had been after Brad Marchand, and Milan Lucic's hit on Anton Stralman shifted momentum. [WEEI] Thankfully, John Tortorella was not mic'ed up last night, and the Merlot (or "Energy") line appreciates not being numbered. [CausewayCrowd] The questions concerning the Bruins and closing out playoff series still won't entirely go away. [SportingNews]

For all of you critical of Claude Julien’s system of running four lines out every night, do you get it now? Wow. What a win for the Bruins last night at Madison Square Garden defeating the New York Rangers 2-1 behind the strong play of the Daniel Paille-Gregory Campbell-Shawn Thornton line. Winning battles, bringing toughness, fore-checking, puck possession and creating traffic in front of Henrik Lundqvist-the fourth line did it all. Seventh Player of the Year Award snub Daniel Paille scored the game-winning goal late in the third period. Paille had a goal and an assist while line mates Thornton (first multi-point playoff performance in career) and Campbell combined for three assists on the night. Daniel Paille talked after the game about his game-winning goal while wearing the B’s Army Ranger jacket which is given to the Bruin who made biggest impact during  the game. “I felt the pressure when we were on them and had a perfect view on it from the corner,” Paille said. “I thought it was going to bounce in, but it bounced the other way somehow. I ended up beating their guy to the net and scoring.” The fourth line has been one of the more consistent lines this entire series and maybe the entire playoffs. They grit and they grind showing hustle no matter what the score is. It is something they all take pride in. Head Coach Claude Julien reiterated after the game why he plays all four lines on a given night. “We utilize them because they are good, not because we have to,” Julien said. The Merlot Line combined for 37 points all season long, but not everything they do shows up in the stat sheet. They know it, Claude knows it and Bruins fans should know it. Controlling the puck deep in the Rangers zone last night was credit to that entire line. It gave the team momentum and allowed Thornton to camp out in front of Lundqvist creating the tying goal off the stick of Johnny Boychuk. On the game-winner, no one even talked about Shawn Thornton winning the face-off deep in the Rangers end allowing the B’s to keep the puck deep in the zone eventually leading to Paille’s game-winner, but Paille’s will to beat the Rangers defenseman to the net speaks volumes of the play of that line in the playoffs. Paille has scored six playoff goals in his career. The Bruins are a perfect 6-0 when that happens. It is not a coincidence when the B’s have all four lines rolling they are tough to beat. Put it this way, if the Army Ranger jacket was big enough, I would have squeezed Thornton and Campbell in there with Paille because all three deserved it on this night. The B’s will look for a clean sweep Thursday night in New York and if they want to do that, the Merlot line must bring the same energy as they did Tuesday night-and they will. The post Player of the Game: Bruins-Rangers Game 3 appeared first on Bruins Daily.

Bruins forward Jaromir Jagr took to the ice following Game 2 against the Rangers on Sunday to get some extra work in. That’s not all he was doing, however, after the team’s 5-2 win against New York. Jagr also spent time after the game hanging out with a group of children. The group of 20 kids, which are all members of the Boys and Girls Club, are also children of Boston first responders. Jagr invited the children as a thank you for their parents’ dedication and service. Additionally, AT&T will make a $50,000 donation to the Boston Boys and Girls Club in honor of Jagr’s contributions. “We are grateful to Jaromir Jagr and AT&T for the generous donation,” Josh Kraft, president and CEO of Boys and Girls Club of Boston, said. “This is a tremendous example of how people in our community take care of one another. As a result of this gift our members will be even more prepared for the future.” Pictured: Nolan McLaughlin, Mike McLaughlin, Steven Fabiano, Jaime Poole of the Charlestown Boys & Girls Club

As always, many thanks to dafoomie for getting these up every game.

Debby Wong-US Presswire Raise your hand if you thought this was how the series would go. The Boston Bruins, the same team that couldn’t string together consistent performances to save their lives just a couple weeks ago, now has a 3-0 series lead over the New York Rangers. After winning Game 3 of the NHL Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Bruins have a chance to complete the sweep Thursday night. Here are a few observations from Boston’s 2-1 Game-3 victory. Henrik Lundqvist was on his way to stealing Game 3. Then, Boston stole it back. Bruins fans had to be afraid of the worst as this game went on. New York’s Vezina-nominated goalie was looking unbeatable early on, stonewalling every opportunity Boston created. The NHL Awards ceremony could just show the first period alone when putting together Lundqvist’s highlight reel. So when the Rangers took a 1-0 lead in the second period, it was looking like it would be a night where the goalie steals the show. It would’ve been a shame, too. Boston was clearly looking like the better team. But as anyone who’s watched a Stanley Cup Playoff game can tell you, a hot goalie can always prevent the better team from winning. But then, the Bruins showed the kind of reserve and fortitude displayed against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 7. They refused to let the Swedish brick wall in New York’s net get them off their game, and before you knew it, Boston’s fourth line grinders scored twice in the third to take the win. Speaking of which. Can your team roll four lines deep in the playoffs? Boston can. Coach Claude Julien takes a lot of flack for consistently rotating all four lines during playoff games. Many teams shorten their bench as soon as the postseason starts. However, Gregory Campbell, Daniel Paille and Shawn Thornton all get significant play regardless of how deep Boston goes into the playoffs. Consider tonight an example of Julien getting it right. The Merlot Line, as they’re called, effectively shut down any Rangers forwards they played against. Then they inexplicably started Boston’s rally to win the game. Johnny Boychuk put home the game-tying goal, his fourth of the playoffs. 15 minutes later, Paille slammed the door on the Rangers by playing an awkward bounce and putting it right behind Lundqvist. Thornton assisted on both goals. The most significant part of that last stat; Thornton now has more points this postseason than Rangers center Brad Richards. I think there’s a slight salary difference between the two. Now, with their foot on the Rangers throat, can the Bruins finally close out a series without drama? Seriously, Boston, we don’t need to play the whole “let’s let them right back into it” game again. Not this time. Not only do the Bruins have a commanding 3-0 lead against New York, they’ve been the better team throughout the majority of this series. If they keep this up, there’s no reason to believe they can’t send the Rangers golfing Thursday night. But do they have the ability to do so? They had the Maple Leafs on the ropes, then all of the sudden were ten minutes away from being sent home early. It may be a different situation this time around, though. Toronto was fast, scrappy and tough. They refused to go down quietly, and definitely earned the respect of Boston in doing so. The Rangers? It’s always tough to call out any team for not showing up, but New York just hasn’t looked too invested in this series. The seem to slowly but surely be giving up on coach John Tortorella‘s playing style, and it’s showing. The worst thing Boston could do is reignite the Rangers by giving them a Game 4 victory. It took just a few days for the Bruins to be right back in this position, pushing an opponent to the edge with a chance to thrust the final dagger. Let’s see if they finally figured out how to close out a series with authority. Casey Drottar is

Well, that didn't suck. Merlot line doing work. Boychuk the scoring machine. Terrible officiating overcome. Plus, the sharks tied up their series as well. Great night. I had a fantastic day yesterday, actually. Just fantastic. I hope y'all did, as well. 1 to go... What's on tap?