Game 72: Devils @ Bruins TEN GAMES LEFT

Tough draw tonight. Devils need to basically win every game from here on out to make the playoffs. Jacques Lemaire is making a run to get the Jack Adams renamed. He's got the Devils in serious trap mode. They're letting up very very few shots. The last 2 games they let 12 and 13 shots get to Brodeur.

Will luck change? I certainly hope so. Players to watch for: Kovalchuk, Patrick Elias, Travis Zajac, Jacob Josefson, and Brian Rolston have all played a large part in the scoring. So watch out.

Stats!

Magic number is still 9.

Habs 1 point behind, hosting Buffalo tonight. GO BUFFALO!

GO BRUINS!

Game 68 Preview: Bruins at Devils CHEESEBURGER DUEL

(unrelated, but it is American Hero Mark Stuart beating the tar out of noted man of ill repute Dan Carcillo. Click for high-res)

Where am I? Is this...home? Is this? Hockey? What?

I do believe we are back in action after what can only be termed "malaise" (per court order) set in about this little blog here. But it's time to get back on the horse. We've got some playoffs to make, though my reaction to making the playoffs will be more one of pleasant surprise than a triumphant affirmation of what I believed all along. Whatever. It's bloggy-blog time, and we've got an appointment with the man downstairs.

Luckily, Satan is on our side (and skating in practice!)

Looks like Cheeseburger Duel in nets with Thomas and Marty.

The devils are ridiculous good again this year, but our special teams is better in everything except short-handed goals for. Our last 10 is better than their last 10. Is that...hope...I hear? Nah, probably not. Whatever.

Stats!

What color are your rain boots?
GO BRUINS!

Games 24 and 25 Recaps: BRUINS 1 WILD 1 BRUINS 1 DEVILS 1 SHOOTOUT WIN AND SHOOTOUT LOSS HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Well, on the whole that was pretty alright. The Bruins won, the Bruins got 3 out of 4 points, and the wild got a point out of it and then went on to get Chuck Kobasew a hat trick the next game, against the Avalanche. Baller.

Bergeron actually figured into neither of the regulation goals by the bruins. On the score-sheet, at least. Marc Savard figured into both. Savard had two secondary assists. Both games went to shootout, and the Wild put Chuck Kobasew out as the 4th shooter after Krejci scored a beauty of a goal.

Against the devils, well....not so hot. Brodeur played well as usual, and hey! Even set a record for most minutes by an NHL goalie during the game. Roy was better, but we weren't playing Roy in the middle of the day Friday.

All in all pretty good on the whole, and the Bruins are on the hottest streak they've had all year...woof.

Oh and Steve Lepore of Puck the Media has a devils logo in his twitter avatar on top of another devils logo. (hi steve!)

GO BRUINS!

Game 11 Recap: BRUINS 1 DEVILS 2 BLERGH

Yeah, so it was a pretty tight game for most of it. The devils scored when the puck was behind thomas and clarkson (fucking Clarkson of all people) scooped it in. It's easy to score when the goalie isn't between the net and the goal, y'all.
0-1

Then Patrice Bergeron tied it up in the second. It was the highlight of the night, except for one more thing later.
1-1

In the third, Clarkson skates past Thomas and Thomas makes to lunge at him. Tim Thomas rules because crazy goalies are awesome. They're better when they don't let in soft goals, but the Bruins not being able to score more than one garbage goal all game would be nice too.

The Devils scored with 1:26 to go when Thomas makes a 5-hole stop but the puck slips out behind him. Zubrus scoops it in.
1-2.
Woof. So the Bruins get a minute and a half to try to even it up. Then with less than 30 seconds to go and the goalie pulled the Bruins pass it off a Devil's knee and it goes into the zone, past the goal line and a devil touches it. We get a whistle on the touch-up. Powerplay?

Nope, some ref or linesman completely shit the bed on the call and thought it was icing even though from all the way up in the balcony I could see it hit the guy's knee and change direction.

Puck goes back to center ice and the Bruins manage maybe one shot on goal but don't let an empty netter completely ruin the night. Good effort on both sides, and on a night where all the goals were garbage, the Bruins couldn't scoop and shovel enough. For some reason I noticed Wheeler and liked his play.

Frustrating as hell.

Hey Bruins, let's win more than one in a row, eh?

GO BRUINS!

GAME 11 PREVIEW: Bruins vs. Devils IT'S A TARP

GAME 11
Oct. 29, 2009 7pm ET
NESN/98.5
vs. New Jersey Devils (6-4-0)

The Bruins are a perfect 5-0-0 on the road this year, and the megastoryline is that Martin "Fatty" Brodeur is chasing Sawchuck's shutout record. Well, fatty ain't in net tonight unless Yann Danis turns out to be a lousy goalie. Bruins are still 4th worst PP in the league, but the Devils are 8th worst. The devils seem to edge out the Bruins in a lot of stat categories below, but The Bruins have at least more than one win at home. Yeah so 3-3 is less impressive than 5-0, but whatever.

Let's take a look at this Danis fellow, eh? He hasn't started a game yet for the Devils, but he has played recently. Last year he split time between the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (10gp 2.26gaa .924sv%) and the New York Islanders(31gp 2.86gaa .910sv%). Prior to last year, he was a full-time Hamilton Bulldogs goalie for 5 years, excepting 6 NHL games in 2005-06 (2.69gaa .908sv%). Basically he's been an AHL goalie for a while but people talked shit about Clemmenson too and look where that got them.

Links!
Hey, I used to put up links to every site in the (B)logosphere last year, then I got lazy this year so far. There are links over on the right side of the blog, sorted by last update. I suggest you check them out. I've even made it so you can see the post title. There's good stuff out there and I don't have as much time to read it all. If you're not attending the game, and there are apparently really cheap tickets available second-hand, check out the game threads on Stanley Cup of Chowder and In Lou We Trust.

Oh and if you have a valid 21+ ID and a ticket to the game there is a Sam Adams Bru-Fest where you can...buy a Sam Adams outside for $5. They usually have some other stuff, too. I don't regret checking it out the first time around.

STATS!
Careful, they're piping hot!

That's a little too much orange on the right side for my taste.
GO BRUINS!

Game 73 Recap: BRUINS 4 DEVILS 1 CLINCH THAT DIVISION

Wahoo! And the Bruins clinch the division. They're locked into a top-three spot for the playoffs, and are now 5 points ahead of the Devils (though they still have a game in hand). And the head-to-head. I've gotta say, I wouldn't mind if the Habs slipped out of 8th place. To the recap!

The Devils and Bruins are both looking pretty good for the first 15 minutes until the Devils get a too-many-men penalty about 15 minutes into the game. The Bruins are all for it, but Paul Martin is against the call. He demonstrates this by letting the puck bounce off his skate and behind Brodeur about 40 seconds into the PP to get back to 5-on-5.
GOAL!
1-0. Let's hope this isn't one of those score-first-and-then-crumple games. This is a Big Game.
The rest of the first goes by and Bruins are up 1-0. Why did the Garden get rid of that one sam adams stand and replace it with a hoegaarden and stella stand? I prefer not to get asked if I want fruit in my beer when I'm at a hockey game. Also, Stella is water. Plus they had all those "perfection" ads up right after the superbowl a year ago.

The second period starts up. A little over a minute in, Chuck Kobasew pokes a wraparound through Brodeur.
GOAL!
2-0. Chuck Kobasew is such a good player.

Refs getting worried about the Bruins playing well, so they send off Wheeler. Penalty: Killed. PK Axelsson is rocking and rolling.

Then Bobby Holik does his thing. Powerplay time! The Bruins move the puck around and around and around and Savard sees his spot. He one-times it from the bottom of the circle.
GOAL!
3-0. Up 3-nothing. Still plenty of hockey to play.

6 minutes later, Thomas loses his shutout to Andy Greene.
3-1.

About 5 minutes after that, still in the third, in between kills on Michael Ryder and Aaron Ward penalties, Lucic puts one in.
GOAL!
4-1. Solid. And about time for Lucic to get scoring.

In the third, the Bruins and Devils each kill off a penalty or two. Chara gets sent off with like 30 seconds to go because Clarkson is an agitator.


Game.

WIN!

vs. NJD: 2-1-1
Record: 46-17-10 (W 1)
Home: 25-6-6 (W 1)
L10: 4-5-1
March: 4-5-1
GO BRUINS!

Game 73 Preview: Bruins vs. New Jersey BIGGEST GAME OF THE REST OF THE SEASON

Mar 21, 2009 3:00 PM ET

TV: NESN

Radio: WBZ 1030 AM

vs. New Jersey Devils (47-21-3)

This is it. This is a big game. This is the big game. This is the biggest game of the rest of the regular season. The only thing that comes within a sneeze is vs. MTL.

Notes:

• Brodeur is the winningest goalie ever in the NHL. He's chasing a shutout record and playing some lights-out hockey. Of the 10 games he's played since coming back from injury, he's lost one.
  
• Brodeur lost to the Islanders. He let in 6 goals.
• The Devils forwards are also pretty good. Parise, Langenbrunner, Elias...they're all pretty good. Patrick Elias has twitter.
• The Bruins clinched last night. They practiced yesterday.

Previous Games:

1-1-1 vs. NJD. 2-game losing streak.

• Game 34: Bruins 2 NJD 0 Win: Lucic scores one and Krejci gets the empty netter in New Jersey.
  
• Game 49: Bruins 3 NJD 4 OT Loss: The third period started 2-0, only to have Patrice Bergeron play the part of Brilliant Beam of Light, Savard shows off his accurate shot goods, and Wideman blasts one in. The Bruins give
  
• Game 56: Bruins 0 NJD 1: The one goal was awrister from the bluelineand it looks like
  

Other Previews:

• Cameron Frye: "If the B's win today - I'll buy them their stupid burritos!"
• Stanley Cup of Chowder: "Only X points (between 3 and 5 depending on the outcome of Friday night's game between the Devils and Wild) separate the Bruins and Devils in the Eastern Conference standings so this is a HUGE game for both teams."
• In Lou We Trust: "Shanahan, who made the trip up to Boston, is questionable for today. "
• The Bear Cave: "Despite a 1-1-1 record, Tim Thomas has been extremely solid between the pipes for the Bruins. The 34-year old has stopped 68 of 73 shots in the season series, giving him a .932 save percentage."
• NESN First Shift: "Forward Zach Parise is having a Hart Trophy-caliber season, leading the Devils with 41 goals and 87 points."
• Globe Thumbnails
• bruins.nhl.com: Preview | Game Notes (pdf)

Stats:

GO BRUINS!

Game 56 Recap: BRUINS 0 DEVILS 1 THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS A GOOD LOSS

Well crap.  The Bruins have played close games against 2 of the other top teams in the league this past week, and ended up without the W in both.  Milan Lucic is the only Bruin that's scored since a week ago, and the Bruins have been shut out for the last 5 periods.  You want a recap?  fine.

The Bruins and Devils play really good hockey, and nobody is letting up a goal.

Off the faceoff, the Devils wrist one in from the point, and it bounces through Timmy's 5-hole.

0-1.

The Devils and Bruins play really good hockey, and Mike Milbury calls it boring afterwards because he is stuck in 1995.

Game.

Loss.

Sobotka almost kicked one in, and had a definite attraction to the Devil's right post.

Is this the Bruins coming back down to earth, or is it just 2 games in a row against top teams when we're down only a couple people?  I miss Ryder, Sturm, and Kobasew.  I also remember when there were like 5 guys hurt and the Bruins STILL won a bunch of games.  Heck, even San Jose has lost 3 games in a row now.

vs. NJD: 1-1-1

Record: 39-10-7 (L 3)

Away: 20-6-3 (L 1)

L10: 6-2-2

February: 3-2-1

GO BRUINS!

Game 56 Preview: Bruins @ New Jersey WIN A DIAMOND NIGHT

February 13, 2009 7:00 PM ET

TV: NESN
Radio: WBZ 1030 AM
@ New Jersey Devils ()
Notes:

• I kid you not: "Friday, Feb. 13 - Win a Diamond! Ladies 18 and older in attendance can win a diamond ring, sponsored by Fords Jewelers. Fill out the entry form upon arrival for your chance to go home from The Rock with a rock."
• The Devils are good.
• Sobotka is on a line with Wheeler and Krejci. Sobotka and Krejci are Czechs. Wheeler knows one word in Czech: "Pass."
• Brodeur is almost back.
• No Kobasew or Nokes tonight, and Ryder's still out.
• Today at 5:31 PM ET, it will be 1234567890 in Unix time.
• The Bruins will likely make a deal before the deadline.
  

Shawn Thornton's "Vlog":

Other Previews:
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Mailing it in, check on the left.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Stats:

The Devils scare me.

GO BRUINS!

Game 49 Recap: BRUINS 3 DEVILS 4 OT LOSS IN WHICH THE DEFENSE PLAYS WELL ONLY 85% OF THE TIME

The Bruins looked pretty weak last night. They couldn't get anything going in the first two periods. Shawn Thornton fought a guy, the Devils scored twice including just an awful defensive mistake to let up a shorthanded goal.

Vomit.

Let's take a look at how the Bruins scored, and then never talk about this again.

Third Period Begins.
0-2. You're hoping it all gets better.

Luckily, Patrice Bergeron is a brilliant beam of light. He hits it behind the net, and Clemmenson comes out to get it. Chuck Kobasew is like a racing truck on his way there, and wraps it around. The wraparound doesn't make it, but it does make it over the line afterwards. The replay on nhl.tv doesn't show how.

1-2. Not a shutout no more.

7 Minutes into the third. The top line is back together again. Chara to Kessel, to Lucic. Lucic carries it up and backhands it off the side of the net. Kessel passes to Savard in front. Savard shows us why he was picked for the accurate shot competition.

2-2. Tied up. Huge.

About that top line. with 7 left to go, The Bruins gain the zone. They move it around a little, and Kessel passes to savard, who perfectly one-times it back to Wideman, who tees up and nails it right into the back of the net. GOAL.

3-2. The Bruins lead near the end of the third, right when you want them to.

Then Patrick Elias tries to prove he's the better Czech. Thomas has gotta cover that backdoor.
3-3. Vomit.

We go to overtime. Overtime ends.
3-4. Your hangover this morning doesn't feel as bad as that loss.

Game.

OT Loss.

Despite my disparaging comments about Thomas on the OT goal, this loss was by no means his fault. The Devils were very good at capitalizing on the Bruins mistakes, and the Bruins weren't as good at not making them. I mean come on, a short-handed goal? What is this, the Rangers?

Record: 35-8-6 (L 1)
Home: 18-3-3 (L 1)
L10: 6-2-2
January: 7-3-2
GO BRUINS!

Game 49 Preview: Bruins vs. New Jersey THE RETURN OF THE RETURN 2: KESSELECTRIC BOOGALOO

Jan 29, 2009 7:00 PM ET

TV: NESN

Radio: WBZ 1030 AM

vs. New Jersey Devils (30-15-3)

Notes:

• Kessel's back, Jersey is good, especially recently.  6 game winning streak.
  
• I've got little time, so you can wait by the mailbox for this one.
  
• Washington had the exact same record coming into tuesday's game.
  
• Read this.  It's not related, but it's awesome.
  
• This is The Gauntlet.

Previous Games:

• Game 34: I interviewed Puck Daddy for my 5 questions with the enemy bit (I should start that up again...hmmm....)  and the Bruins won, 2-0.  Thomas made a huge save.  Here it is:
  

Sick.

Other Previews:

<----------------------

No time, check over there.

Stats:

I watched Sudden Death last night for the first time.  Makes me wish someone would make a movie like that in Boston.

GO BRUINS!

Game 34 Recap: BRUINS 2 DEVILS 0 WIN 6-IN-A-ROW IS MORE IMPORTANT THAT 19-IN-A-ROW

For the first time all season, the Bruins win a 6th game in a row.  Phil Kessel's streak is broken, but it's ok.  The win is most important.

In the first two periods, this is the only play that matters:

What a save by Thomas.

Then SOME goal scoring does happen.  Lucic happens.  Clemmenson has been a rock all night long at the rock (hehe, get it?) but he can't stop the 3rd rebound.  Lucic nails it in from the slot.

1-0.  You're glad we finally scored.  Lucic has scored in the last 8 games.  Chara and Hnidy get the assist.

Not much happens in the middle 18 minutes of the third.  The puck moves back and forth, but both goalies are on their game.

1 minute left, faceoff in the Bruins zone.  Clemmenson is pulled.  Krejci gets the EN goal.

2-0.

GAME.

WIN!

Big win, as it's the first time the Bruins have gone 6 in a row after having 4 4+ game win streaks so far.  I was really worried about this game going in.

Thanks again to Puck Daddy for answering the 5 questions.  His prediction of 3-2 didn't quite come true, but I'll keep reading him anyhow.

Longest winning streak of the year, for the Bruins.  The Bruins come home for Christmas and then head out for a three game road trip to finish out the year, playing in Carolina, Atlanta, Pittsburgh in a 4 day trip.

Record: 25-5-4 (W6)

Away: 12-4-3 (W3)

L10: 9-1-0

December: 9-1-0

Krejci Streak: 6

Lucic Streak: 8

Kessel Streak: Ended at 18

GO BRUINS!

Game 34 Preview: Bruins @ New Jersey WHO REALLY WANTS TO BE JERSEY'S TEAM, ANYWAYS?

Nov 23, 2008 7:00 PM ET

TV: VERSUS

Radio: WBZ

@ New Jersey Devils (19-9-3)

Notes:

• This is the first time the Bruins are playing a team in the top half of the league (based on points percentage) since the loss in Washington.
• The Bruins will be making their 3rd attempt at winning 6 in a row.
• I'm not feeling terribly optimistic about this game.  Thomas is going to have to be on top of his game in order for the Bs to win.
• The Bruins and Devils both have a favorable goal differential, and bothare  tearing it up while battling through injuries.  
• The Devils are 7-2-1 in the last 10, 3-1-1 in the last 5, and on a 3-game winning streak
• Blake Wheeler is a team player.  Oh, and he may have scored goal of the year.
• The Atlantic division has not been nice to the Bruins in the few games they've played: SO losses to NYR and PIT, but a 7-2 drubbing of the hapless Islanders leaves them with a 1-0-2 against the Atlantic.
• Don Koharski is reffing.
• Bergeron, Ference, Nokelainen, Sturm, Ward all on the IR.
• Thomas in net.  Bergeron is still getting headaches.
• Manny now has a better GAA (1.94) than Thomas (2.01).  Thomas's Save Percentage (.936) is still better than Manny (.932).  They're playing for their chances to shine in a contract year.  
• Kessel hasn't missed a game since he recovered from Cancer, Joe Haggarty learns.
• Before he coached the Bruins, Coach Claude was fired with 3 games to go in the 06-07 season for coaching the Devils well.

5 Questions with the enemy:

Today's victim is none other than Greg Wyshynski, the editor of Puck Daddy.  If you're only reading two hockey blogs, this is both of them.  He covers the whole NHL, but at heart is a Devils fan.  I'm very thankful that he took the time out of his day to answer these questions.  Let's read:

1) Who has impressed you so far?

We’ve been waiting years for Patrik Elias to do what he’s doing this season. The 37 points in 31 games are awfully nice on the stat sheet, but it’s the way he’s been an offensive player who takes over the game on certain shifts that’s been noteworthy. Dude went from overpaid hack to elite status faster than you can say “Jon Favreau, director of ‘Iron Man.’”

For Scott Clemmensen to be 11-3-1 at this point is stunning on several levels. The fact that he’s gotten 15 starts to Kevin Weekes’s six. The fact that he’s been the best player on the ice on more than one occasion. The fact that the Devils haven’t had to make some desperation pitch for another goalie after Marty Brodeur went down. I’m still not sold on him playing through March, but so far, so good.

The defense in front of him still is the weakest group since before the first Cup in 1995, but they have their moments. Bryce Salvador has been quite good. Johnny Oduya’s given them some good puck-handling. Colin White has stayed healthy, which is essential for a group that’s not exactly gargantuan and/or physical.

Finally, the fact that this team can roll four lines again has impressed me. I wasn’t really all that pleased with Bobby Holik coming back, what with the Rangers taint and all, but he’s given them depth at center in a big way.

2) Which controversy this year is best:  Too many black third jerseys, all-star game cheating, or the neverending saga of Mats Sundin?

The All-Star Game voting has been the most interesting, if only because the NHL has made it that way. The real-time voting begs for coverage and analysis, but it also exposed the voter fraud from the Canadiens fans. I’m still amazed at how little some fan bases (like the Flyers and Rangers) seem to care about the ASG. But not as amazed as I’ve been to see the NHL bend the truth and hide the context behind this year’s robo/text message-friendly voting to crow about setting records and other all-star starter news. It’s actually been a little pathetic to witness.

3) Which of the 14 pending unrestricted and restricted free agents that new jersey has right now will be back next year?

We have 14? Seriously? Oy. I imagine Oduya stays. Madden should stay, although I feel he’s overpaid. Brian Gionta’s a tough nut to crack. Do they really want to pay $5 million for an undersized player who isn’t nearly the sniper he should be? I’m not sure I would.

4) The game is on Versus.  What do you think of how Versus is handling the NHL compared to how ESPN handled it?

Compared to ESPN? Great, if only because they haven’t promoted poker more than hockey, even if they’ve given us another healthy dose of Engblom.

Overall? Not happy. The studio show stinks, the coverage is middling, and would it really kill Versus to have more games on the air considering what the rest of the schedule looks like?

5) Predictions for Tuesday's game?

3-2 Bruins in overtime. Devils get the charity point, but blow a lead late in the game.

Bonus question:  Is your job the best ever?

Since leering at Scarlett Johansson while she sleeps can’t really be considered a profession, yes.

What a pro.  Once again, that's Greg Wyshynski, the Puck Daddy.  If you're not already reading him regularly, you're doing it wrong.

Other Previews:

Of course, I'll have missed something.  Check to your left, as well.  (Woo, automation!)

• Stanley Cup of Chowder: "The B's have averaged 5.80 goals for in their past five games. I expect tonight's game to be a little bit of a more low scoring affair. The Devils are 7th in GAA (2.58)."
  
• Hub Hockey: "Clemmensen has only one regulation loss in his last twelve starts."
• Here Come the Bruins!: "The Devils are nothing special at home, with a record of 11-5-1. Perhaps it's got to do with averaging less than 15,000 fans per game -- less than the Lightning, Kings and Panthers."
• The Bear Cave: "Because the Devils get constant offensive contributions from each of their top two forward lines, referring to them as "one" and "two" can be quite the challenge."
• Bruins Blog: Lines
• NESN First Shift: "Manny Fernandez (11-2-1, 2.09) vs. Scott Clemmensen (11-3-1, 2.30)"
• Daily Papers writeup: Boston.com Thumbnails | Herald Scouting Report
• Bruins.nhl.com: Preview | GameDay | Game Notes (pdf)

Stats:

Phil Kessel kept his 18 game point streak alive last game.  The Bruins are going for their 6th win in a row for the third time.  If anyone can get the December Jumbotron intro for Bruins home games, that would be huge.

GO BRUINS!