Bruins KO Montreal the Right Way

Now THAT was a statement game Bruins fans.  For all the excitement that the brawl-filled blood bath of February 9 brought to the city, that game did not tell us anything we did not know.  Who among Bruins fans did not already know that the Bruins could beat up the Canadiens in a physical, fighting game?  Truth be told that game should have been more of a red flag to the Bruins.  Despite winning that night Tim Thomas continued to struggle against the Habs, allowing 6 goals, and the Canadiens power play connected for 4 goals on 8 opportunities.  The Bruins may have played "their game" that night but by no means did they dominate Montreal that evening.

Last night the Bruins answered every question they had when it came to Montreal.  The electricity in the building last night could only be compared to a playoff game and the Bruins were able to feed off of it right away.  Johnny Boychuk immediately put Montreal on its heels by scoring 61 seconds into the game.  The momentum continued as the Bruins scored twice more and took a 3-0 lead into the first intermission.

The first and third periods were obviously the highlights of the evening, but truthfully it was the second period that they put the game away.  They did not allow Montreal any opportunities to get back into the game.  Montreal did not have a single power play opportunity in the period and only had 5 shots on goal.  The Bruins continued to control play on the ice and maintained their advantage going into the third.    And that was the theme of the night.  The Bruins played a SMART game.  Montreal only had 1 power play through the first 2 periods when the game was still relatively in doubt.  They finished with 5 power plays on the evening, but no conversions and even gave up a shorthanded (5 on 3) goal to Gregory Campbell.

The other big issue the Bruins had going into last night, and staring at a potential playoff matchup next month, was Tim Thomas's struggles against Montreal this season.  He more than answered the bell last night, stopping all 24 shots he faced and making several big saves.  Before last night Thomas was 1-2-0 against Montreal with 13 goals allowed on 116 shots (a save percentage of only 89%).  Last night he reminded everyone that he is a Vezina candidate and alleved a lot of concerns should Montreal be back next month, since Thomas clearly is the Bruins goalie come playoff-time.

All in all it was a very satisfying evening at the Garden last night.  With 2 games in hand and a 5 point lead, the Bruins realistically locked up the division last night and most likely will end up in the third seed, though the second is still within reach.  They now must feel much more confident about a potential Montreal playoff series than they did even 24 hours ago.  Their power play has looked better the last 2 games (only 1 goal last night on 6 chances but they looked crisper and generated a number of chances).  Tim Thomas has seemingly gotten out of his slump with only 1 goal allowed in his last 2 starts.  Most importantly they showed they can line up and skate with Montreal and beat them in a hockey game, that they do not need to rely on brawling to beat them.  This Bruins season has been a rollercoaster ride to this point, with many peaks and valleys, but they are seeningly peaking at the right time as they head into what everyone hopes is an extended playoff run.

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