Nathan Horton saves numerous jobs, sends Canadiens back to Clown College

Given the stakes (Claude Julien, possibly Peter Chiarelli and the nucleus of the team's jobs all on the line), it's hard to remember a more important victory for the down-trodden Bruins franchise than last night.

It was only the first round so we'll hold off on the duck boats (no riots like in Montreal for first round wins) but this win can go a long way in eradicating some terrible history. The 4-3 overtime win by the Bruins in Game 7 over Montreal at TD Garden was Boston's first Game 7 triumph in 17 miserable years.

It's also the first time (0 for 26 previously) that the team had rallied from being down 0-2 in a playoff series. Oh and they also were the first team to advance despite no power-play goals in seven games (0 for 21).

There's still plenty of work to be done (gotta get past this round to save Julien's head) but until the Eastern Conference semifinals start on Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia, we have to savor this one. Nothing better than sending the Canadiens home for the summer and not having to see their pathetic brand of hockey anymore.

Just like in Game 5, Horton was the overtime hero as he ripped a slap shot past Montreal goaltender Carey Price (30 saves) 5:43 into OT. Milan Lucic had the primary assist with a nice pass back while Adam McQuaid had the other assist after pinching to keep the puck in the zone.

The Bruins won four of the last five games in the series, including all three overtime contests (Game 4, 5 and 7).

Game 7 couldn't have started any better for Boston as they went up 2-0 just 5:33 into it. Johnny Boychuk (from Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron) and Mark Recchi (from Andrew Ference) did the honors as Boychuk's shot in traffic found the net and Recchi was uncovered right in front of Price before he put a wrist shot over Price's glove hand. It was the first goal of the series for both guys.

As I always say though, nothing is ever easy for the Bruins. So of course they quickly coughed up the lead as Yannick Weber (2nd of the series) cut it to 2-1 with a power-play goal at 9:49 (from Roman Hamrlik and Mike Cammaleri).

Even more painful was the tying goal as Tomas Plekanec (2nd of the series) walked in on a breakaway and beat Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas (34 saves) with a shorthanded goal at 5:50 of the second period.

Chris Kelly scored his third of the series at 9:44 of the third period and it looked like maybe it would hold up. Yeah right, a high sticking penalty by Patrice Bergeron with 2:37 left in regulation led to P.K. Subban's second goal of the series. The power-play missile didn't so much go by Thomas as through him. Plekanec and Brian Gionta assisted on the goal that took all the energy out of the Garden.

Could the Bruins collapse again? In another Game 7? Against the Canadiens? Not on this night. Horton got it done and this team can collectively breath an enormous sigh of relief.

Bring on the Flyers, it's time to get some payback for the once-in-a-lifetime collapse the Bs experienced last spring to them in the Eastern Conference semifinals (losing a 3-0 series lead and a 3-0 lead and Game 7). Can't ask for much more than this matchup.

The Bruins will always, always choose the path of most resistance

Oh man, where do I begin? First, I promise not to whine about the referees too much in last night's Game 6 between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre.

Yes, the men in stripes played a huge part in Montreal's 2-1 win but crying about that would overlook the fact that the Bs shot themselves in the foot (0 for 19 on the power play in the series) repeatedly like only they can. Plus, the Canadiens had a goal blown off after an incorrect quick whistle less than four minutes into the game.

The Canadiens scored both of their goals on 5-on-3 advantages. I'd love to bury Boston but they actually played pretty well considering all the joke calls that went against them and bad bounces.

Milan Lucic was given a game misconduct at 4:37 of the second period after stapling Montreal's Jaroslav Spacek into the boards. The hit wasn't all that bad but Spacek turned at the last second and ended up bleeding which in the Bell Centre is the equivalent to murder. There was no reason for Lucic to be kicked out but once that happened, you had to know that the Bruins would probably fall short no matter what they did last night.

After a penalty for too many men on the ice (ugh, again) and slashing on Dennis Seidenberg, Mike Cammaleri gave Montreal a 1-0 lead at 10:07 of the first period. P.K. Subban and Tomas Plekanec assisted on Cammaleri's one-timer that left Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas (25 saves) with no chance to stop it.

Seidenberg bailed himself out from his earlier penalty by tying it up with a 4-on-4 goal 48 seconds into the second period from Chris Kelly and Rich Peverley. Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (31 saves) didn't cover the post close enough and Seidenberg was able to wrap around the net and squeeze it in.

Shortly after Lucic's game-changing penalty, Patrice Bergeron got a delay of game penalty for putting the puck out of play in his own end. Once again, the Canadiens cashed in (what a concept) as Brian Gionta scored his third goal of the series from Scott Gomez and Cammaleri. Thomas stopped Camalleri's initial one-timer and Gomez's rebound but Gionta got the third rebound past him.

For my money, the most needless penalty call was late in the second period when Nathan Horton barely slashed a Montreal defender before going in on a breakaway. A weak sauce slash negated a breakaway. I could have thrown my TV's remote through the window at that point, it doesn't get much more frustrating.

Predictably the Bruins huffed and puffed in the third period but couldn't find the tying goal against Price and here we are.

Game 7 tonight at TD Garden, exactly what no Bruins fan wanted. When you have a chance to close a team out in the playoffs, you have to do it (ask the Sabres). Boston's last three postseasons have ended with losses in Game 7, including the last two at home.

If you need me, I'll be curled up in the fetal position with my Bruins footie pajamas until 7 p.m.

Nathan Horton scores in double overtime, Bruins win instant classic over Canadiens for 3-2 series lead

Not that you needed anymore proof but if you were wavering at all on what professional sport has the best playoffs, I hope for your sake you were watching Game 5 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals last night between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens at TD Garden.

The Bs won in double overtime on Nathan Horton's goal, taking an all-important 3-2 lead. Game 6 is Tuesday at the Bell Centre in Montreal.

Where to begin with a game that had it all? Ridiculous saves by goaltenders, ridiculous saves by a forward and a defenseman, clutch goals, great backchecks, etc.

I don't smoke, drink only moderately these days and am in relatively good shape and I still think this game took a few years off of my life but it was totally worth it. Holy shit, the tension was through the roof. Whichever team won this totally has control of the series and the opponent couldn't be more hated.

Let's start with the three stars of the game: Horton, Tim Thomas and Brad Marchand.

For a player that had never competed in the postseason before now (since he was stuck in NHL hell: with the Florida Panthers), it's safe to say this was the biggest goal of Horton's life. He's been a solid addition to the team and he's only going to get better. It was also nice to see the top line rewarded since they played much better last night but had nothing to show for it until then.

Last week, Mike Felger talked about how Thomas had never stole a playoff game in his career. Can we agree that last night broke the seal on that valid theory? He still gave up some juicy rebounds but when it was all over, Thomas made 44 saves and outshined Montreal goaltender Carey Price (49 saves), who was also excellent. Thomas' save on Brian Gionta in double overtime was as good as it gets. Given the stakes and the shooter, it was an off the charts stop.

Finally, you have to love Marchand if you're a Bruins fan and absolutely hate him if you don't like the Bs. He's little, he's annoying, always chirping after the whistle and getting in scrums. I'm not comparing his skill level but he has a lot of Dustin Pedroia in him in terms of cockiness and confidence. Just like Michael Ryder in Game 4 and Horton last night, Marchand's goal in Game 5 also had to be the top one of his life.

The first goal of Marchand's playoff career, it gave Boston a 1-0 lead at 4:33 of the third period from Patrice Bergeron and Tomas Kaberle. At that point, it felt like that might be the only goal needed to win it.

Props to the Canadiens though as they tied it at 13:56 as Jeff Halpern took advantage of yet another bad clear in the Bruins' defensive zone. Lars Eller and Mathieu Darche assisted on Halpern's first of the series. Thomas had no chance to save it from so close.

In a game like this, some plays stand out even if they don't result in goals. Two such cases were a sprawled out save that Ryder (yes Ryder) made when Thomas was out of position during regulation. Later in overtime, Chara's legs blocked a Montreal shot that similarly would have beaten Thomas.

The Bruins couldn't possibly have anymore momentum in this series after winning the last three games, including two at the Bell Centre and the last two in overtime. Still, that could all change if they lose on Tuesday. They have the Canadiens on the ropes and in the playoffs, you absolutely have to eliminate teams when you get the chance. Play your game on Tuesday, take the yahoos out of it and get the hell out of that joke of a city.

Still can't get over you Michael Ryder

Others have made the J.D. Drew comparison for Michael Ryder and it's perfect.

I'm not going to bite another person's style though and I think I've formulated another great analogy for Ryder: he is the ex-girlfriend that your still friends with on Facebook.

You haven't talked for years, she's not all that hot or appealing anymore and yet, you still find yourself looking at her page from time to time for no explainable reason.

Such is the existence of Michael Ryder. He possesses the best shot on the Bruins but he is the definition of a one-dimensional, lazy offensive player.

When I went to bed last night though, Ryder was the number one star in my constellation. He scored two goals, including the overtime winner as the Bs won a bonkers Game 4, 5-4 at the Bell Centre.

The series is evened up at 2 and Game 5 is tomorrow night at TD Garden.

Given the stakes-with Claude Julien's job on the line and other front-office and personnel moves sure to happen-it's not hyperbole to say last night's win for Boston was one of its most memorable and meaningful in our lifetimes.

Montreal came out flying in the first period and grabbed a 1-0 lead on Brent Sopel's seeing-eye shot from the point at 8:13 (from Mike Cammaleri and David Desharnais).

Ryder tied it up with his first goal of the playoffs, an absolute snipe over Carey Price's (30 saves) shoulder, at 2:13 of the second period.

The Canadiens erupted for two goals in 55 seconds as Cammaleri (from Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez) and Andrei Kostitsyn (from Tomas Plekanec and Travis Moen) took advantage of Bruins defensive breakdowns. As true Black and Gold fans, you couldn't help but feel like it was over.

Julien did something he never does, calling a timeout, and the last-ditch effort worked as the Bruins scored not one but two goals to tie it at 3 before the second period was over.

First, Andrew Ference pounced on a loose puck at 9:59 and also put it over Price's shoulder. Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron assisted on it. The best part was afterwards as Ference flipped off the Bell Centre Zoo. A juvenile move for sure but how can you not love that if you root for the Bruins? They care, isn't that what we always cry about with pro athletes?

Bergeron tied it at 17:04 from Marchand and Seidenberg. Marchand displayed quick hands as he handed the puck to Bergeron right on the goal line, he couldn't miss from there.

Getting those two goals was huge for Boston but Montreal quickly jumped ahead for the third time, early in the third period, thanks to a bogus hooking call on Bergeron.

P.K. Subban roofed one over Tim Thomas (34 saves) at 1:39 on the power play from James Wisniewski and Cammaleri.

One last time, the Bruins answered and it was Chris Kelly (sporting a full cage to protect his busted up face) who was the unlikely hero. He tied it up with 6:18 left in regulation. Rich Peverley and Ryder assisted on it. Kelly was right in front of the net and poked it home.

Ryder capped off a spectacular night for his third line (3 goals, 5 assists) with the biggest goal of his life. Subban going off for a change at the wrong time led to a 3-on-1 rush. Peverley missed the net as always but it worked out well as Kelly got the rebound and passed it to Ryder, who had one more snipe left in his stick.

What a game and what a win for the franchise. The road team has won every game so far, needless to say the Bruins would like to flip that since they host two out of the last three possible games. Win tomorrow night and they're in great shape. Lose and all the hard work of the last two games gets buried. So yeah, kinda important.

Still can't get over you Michael Ryder

Others have made the J.D. Drew comparison for Michael Ryder and it's perfect.

I'm not going to bite another person's style though and I think I've formulated another great analogy for Ryder: he is the ex-girlfriend that your still friends with on Facebook.

You haven't talked for years, she's not all that hot or appealing anymore and yet, you still find yourself looking at her page from time to time for no explainable reason.

Such is the existence of Michael Ryder. He possesses the best shot on the Bruins but he is the definition of a one-dimensional, lazy offensive player.

When I went to bed last night though, Ryder was the number one star in my constellation. He scored two goals, including the overtime winner as the Bs won a bonkers Game 4, 5-4 at the Bell Centre.

The series is evened up at 2 and Game 5 is tomorrow night at TD Garden.

Given the stakes-with Claude Julien's job on the line and other front-office and personnel moves sure to happen-it's not hyperbole to say last night's win for Boston was one of its most memorable and meaningful in our lifetimes.

Montreal came out flying in the first period and grabbed a 1-0 lead on Brent Sopel's seeing-eye shot from the point at 8:13 (from Mike Cammaleri and David Desharnais).

Ryder tied it up with his first goal of the playoffs, an absolute snipe over Carey Price's (30 saves) shoulder, at 2:13 of the second period.

The Canadiens erupted for two goals in 55 seconds as Cammaleri (from Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez) and Andrei Kostitsyn (from Tomas Plekanec and Travis Moen) took advantage of Bruins defensive breakdowns. As true Black and Gold fans, you couldn't help but feel like it was over.

Julien did something he never does, calling a timeout, and the last-ditch effort worked as the Bruins scored not one but two goals to tie it at 3 before the second period was over.

First, Andrew Ference pounced on a loose puck at 9:59 and also put it over Price's shoulder. Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron assisted on it. The best part was afterwards as Ference flipped off the Bell Centre Zoo. A juvenile move for sure but how can you not love that if you root for the Bruins? They care, isn't that what we always cry about with pro athletes?

Bergeron tied it at 17:04 from Marchand and Seidenberg. Marchand displayed quick hands as he handed the puck to Bergeron right on the goal line, he couldn't miss from there.

Getting those two goals was huge for Boston but Montreal quickly jumped ahead for the third time, early in the third period, thanks to a bogus hooking call on Bergeron.

P.K. Subban roofed one over Tim Thomas (34 saves) at 1:39 on the power play from James Wisniewski and Cammaleri.

One last time, the Bruins answered and it was Chris Kelly (sporting a full cage to protect his busted up face) who was the unlikely hero. He tied it up with 6:18 left in regulation. Rich Peverley and Ryder assisted on it. Kelly was right in front of the net and poked it home.

Ryder capped off a spectacular night for his third line (3 goals, 5 assists) with the biggest goal of his life. Subban going off for a change at the wrong time led to a 3-on-1 rush. Peverley missed the net as always but it worked out well as Kelly got the rebound and passed it to Ryder, who had one more snipe left in his stick.

What a game and what a win for the franchise. The road team has won every game so far, needless to say the Bruins would like to flip that since they host two out of the last three possible games. Win tomorrow night and they're in great shape. Lose and all the hard work of the last two games gets buried. So yeah, kinda important.

A couple heart attacks later, the Bruins hang on for dear life and a Game 3 win

You know you're watching a pivotal Boston Bruins playoff game when your emotions run the gamut: from worry to joy to shock and despair.

Despite some ridiculously tense moments and two soft as silk goals allowed by Tim Thomas, the Bruins held on for a 4-2 win in Game 3 last night at the Bell Centre.

The victory cut Montreal's series lead to 2-1 and ensured there will be a Game 5 on Saturday night at TD Garden. First things first, Game 4 is Thursday night back at the Bell Centre.

To the Bs' credit, they finally decided to get out to a good start. Make that a great start. David Krejci gave Boston its first lead of the series at 3:11 of the first period with a one-timer from Patrice Bergeron.

Nathan Horton doubled the lead with a banked shot off Carey Price's (21 saves) back for a 2-0 lead at 14:38 of the first period.

Andrew Ference and Benoit Pouliot squared off with four seconds left in the first period, the direct result of Pouliot's attempted cheap shot (charging) on Johnny Boychuk.

Price had a terrible gaffe to start the second period as he cleared a puck right to Rich Peverley, who put in his first career playoff goal. Mark Recchi assisted on that gift which gave Boston a commanding 3-0 lead at 2:02 of the second period.

From there, it was hang on to your hats boys as Thomas (34 saves) gave up a weak backhander (deflected by Zdeno Chara) to Andrei Kostitsyn at 7:03 of the second period.

The tempo of the game was fast from the start but it really picked up after Montreal finally got on the board. Boston retreated to their dressing room with a 3-1 lead after two periods but the Canadiens got another jolt of energy from another weak sauce goal.

Tomas Plekanec turned quickly and fired a seeing-eye shot that somehow got under Thomas' pads and in the net. Yikes, 3-2 Boston with 15:52 left in regulation.

Thomas deserves a ton of credit though. After the two terrible goals he gave up, he stood on his head for the rest of the contest as the Bs could barely get the puck out of their zone.

Chris Kelly scored an empty-netter with 26 seconds and that was it. Boston heads to Lake Placid, NY for two days to get out of "the circus" as NESN's one and only Jack Edwards called it.

Game 4 is similarly a must-win for the Bruins. The keys will be the same: Boston needs to score first and they have to get out to a solid start. They can't get bogged down by Montreal's joker fans who freak out every time a Canadien gets touched or falls on the ice like they've been shot (which is pretty much every shift).

Why do we even bother?

Before Game 2 had even started, the Boston Bruins were already cooked. Zdeno Chara spent Friday night in a hospital due to dehydration and he was a last-minute scratch for last night's pivotal game at TD Garden.

Some teams might use their Captain's absence as motivation but oh no, not our Bruins. The most fragile team in the NHL and maybe all of sports completely folded under the pressure (as always) and fell flat on their face in a depressing as hell 3-1 loss.

Montreal now leads the series 2-0 as it shifts to the Bell Centre for Game 3 tomorrow night.

All five goals that the Canadiens have scored so far in the first two games are direct results of egregious turnovers by the Bruins in their own end.

To make matters worse, Boston spotted Montreal two goals last night in the first 2:20 of the first period. After Game 1's debacle, I said Game 2 would be all about the first goal.

Well 43 seconds in and Mike Cammalleri scored from James Wisniewski. At 2:20, Montreal was on a power play when Mathieu Darche scored from Cammalleri.

You couldn't possibly script a worse beginning and just like that, the Bruins were done in the game and probably the series. They've never won a series (in 26 tries) after being down 0-2.

Carey Price is a good goaltender but the Bruins are making him look the second coming of Patrick Roy and Dominik Hasek. Price stopped 34 shots but once again, Boston failed to get bodies in front of him or capitalize on the few rebounds he allowed.

He made one spectacular save as he robbed Milan Lucic with his glove after Looch was set up right in front of the net.

On the flip side, can we agree that Tim Thomas is simply a regular season monster? Much like Claude Julien is a regular season coach? Up to this point, how can we say that either does anything but pee down their leg in the playoffs?

The Bruins finally got on the board with their first goal of the series at 7:38 of the second period as Brad Marchand fed a perfect tip in to Patrice Bergeron. Mark Recchi also assisted.

Unfortunately, all that hard work was nullified by Thomas (23 saves) who gave up a juicy rebound right to Yannick Weber. He scored at 17:21 of the second period from Lars Eller and Roman Hamrlik. That was it, you knew the Bruins had absolutely no chance to recover from that.

Honestly, they are done. Short of Julien being fired today and Tuukka Rask getting the surprise start in Game 3, I don't see how this team can overcome all their playoff shortcomings. The Canadiens are playing with more desperation and heart while the Bruins continue to add new head-scratching chapters to their pathetic legacy.

Here we go again

It only took the Boston Bruins 2:44 in the first period to remind its fans what they're in for this postseason.

Former Boston College star Brian Gionta capitalized on Tomas Kaberle's terrible blind clearing pass attempt and gave Montreal an early 1-0 lead.

The Bruins never seemed to get untracked from there as they lost 2-0 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals last night at TD Garden.

Gionta's first goal was assisted by Scott Gomez. The pair teamed up one more time with 3:18 left in the third period to seal this one. Milan Lucic was the culprit that time as he had the puck stolen off his stick in his own zone.

Gionta skated in on Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas (18 saves) and roofed it on a shot that Thomas deflected and truthfully has to stop if Boston hopes to get anywhere past the first or second round (which apparently GM Peter Chiarelli doesn't care about).

Montreal goaltender Carey Price made 31 saves for the shutout but other than the second period (when Boston outshot Montreal 18-6), he wasn't really tested that much.

Boston fell back into its bad habits of just trying to score from the point every time. Doesn't matter if it's Zdeno Chara cranking slap shots from back there, unless you have traffic in front of Price, those are probably not going in. Too bad nobody on the Black and Gold seemed to understand that.

It's hard to be positive about the Bs after last night's performance gave you a week's worth of things to keep you up at night. Needless to say, tomorrow night is a must-win. Boston simply cannot go to Montreal down 2-0. It's hard enough to play at the Bell Centre in front of all those yahoos but the Bruins need to take care of business on their home ice.

Along those same lines, the first goal of Game 2 is huge. Once Montreal scored a goal, they were able to morph into a defensive shell and were happy to let Boston basically tire themselves out and then the Canadiens capitalized on their best chance. You have to put pressure on Montreal by scoring first, then you can get physical and pummel them. Not the other way around.

Bruins hang 7-0 loss on spineless Canadiens, world is back in proper alignment

In their biggest and most important game of the regular season, the Boston Bruins played hands down their best 60 minutes.

The fact that the 7-0 whitewashing came at the hands of the hated Montreal Canadiens at the TD Garden last night made it all the more sweeter and meaningful.

Boston (41-22-10) came into the meeting with a 1-4 record against Montreal (40-28-7) this season. They were only three points ahead of those clowns from the North and the playoff matchup that looks all but guaranteed in the first round was a downright scary possibility.

Well it's funny how much one game can change everything right? The Bs were determined from the opening face-off to not let all the bullshit drag them down as they pounded the Canadiens on the scoreboard, what matters most.

Boston jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period and put up four more goals in the third period but if you think Montreal would put up any fight (literally or physically), well you must not be from around here. Those frauds couldn't be bothered to drop the gloves or do anything remotely tough even when it was clear it was not their night.

The highlights for the Bruins were numerous as the team looked as stacked, from top to bottom, as they have at any point this season. Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell both scored two goals while Zdeno Chara, Milan Lucic and David Krejci all added three assists. Tim Thomas made 24 saves for the eighth shutout of the season and 25th of his career.

Johnny Boychuk (2nd goal of the season) didn't waste much time to get the electric Garden crowd into it as he scored 1:01 into the contest. Chara and Krejci assisted while Canadiens goalie Carey Price seemed to be screened on the shot. Things didn't get much better for Price as he was mercifully yanked in the third period in favor of Alex Auld.

Campbell made it 2-0 with his 11th of the season at 13:43 (from Chara and Boychuk). He tipped Chara's shot from the point.

You knew the Black and Gold were rolling when they potted a power-play goal at 17:28 as Horton collected a rebound and scored his 21st of the season (from Krejci and Lucic).

The only life that Montreal showed in the first period was on Tomas' Plekanec's home run swing high stick on Horton that rightfully earned a double-minor.

Things slowed down in the second period but Campbell earned more love from his teammates as he took on the much bigger Paul Mara in a late fight. Honestly, I would have traded Dennis Wideman straight up for Campbell if I knew how solid Colin Campbell's little boy can be. The fact that Horton was also a part of the deal with Florida signifies what a robbery it was in Boston's favor.

Horton (from Krejci, Lucic), Adam McQuaid (3th of the season, from Chara and Lucic) and Tomas Kaberle's first goal as a Bruin (from Mark Recchi and Brad Marchand) set the stage in the third period for something truly absurd. Campbell scored a shorthanded goal when Montreal was skating 5-on-3. Haha just a completely gutless effort by the Canadiens but what do you expect? I can honestly never remember a 3-on-5 goal, it doesn't get much more embarrassing than that.

The Bruins will look to take this great momentum into tomorrow's matinee against the New York Rangers.

Could anything else have gone wrong last night for the Bruins in Montreal?

Last night was one of the very rare times this season that I've decided to forgo watching a Bruins game. I always tape them and almost always, despite knowing the final result, I view it after work on DVR.

Frankly I wasn't in the mood late last night or this morning. The Montreal Canadiens won their fourth out of five games against the Boston Bruins this season, 4-1 at the Bell Centre.

The teams meet one more time in the regular season but it's not too early to say that the Bs must avoid Montreal in the playoffs. For whatever reason, they don't matchup with them well at all and can't play their game.

With good reason, the only thing that anyone is talking about from last night's game is the possibly dirty hit by Zdeno Chara on Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty.

I was listening to the game on the radio when it happened but I saw the replay approximately a million times and have sifted through all the reaction on Twitter since then.

The bottom line is that Pacioretty got carted off the ice on a stretcher with a severe concussion and broken vertebrae in his neck. Chara threw him into the boards and Pacioretty hit the stanchion in between the benches. Was it intentional or was it bad luck? We'll never know but I will say that Chara is a monster in size but he's not dirty.

We'll have to wait and see if the NHL decides to suspend Chara.

This wasn't much of a contest as Montreal (37-23-7) was up 4-0 in the second period before Pacioretty got hurt with 16 seconds left in the frame. Chara got a five minute for interference and a game misconduct. Since the delay was so long, the referees made the wise decision to just end that period and send the teams to the dressing rooms.

Lars Eller (who?) scored a pair of goals in the first period for the Canadiens. Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask (22 saves) was beaten two more times, both on the power play, in the second period.

Brian Gionta and James Wisniewski both scored. Gionta's shot trickled over the line, one that Rask would surely love to have back. Wisniewski's was a screened blast from the point.

Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (30 saves) stopped Brad Marchand's penalty shot (after being tripped on a breakaway by Roman Hamrlik) but Milan Lucic finally beat him at 13:21 of the third period to avoid the shutout. Lucic's 29th of the season was assisted by David Krejci.

The Bruins come home to face the red-hot Buffalo Sabres tomorrow night at TD Garden. After being out of the playoff picture for most of the season, the Sabres have put themselves in the discussion with some strong play.

Old Time Hockey gives everyone pants tents

When the Boston Bruins had their fight-filled game against the Atlanta Thrashers right before Christmas, I didn't think it would be topped in terms of excitement this season. However, last week they staged a ridiculous game with the Dallas Stars which included three fights in the first four seconds. Again, I was too narrow-minded to imagine a regular season game that would be better than that.

Last night was proof that all the excitement of those first two games added to facing your most bitter rival (the Montreal Canadiens) can make for an absurdly entertaining contest that the Bruins won 8-6 at the TD Garden.

If 187 combined penalty minutes don't do it for you, how about 14 total goals? Truly, this game had it all and I'm insanely jealous of anyone that was in the building. The atmosphere was understandably electric and we can only hope that these teams meet in the playoffs.

Montreal had beaten Boston the first three times they played this season, they have two more left in the regular season.

Nathan Horton (1 goal, 4 assists) had his first career five-point game, David Krejci had three assists, Dennis Seidenberg had a goal and an assist while Milan Lucic (1 assist) and Michael Ryder each scored a pair of goals for the Bs (31-16-7), who stayed four points ahead of the Canadiens (30-20-5) with the win and on top of the Northeast Division.

For Montreal, Yanick Webber had one goal and two assists, Max Pacioretty scored twice while David Desharnais (1 goal, 1 assist), Brian Gionta (1 goal, 1 assist), Tomas Plekanec (2 assists), PK Subban (1 goal, 1 assist) and James Wisniewski (2 assists) all had multiple points.

To put a bow on it, Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas (27 saves) and Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (26 saves) even tried to have a goalie fight in the second period but it never really materialized since you know, neither knows how to fight.

This was one of those nights where I was thankful to have the night off from work since I got to watch this all unfold live and not second-hand through Twitter, AP stories and highlights then DVR when I got home.

The game couldn't have gotten off to a better start as Boston popped in two first-period goals for a 2-0 lead. Brad Marchand (his 15th of the season) scored one of the prettier goals of the season off assists from linemates Patrice Bergeron and Mark Recchi. Then Seidenberg took advantage of a poor clearance by Subban to score his fifth of the season, from Horton. Those goals were 12 seconds apart (13:16-13:28), tying their quickest mark of the season.

As I always like to say though, nothing is ever easy for the Bruins and they immediately allowed Montreal to tie it early in the second period. Gionta scored 25 seconds in from Plekanec and Wisniewski. At 8:30 Subban put in the first of four power-play goals for the Canadiens. Gionta and Plekanec assisted on the rookie defenseman's slap shot from the point.

From there, things went absolutely berserk as Adam McQuaid scored his first of the season (from Horton and Lucic) at 9:48. Weber tied it at 11:01 from Mathieu Darche. Ryder scored his first goal (his 15th of the season) after a sweet pass from rookie Zach Hamill. Blake Wheeler also assisted on Ryder's tally. Lucic put the Bruins up 5-3 at 12:31 (his 22nd of the season) from Horton and Krejci.

Five seconds later, a flurry of scraps broke out (including Thomas and Price) which ended up with the comical sight of six Bruins in the penalty box at the same time.

Desharnais scored a power-play goal at 12:48 from Subban and Weber. At 14:49, Lucic scored a short-handed goal from Krejci and Horton that was key.

Pacioretty got his first of two third-period goals at 7:06 from Wisniewski on the power play. Ryder had a goal wiped out on a bogus call when Marchand was pushed into Price but he exacted some revenge a few moments later when he scored on the power play at 10:01 from Seidenberg and Steve Kampfer.

Horton gave Boston a three-goal lead with his 14th of the season at 14:54, don't ask me how Price played the entire game, before Pacioretty got a garbage time power-play goal at 19:46 from Desharnais and Weber.

Oh and there were two more huge brawls that were way too complicated to detail.

This game took nearly three hours and I feel like it will go down as one of the most memorable Bruins games I'll ever see. Just insane from start to finish.

No doubt, there will be a letdown tomorrow night when they host the Detroit Red Wings but hopefully Thomas can carry them enough and they'll wake up in time to get two points against one of the Western Conference's best teams.

When it comes to soul-crushing losses, the Boston Bruins have the market cornered

I am thankful that I missed most of the Boston Bruins' epic loss to the Montreal Canadiens last night. I had it DVR'd but after I saw the ending, I was straight with seeing any more of the latest turd burger

Since it was the first day of the NFL playoffs, I was watching those much more important games but still managed to catch almost all of the soul-crushing moments of Boston's 3-2 overtime loss to Montreal (23-16-3) at the Bell Centre.

Patrice Bergeron had given the Bs (21-12-7) a 2-0 lead and it appeared like the Northeastern Conference showdown would end nicely for the visitors.

With 2:22 left in the third period, Scott Gomez scored on a fluky power play goal when he just threw the puck at the net and somehow Tim Thomas (39 saves) didn't see it until it was too late.

Zdeno Chara had a good chance to end it with a long shot on Montreal's empty net but it went thru the crease and just wide. I would have said what I was thinking out loud (watch the Canadiens tie this up) but you can't mess with things like that in matters of the Boston Bruins. They are cursed enough as it is.

Wouldn't you know with 48 seconds left, Brian Gionta tied it up from James Wisniewski and Max Pacioretty. It was reviewed since it appeared maybe he kicked it in but no dice, they made the right call that it wasn't intentional.

At that point, you had seen this movie before and it ended like it always does: with Pacioretty scoring 3:43 into overtime. Boston received a point but it's hard to picture a much more pathetic collapse (in the regular season) in a big spot.

After a scoreless first period, Bergeron scored his goals 8:09 apart. Blake Wheeler and Brad Marchand assisted on the first one with Mark Recchi and Chara with the helpers on the second.

Montreal goaltender Carey Price (27 saves) did enough to get the win in front of his bobo home crowd.

The road doesn't get any easier this week as the Bruins travel to Pittsburgh to face the Penguins. The good news for them is that Sidney Crosby is out with a concussion.

Just in time for the Holidays: the Bruins poop in your stocking and puke under your Christmas tree

Oh god damn it, why must the Boston Bruins torture us so much?

After sleepwalking through the start of last night's game at the Bell Centre in Montreal, that was enough to give the Canadiens a 4-3 win.

The Bruins (16-10-4) scored each goal as they frantically tried to scramble from an early 2-0 deficit but it wasn't enough as they suffered their third straight loss.

At this point, I'm with Mike Felger - the Bruins need to seriously shake this up and there's only two ways to do that: 1) make a big trade or 2) fire head coach Claude Julien. Since you know they won't do the first choice, I'll take door number two.

This team has no balls and they're on cruise control as per usual. They'll make the playoffs but then they'll fall apart as they always do in the spring. After all, they've lost three straight Game 7s.

Ok, end of rant. Losing to Montreal (19-11-2) is never fun but especially on a night like last night when a win would have vaulted the Bs to a first-place tie (and theoretically snapped them out of this latest funk).

Unfortunately nobody gave Boston the memo that it was a big game. Michael Cammalleri earned a bogus penalty shot just 1:04 into the game and deked Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas (37 saves) for the 1-0 lead.

Maxim Lapierre (from Mathieu Darche, Alexandre Picard) increased it to 2-0 Montreal with a goal at 6:24 of the first period.

Blake Wheeler benefited from a lucky goal on Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (34 saves) to give Boston some life at 15:52 from Mark Recchi and Patrice Bergeron.

With 30 seconds left in the first period, the wheels fell off as a harmless pass from Max Pacioretty banked into the Bruins' net off defenseman Andrew Ference's skate. Scott Gomez and Jaroslav Spacek assisted on the complete gift which signaled serious trouble for the Bs.

This team is stubborn though and they cut it to 3-2 in the second period on Marc Savard's first goal of the season. He tipped a shot from Ference, Tyler Seguin also assisted by firing it back to Ference at the point.

Of course, nothing is simple right now for Boston so they had to give up another back-breaking goal late in the second period. Brian Gionta tipped a shot by Pacioretty with Gomez also notching an assist.

Milan Lucic tallied a power-play goal at 15:10 in the third period, from Bergeron and Savard. Lucic tipped Bergeron's shot from the point, for his team-leading 16th of the season.

Believe it or not, Thomas actually played well and garbage like weak penalty shot calls and tough bounces just didn't go his way. He made a bunch of A+ saves that would not have gone most goaltenders' way.

If you've watched 24/7 Capitals-Penguins on HBO which premiered on HBO on Wednesday, you know what a mess the Caps are at this time. With that said, the Bruins are starting to go over the cliff too so Saturday night's game at the TD Garden is a really important one for both teams.

Time for the Bruins to step up or continue to spiral backwards in the Eastern Conference.

Canadiens fans: Eurotrash residing in North America

It figures that my first Boston Bruins-Montreal Canadiens game at the TD Garden would be a turd pie.

The Bruins (8-4-1) seemed to have tired legs from the start (due to their taxing comeback the night before against the Penguins) and the Canadiens (10-5-1) took it to them in a thorough 3-1 beating.

Since Boston was so flat, I have to say the crowd while a couple pops deep was very disappointing. The Bruins did not give us much to cheer about but is it too much to ask to start a fight with a Canadiens fan in the cheap seats?

Montreal's fans were well represented, wearing their red proudly and wildly cheering on this November tilt that ultimately means absolutely nothing.

Poor Tuukka Rask. He played well again last night, making 38 saves and standing on his head at times but it wasn't enough for his team which seems allergic to wins with him between the pipes this season.

Canadiens whipping boy Carey Price (34 saves) did his job but you just know if the team makes the playoffs, he'll choke since that's what he does.

We had barely settled into our cramped seats when Montreal defenseman P.K. Subban (great name) scored a power play goal at 5:19 of the first period from Andrei Markov and Tomas Plekanec.

Bruins captain Zdeno Chara answered with his second goal in as many nights. He was assisted by Milan Lucic and Patrice Bergeron. Z took the open late to the net, got close to Price and picked a corner with a snap shot.

After a scoreless second period, as a Bruins honk I hoped that an epic third period was in store. Not so much. Former BC midget Brian Gionta (from Michael Cammalleri and Plekanec) scored on a power play 29 seconds into the final frame. Chara took a shaky interference call near the end of the second period and it came back to haunt them.

Washed up Scott Gomez put it away at 10:30 from Andrei Kostitsyn and Roman Hamrlik.

The Bruins will look to bounce back at home tomorrow night as they host the Ottawa Senators in another Northeast Division matchup.

The Olympics are over, back to the miserable Bruins

It only took one night (or one period really) but the Boston Bruins pretty much erased all the great memories and excitement from the incredible two weeks of hockey at the Vancouver Olympics.

That's a short-sighted exagerration but you have to admit that the B's are a hell of a buzzkill. They had a four-game winning streak going into the break but you wouldn't know it as they looked like the exact same team that lost 10 in a row earlier in the season with a listless 4-1 loss last night to the visiting Canadiens.

Boston (27-23-11) got a power-play goal by Marco Sturm in the first period (from Zdeno Chara and Marc Savard) but as usual they sat back and couldn't build on that. Montreal (30-28-6) is equally average but they still exploded with four goals in the third period.

With today being the NHL trade deadline, I could wonder if the Bruins will make any significant move but since I've been following the team for most of my life, I'm certain they'll sit on their hands and let other teams go for it. That's their style and that's why they're completely irrelevant both nationally and locally.

Former Bruin Glen Metropolit tied it up just 2:40 into the third. Maxim Lapierre and Mathieu Darche also scored before Benoit Pouliot's empty-netter sent Bruins fans home unhappy once again.

Tukkaa Rask had 28 saves but he wasn't the reason they lost. None of the goals he gave up were soft, they all came on odd-man rushes or rebounds.

The B's host the Maple Leafs tomorrow night back at the TD Garden.

The Bruins decide to give that winning thing a try

After a 10-game losing streak, that matched the franchise's worst skid since 1925 (you know your great grandfather was a huge Bruins fan), the B's finally won a game, 3-0 yesterday afternoon at the Bell Centre in Montreal.

Marco Sturm scored twice for Boston (24-22-11) and Tukkaa Rask, making his third start in a row, stopped 36 shots for his third shutout of the season.

The B's jumped out to a surprising 2-0 lead in the first period as rookie defenseman Andy McQuaid scored his first NHL goal with 2:28 left, assisted by Marc Savard.

Sturm doubled the Boston advantage when he scored off a rebound (from Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara) with four seconds remaining. His 17th goal of the season was a huge shot of adreneline as the teams went into the dressing rooms.

Rask stood on his head in the second period as Montreal (28-26-6) outshot Boston 15-3.

The fact that the Bruins had choked away two straight 2-0 leads as well as finding nearly every other possible way to lose during the 10-game losing streak, meant that nothing was comfortable until Sturm's second goal went by Canadiens goalie Jaroslav Halak (24 saves). Assisted by Bergeron once again, Sturm's wrist shot squirted through Halak's pads and lifted the King Kong size monkey off Boston's backs.

They're tied for ninth in the Eastern Conference with 59 points and they can move up further tomorrow night in Buffalo. They have three more games until the Olympic break when six of their players will go to Vancouver to play for their home countries.

This is getting silly

Well the good news is that your Boston Bruins just barely avoided getting shut out for the third consecutive game. The bad news is that they still lost in a shootout last night to the Canadiens 2-1 at the TD Garden and center David Krejci has been diagnosed with swine flu. Haha, really.

Proving that Canada has their priorities straight since the Calgary Flames and their families got shots before the rest of Calgary, the Bruins' luck continues to border on ridiculous. What else can happen to this team?

Former Bruin forward Glen Metropolit scored in the first period and a one-goal lead against Boston (6-7-2) right now is the equivalent of a five-goal lead against any other team.

The Bruins took 43 shots but only Bergeron could solve the highly overrated and underperforming Carey Price. Bergeron had another possible goal whistled off late in the second period when the puck slid under Price's pads but the net came off its moorings.

With goaltender Tim Thomas (25 saves) pulled, the B's finally tied it up with 52 seconds remaining. Bergeron was right on top of Price and he was able to knock home a rebound following Zdeno Chara's blast.

That was the only magic in the Bruins' sticks though as all three shooters in the shootout: Blake Wheeler, Bergeron and Mark Recchi fittingly couldn't score.

Montreal's (8-8-0) Mike Cammalleri beat Thomas for the only goal of the shootout.

Boston will try to score more than one goal tomorrow night against Ryan Miller and the Buffalo Sabres, not an easy task since he's the NHL's hottest goalie.

Thanks for the memories Montreal

It's rare to see a playoff series that's over in two games but that much was clear in the Bruins-Canadiens first round series. Boston was a much better team and they lived up to their talent and smarts as they swept away the Habs with a 4-1 victory last night at the Bell Centre.

Who better to play a starring role in the sweep than former Montreal forward Michael Ryder? He led the Bruins with two goals and an assist last night (four goals and three assists in the series). David Krejci had a goal and assist, Phil Kessel added the other goal and Tim Thomas made 26 saves for his fourth straight playoff win.

This marked Boston's first playoff series win in 10 years, as they erased five straight losses in the first round (including three to Monreal).

It couldn't have been a better start for the Habs in game 4 as Andrei Kostitsyn scored 39 seconds into the game from Saku Koivu and Alex Kovalev.

Didn't matter one bit. This isn't the Bruins of recent ilk. They don't get rattled, even in a playoff road game against a team facing elimination.

Ryder tied it up with 2:33 left in the first period as ancient defenseman Roman Hamrlik coughed up the puck right in front of his terrible goalie, Carey Price.

Even better, the B's grabbed a 2-1 lead with 35 seconds left as Ryder and Krejci worked a perfect give-and-go. Ryder stole the puck, drove to the net which drew Price (26 saves) then dished across the crease to Krejci, who had a wide open net.

For all intents and purposes, Kessel ended it as he scored on a breakaway after he came out of the penalty box. Patrice Bergeron hit him with an indirect pass off the side wall and Kessel skated in alone.

Finally, Ryder lit the lamp one last time from Krejci and Dennis Wideman.

This is a perfect scenario for Boston as they get as much time off as possible before their next series. The New York Rangers are actually up 3-1 on the Capitals. If the Rangers can finish off Washington, it would eliminate the biggest obstacle in the Eastern Conference for the Bruins.

The Canadiens are a joke, end of story

I hate to generalize but in Canada, is there anything else to do besides hockey and other winter sports? Don't get me wrong, I have a creepy spot in my heart for the adorable Avril Lavigne and Pamela Anderson has a special part in my adolescent memories. Regardless, it's extremely gratifying to see the Boston Bruins embarrass Canada's favorite team.

The B's went into the Bell Centre last night and withstood everything the desperate Canadiens threw at them. Boston won game 3, 4-2 and look to end this series tomorrow night back at the Bell Centre.

Admittedly, Montreal came out flying in the first period, hitting every Bruin that touched the ice. They even grabbed their first lead of the first three games when Christopher Higgins took a snap shot that B's goalie Tim Thomas (23 saves) would probably like to have back.

Phil Kessel tied it up for the B's with 1:25 left in the first period when he tipped home Dennis Wideman's innocent shot.

Boston tough guy Shawn Thornton put his team up 2-1 after some fine work by his line and assists from Byron Bitz (playing for the suspended Milan Lucic) and Stephane Yelle.

After Glen Metropolit won a face-off, Habs defenseman Yannick Weber whipped another shot past Thomas that he would stop on most nights.

Michael Ryder provided the game-winner late in the second period as he (stop me if you've heard this) banged home a juicy rebound from Montreal goalie Carey Price (26 saves).

Chuck Kobasew clinched it with an empty-netter with 37 seconds left.

Expect more of the same in game 4 as the Canadiens will try anything possible to extend the series. Barring some crazy, the Bruins should wrap this up with a sweep, they're that much better and poised.

The Bruins laugh at your impotency

In a total reversal of last season's first round of the playoffs, the Boston Bruins are the much more skilled, deep team while the Montreal Canadiens are left scrambling to do anything in their power to disrupt the B's.

In game two last night at the Garden, Boston put forth a nearly flawless game en route to a 5-1 white-washing of the Canadiens.

Boston takes a 2-0 lead to Montreal tomorrow night, a virtual must-win for the Habs.

It is hilarious to watch the not-tough-at-all Canadiens skate around and try to goad the Bruins into pointless fights. The third period might as well have been skipped in game two since Boston led 5-1 after two periods and Montreal yanked its shaky young goalie Carey Price (who looks like Euro trash).

The Bruins scored three power-play goals and used 30 saves from Tim Thomas to easily skate away with the win. Marc Savard led the way with two goals and two assists.

9:59 into the contest, Savard connected on a power-play with help from Steve Montador and Phil Kessel.

Chuck Kobasew made it 2-0 a little over five minutes later with a goal off assists from Mark Recchi and Patrice Bergeron.

Montreal has one good line (its first one) and they fucked that up in game one by putting goon Georges Laraque on it with Alex Kovalev and Saku Koivu. Genius. They're forced to play a Flyers-style, chippy game but you can't make chicken salad out of chicken shit as a wise man once said.

They simply can't match the Bruins depth and variety of scoring threats and Price (21 saves) can't keep them in the game by himself.

Kovalev scored his second of the series to open the second period. That was as close as the Canadiens would get as the Bruins put home three goals in less than 15 minutes.

Shane Hnidy, in the lineup after Matt Hunwick had his spleen removed, scored a rare goal from P.J. Axelsson and Savard. On a power-play, Savard fired home a nice wrister from in close on Price. Michael Ryder and Dennis Wideman assisted. Finally, Ryder put the icing on cake as he scored another power-play strike, with two seconds left in the second period. Savard and Thomas, who started the play with a long outlet pass, were credited with the assists.

The third period was all about fights. The biggest surprise of the night was when Patrice Bergeron threw down with Josh Gorges of the Canadiens. Bergeron had never received a fighting major in the NHL and his greenness showed as he puched Gorges in the throat. Still, you had to love the fire from the normally mild-mannered center.

Milan Lucic had also had enough of Montreal's bullshit as he cross-checked Maxim Lapierre in the face, a penalty which earned him a game-misconduct.

Hopefully a good amount of Bruins fans show up in Montreal tomorrow night as Boston tries to put away this woefully overmatched team.