Game 21: Hurricanes 3, Bruins 0

Just a couple of quick ones today, I don't want to spend too much off-day time dwelling on this stinker.

The Good

• What do you mean "good?" As far as the Bruins are concerned? Uhh.........Brad Marchand played pretty well?
• Cup-winning form Cam Ward was excellent today, making 37 stops to shutout the B's. Ward made plenty of highlight-reel saves as well, including a sparkler on Nathan Horton to keep the game scoreless in the third. When a team that occasionally struggles to score goals like the B's do runs into a hot goalie, it's a recipe for disaster. Today was a hockey disaster.
• Solid showing from Skinner Before the season started, one would've thought the star rookie in this game would have been the B's Tyler Seguin. However, 18-year-old Jeff Skinner, chosen by the 'Canes with the seventh-overall pick in this year's draft, stole the spotlight from Seguin with the game's first goal (the eventual game-winner). Skinner now has seven goals and 11 assists on the young season.

The Bad

• He started it! The B's were dominating the 'Canes in this game, hanging on by a Cam Ward-woven thread, when the Blake Wheeler went off for holding towards the end of the first period. During that PK, Daniel Paille, starting in place of scratched Jordan Caron, who was experiencing flu-like symptoms, started a 2-on-1 rush up ice shorthanded. Zdeno Chara joined the rush to make it a 3-on-1, but as Paille pulled up to make the pass, he lost the puck. Tuomo Ruutu took it the other way for a 2-on-1 of his own, eventually slipping the puck the Skinner, who buried it. Hard to place all of the blame on Paille, but that turnover started the trouble for the B's.
• PK? More like P.U.! The B's took three penalties; the 'Canes scored on all three. The B's got four power play opportunities; the B's scored on zero of them. There's your game right there.

The Rest

• I wonder if Milan Lucic is going to get billed by Jeremy Jacobs for breaking glass in the Garden. Everyone remembers his glass-shattering hit on Mike Van Ryn* two years ago, but today he knocked out (but didn't shatter) another pane of glass when he missed a check on a 'Canes player. Jacobs, in a Mr. Burns voice: "Those panes are coming out of your check, Mr. Lucic!"
  
• * Odd that Jack Edwards would get his info on Van Ryn wrong. He claimed during the broadcast that Van Ryn retired due to repeated concussions, but the most pressing physical issue was his right knee. A bit of a sad story, as Van Ryn finally got the chance to play for his hometown team (the Leafs), but his body wouldn't hold up. Good to see he's landed on his feet though.
  

Attaboy: Ward. He shut down the B's and made a ton of grade-A+ stops. Definitely looks like he's back to his Cup-winning form.

Providence shuttle: Special teams (again). Something's gotta give here; the thought was that the power play would pick up a bit when David Krejci returned. Well, he's back, and it's still a big problem.

Game 19: Lightning 3, Bruins 1

Well, this one was borderline unwatchable from a Bruin perspective. That would explain why I changed the channel to Bruce Almighty towards the end of the second period. Yes, the game was that bad that I preferred to watch Jim Carrey play God. Yikes.

The Good

• Some jump in the third Hey, at least the B's didn't completely roll over. They essentially set up camp in the Tampa end for stretches of the third period, but weren't able to get more than one puck past Mike Smith. Yes, I'm reaching for positives here, but the shift that led to Michael Ryder's goal was great combination work by Ryder, Blake Wheeler and Jordan Caron. Ryder is having a decent year so far, with 6 goals and 6 assists, good for 12 points in 19 games.
• Rask was OK Again, I'm reaching, because this isn't supposed to be "the OK," it's supposed to be "the Good." But Rask wasn't terrible; in fact, he made a decent number of sparkling stops, including a toe save on a sterling chance from Martin St. Louis. If Rask didn't make some big saves, this one likely would have been 5 or 6-1.
• PK was solid again The penalty kill has been one of the Bruins' most consistent bright spots this year, and it was solid again last night. Coming into last night, Tampa's power play had scored 22 goals on 90 chances, meaning the Lightning were connecting on nearly 25% of their power play chances. Last night, the B's shut them down; no small feat, especially when a guy with a shot like this is on the other side. The Bruins have now allowed just seven goals on 72 penalty kills.
  

The Bad

• Sloppy, sloppy, sloppy Tampa's first goal came when a defenseman had all day to fire the puck on goal from the top of the circle. The second goal came when Zdeno Chara left Steven Stamkos all alone in front of the net, and the third goal came off of sloppy play in the neutral zone and Teddy Purcell being left all alone at the goal mouth to slap in a bad bounce off of the end boards. I feel like I've criticized the Bruins' sloppy play every game for two weeks now; this is the first time it came back to bite them.
• Breakouts make me breakout The B's inability to make a play coming out of their own end nearly made me break out in hives last night; the entire first two periods were infuriating displays of futility. Blame the B's inability to make passes or credit Tampa's tenacious forecheck, but either way, it was terrible. Most offensive chances spring from either turnovers or solid breakouts, and last night the B's couldn't get either.
• Tough night for Z The captain finished the night at a -2, got caught badly out of position on Stamkos' goal and got hit up around the face with the puck. All around, a forgettable night for Z, a rare off night for him so far this year.

The Rest

• Marc Savard is getting closer and closer to a return and he feels good, but likely won't be ready for game action according to mid-December, says Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe. Shinzawa also notes that Wheeler is drawing far more interest on the trade market than Ryder, even though moving Ryder would clear more cap space. No one seems to know for sure, but the basic notion is that the B's must move $4.9 million in money against the cap to activate both Savard and Marco Sturm.
  
• The hope here is that Sturm is somehow traded, my thought process being that I don't think Sturm, especially coming off of two knee surgeries, is that much of an upgrade, if any, over Ryder. I'd rather see Wheeler stay and ship out Hunwick, then bring up someone like Matt Bartkowski to take Hunwick's place (Admittedly, I haven't crunched these numbers yet, so I'm not sure if they'd work with the cap). So in my scenario, Sturm gets activated from IR then shipped off to a team he approves of (he has a NTC), and Hunwick gets sent somewhere for a second or third round pick. Unlikely, but we'll see. I feel like the B's, especially Cam Neely, are too high on Wheeler to just dump him on someone to clear salary.
  
• The aforementioned musings are just rambling thoughts from my brain, but facts are facts: the Bruins MUST make a move in the next few weeks in order to make space for Savard, who appears to be back on the fast track to returning. Who is moved remains to be seen, but someone's got to go.
• Oh and, uh, that Steven Stamkos fella is good at hockey. Very good.
  

Game 18: Kings 4, Bruins 3 (SO)

I missed a lot of this game due to work, but here are some "Quick Hits:"

• Overall, a "questionable" shootout for the B's. I question both the shootout order and the shooters' choices. Claude Julien sent out, in order, Patrice Bergeron, Tyler Seguin, Milan Lucic, Michael Ryder, Nathan Horton and David Krejci. Why he put Ryder and Lucic before both his best goal scorer and arguably his most-skilled player is beyond me. I have no issues with Bergeron or Seguin, but would have preferred to see Bergeron-Seguin-Krejci-Horton.
• The attempts by the Bruin shooters were feeble at best. No, I probably couldn't have done any better (well I probably could have done better than Dustin Brown), but I'm not getting paid millions to play. The only shooter who looked like he knew what he wanted to do was the rookie Seguin. Shootouts have been tough for the B's for years now, and that doesn't appear to be changing anytime soon.
• Good character shown by the B's to come back and tie the game after falling behind 3-0, but what were they doing falling behind by three in the first place? Sloppy neutral zone play led to the first LA goal and a horrible play by Mark Recchi led to the third Kings' goal. Recchi turned the puck over at his attacking blue line, then made zero effort to backcheck. Not surprisingly, the Kings had a wide-open 3-on-2 rush and scored a beautiful goal. Rough play there from Recchi. Fortunately for the veteran, he made up for it in the third when he had a great shift after losing his helmet. Probably Recchi's best single shift since his tête-à-tête fracas with Chris Pronger in last year's playoffs.
• Great shift from the fourth-line on Gregory Campbell's goal. Not surprising, considering that bunch has arguably been the B's most consistent line so far this season.
• Strange stat line of the day: the Bruins are 2-3-2 so far this season on Saturdays. Weird. They're 3-1 on Thursdays and undefeated on Sundays (1-0), Mondays (1-0) and Wednesdays (3-0). One can only assume the younger B's are doing too much partying on Friday nights. Shame on them!
  

Game 17: Bruins 4, Panthers 0

The Good

• Lucic is back Milan Lucic was a shell of himself last season, and with good reason; high-ankle sprains, which he suffered in a game against the Wild last November, are notoriously difficult to come back from. Lucic played last year and was decently effective, but was nowhere near the presence he usually is on the ice. This year, however, Lucic appears to be fully recovered. He seems much quicker on the ice, like he gained an extra step. He currently has 17 points (meaning he's averaging a point per game) and is a +12 on the season. He's on pace to score 40+ goals, and while it remains to see if he can keep up that pace, he's been huge for the B's so far this year.
• A sigh of relief for Rask Though he was saying all of the right things after his losses, the lack of success had to be killing Tuukka Rask. After it seemed like success came so easily to him last season, this season was the complete opposite; it seemed like everything that could go wrong in Rask's starts DID go wrong. Last night Rask was in top form, as his many of his 41 saves came on top-notch scoring chances. While Tim Thomas has been the better of the two so far, having both goalies in the tandem on top of their games will make the B's nearly impossible to beat.
• Boooooooooooooth The Panthers' David Booth didn't score, but one can't say he didn't try: Booth fired a remarkable 14 shots on Rask in the game, but wasn't able to sneak one past him. Yes, 14 shots for Booth alone. Florida coach Peter DeBoer credited Rask for stymieing Booth and the rest of the Panthers, saying, according to the Boston Herald, that he thought the Panthers could have taken 100 shots and they still wouldn't have scored.
• Another goal for Gretz Yes, Shawn Thornton has become a true offensive dynamo for the B's (hyperbole completely intended there). Thornton had another strong game last night, scoring the last goal for the B's and also having one hell of a fight with Darcy Hordichuk. For those keeping score at home, Thornton now has as many goals as Ilya Kovalchuk.

The Bad

• Surprise, surprise: the fans booed Wides Very classy display from the Garden fans last night, as Big Money Wides was booed pretty much every time he had the puck. Yes, the fans booed a guy who never did or said anything wrong during his time here. Sure, he had his struggles, but he played hard, never complained about the fans mistreatment of him and even went so far as to say that he missed the fans' passion here. Way to go, Garden crowd. You made all of us look like idiots last night.
• More uneven play While the scoreboard doesn't indicate it, the B's were thoroughly outplayed last night for a large part of the game. Sure, they came out on top and that's what matters so it's hard to complain, but that type of effort will get them pasted on Saturday against a good team like the Los Angeles Kings. Not to take anything away from the Panthers, but they're a rebuilding team, one that won't always capitalize on poor play or the opposition's mistakes. I haven't really seen the B's play a complete, solid game in a couple of weeks.

The Rest

• Why boo Wides again? Why?

Attaboy: While Rask was pretty much the reason the B's won, I'll give it to Lucic. Not for his hat trick, but for wearing that fedora. That takes some guts.

Providence shuttle: Everyone who booed Wides. You think about what you've done on that long ride to Providence.

Game 16: Bruins 3, Rangers 2

Like I said, I missed the first period entirely and caught the second on the radio due to work, so I don't have nearly enough to go on for a full reaction. Here are a couple of "quick hits" instead:

• Great individual effort from Tyler Seguin on his second period goal. Seguin hasn't had much of an impact on recent games, but he also hasn't been playing poorly. He felt that he had been mired in a slump, but had the backing of his coach and his teammates. Seguin really showed his speed and his wicked wrister on the play, two of his biggest assets. Great goal by the rookie.
• The B's have been uncharacteristically sloppy in their own end for the past few games. The B's are usually one of the more defensively-responsible teams when it comes to taking care of the puck in their own zone, but have been committing numerous turnovers ever since the Montreal game last week. Last night, there were more than a few occasions where a Bruin had a chance to get the puck out of the zone but instead made an ill-advised pass or simply turned the puck over. Tim Thomas stepped up to save his mates' skins on more than one occasion last night, but it won't always end happily.
• I liked the new jerseys the Rangers wore last night. The jerseys are being worn as the team celebrates its 85th anniversary this year, and while they aren't all that different from the Rangers' usual attire, I liked the darker blue and the "NEW YORK" on the front. A nice, simple look for one of the NHL's earliest clubs.
• Wides returns tomorrow night, and I can't go to the game. Major disappointment.

Like I said, I didn't see much...I get points for writing something though, right?

Game 15: Bruins 3, Devils 0

The Good

• Scoring first It's always helps to jump out to an early lead. Last night, Michael Ryder got the B's going early with a power play goal with just under five minutes to go in the first period. The B's are just 2-5-1 when allowing the first goal, but with last night's win are now a perfect 7-0-0 when scoring the first goal.
• Thomas back to form After suffering his first loss of the season on Saturday against the Senators, Tim Thomas was in top form against New Jersey, making 28 stops. Thomas kept the B's in the game at certain points, as the Devils managed to mount more than a couple solid assaults on the Bruin goal. The B's weren't exactly excellent defensively last night, but Thomas was able to bail his team out when the D let him down. Thomas told the Boston Globe that he felt as good last night as he had all season. Good sign for the B's.
  
• McQuaid steps up Good on Adam McQuaid to drop the gloves with Rod Pelley, who's a pretty tough guy. McQuaid has filled in nicely in Johnny Boychuk's absence, but he still looks to be the odd man out when Boychuk returns. He'll earn a lot of points with his teammates by dropping the gloves, and his play may make Claude Julien at least have to consider keeping him in the line-up when Boychuk's ready to go.
• Angry Mark Stuart is back There were times last year where Mark Stuart looked to be the B's most fearsome defender. He had his fair share of bone-crunching hits and showed that he was willing to fight as well. That same angry Mark Stuart was out in full force last night, as he had at least three huge body checks (two on Mattias Tedenby) and made his presence felt throughout the game. He was named the game's Third Star for his efforts, despite not registering a point.

The Bad

• Marty? Not the best game for the future Hall of Famer. Brodeur probably should have stopped Ryder's goal, and definitely usually stops Wheeler's, a long range wrister that somehow eluded Brodeur. It's hard to place the blame for Jersey's early-season struggles squarely on his shoulders, but he certainly contributed to the problems last night.
• Sloppy, sloppy, sloppy While it's hard to find fault with a 3-0 win, the B's didn't exactly set the world on fire with their play last night. The B's were especially sloppy in their own zone, at times appearing to be under siege inside their own blue line. There were two or three occasions where the Devils had possession of the puck in the B's zone for what seemed like two entire minutes. The Devils failed to capitalize on turnovers and generally careless play, but the B's won't be able to get away with it forever.
• Where'd the power go? Yes, Ryder's goal came on the power play, but other than that, the B's were inept with the man advantage again. They finished the night 1-for-5 (1-for-6 if you count the 5-on-3 as a second power play...I'm not sure if you do, or if it's just considered one long, continuous power play) with the extra man, managing just seven shots. For the most part, though, the power play never really seemed a threat to score, as both units looked out of sync. Paging David Krejci...
• Dennis & Callahan between periods? Ugh. I changed the channel right away. It's bad enough to hear those conservative blowhards in the morning, but now I have to see them during B's games? No thanks. (Yes, I know it's a one-time thing to promote their show being simulcast on NESN, but once is enough, thank you.)

The Rest

• Good on Stuart and Wheeler to step up to the plate and give $5,000 worth of tickets (each) to local military members and their families. The Bruins' website also reported that B's fans combined to donate $84,000 to the cause (I think they mean $84,000 worth of tickets, but it wasn't exactly clear). Money or tickets are small prices to pay to thank the men and women of the military for the sacrifices that they've made by serving.
• When are the changes going to come for the Devils? This was a team that many expected to contend for the Cup this year, but at this point they look more likely to contend for a first-overall pick. One can't help but think that GM Lou Lamoriello is getting less and less patient with every game. Yes, injuries have hurt this club, but I can't imagine that he's going to let this carnage go on much longer.
• The B's are back in action tomorrow night in New York City when they take on the Rangers at MSG. The Rangers beat the B's at the Garden earlier in the season by a 3-2 margin. It's not likely that the B's players have forgotten Brandon Dubinsky's slash in that game, a bit of stickwork that left Boychuk with a broken bone in his arm. Payback may be headed Dubinsky's way. (EDIT: The payback won't come from Boychuk if he plays, says The Bruins Blog's Matt Kalman.)
  

Attaboy: Stuart and Wheeler each get one for their performances both on and off the ice. The two combined for a goal, a few huge hits and two giant helpers in the form of $5,000 donations off the ice.

Providence shuttle: The entire Devils team. This bunch has been a colossal disappointment so far.

Game 13: Canadiens 3, Bruins 1

The Good

• Tuukka Rask's attitude It's got to be hard for the youngster to not have a meltdown at this point (someone hide the milk crates). After a stellar season last year, Rask is off to an 0-4-1 start. The stunning fact is this: the B's have yet to win a game that Rask starts, and also lost the only game in which Tim Thomas was relieved. But for all of his struggles, and despite the team seeming to only have "off" nights when he's in the net, Rask appears to be in a good state of mind and still seems to have a positive attitude:

“It’s hockey, what can you do?’’ said Rask, shrugging his shoulders. “You just try to do your best and save every puck. If you don’t get the bounces, you don’t, and if you do, that’s great. I don’t care if I lose every game as long as [Tim Thomas, who is 8-0-0] wins the games.’’

-from Nancy Marrapese-Burrell of the Boston Globe

• Carey's OK One of the more shocking trades in recent memory involved Montreal goaltenders, as the Habs front office showed faith in Carey Price by shipping playoff hero Jaroslav Halak to St. Louis. Price has been under constant scrutiny in Montreal, and has been booed on home ice numerous times. Despite his struggles, Price is immensely talented, and showed that talent in this game against the B's. Price made 34 saves and appeared calm and collected in net at all times. While Halak has continued to tear it up in St. Louis, Price is playing excellent hockey as well, posting a 9-5-1 record to go along with a 2.19 GAA and a .923 save percentage.
• P.K. Subban The young Habs defenseman had a coming-out party of sorts during Montreal's playoff run last year, so it was surprising to learn that his goal last night was the first regular season goal of his NHL career. Subban is an incredibly skilled defenseman who has shown that he won't hesitate to join the rush or shoot the puck. He showed his strength during a tour of the B's zone in tonight's game, twice, holding off Bruin players while shielding the puck. He's going to be a great player sooner rather than later.

The Bad

• No legs I guess a bit of a letdown in terms of energy was to be expected in this game, as the Habs were waiting in town for the B's while the B's played in Pittsburgh the night before. Combine that game with travel and it's not hard to see why the B's looked tired late. Claude Julien thought the effort was there, but the team ran out of gas. It's hard to complain about the lack of juice, as the B's showed a ton of heart and determination on Wednesday night; it's hard to come with that effort two nights in a row.
• Where's the fire? The game last night looked more like a game between a Western Conference foe, not a divisional match-up against the B's biggest traditional rival. The fireworks seem to have gone from this rivalry, despite being just two or three years removed from it being as hot as ever. Blame player turnover, as many Hab villains have now moved on (Mike Komisarek, Alex Kovalev, Mike Ribeiro, Francis Bouillon). However, with a player like Maxim Lapierre on the other side, the rivalry's sure to wake up sometime soon.
• Home not-so-sweet home The Boston Herald's Rich Thompson put it best: the Bruins are an excellent road team; winning at home is the problem. The B's are just 2-2-1 at the TD Garden, (a third loss came in a "home" game in Prague), while they are 6-1-0 on the road. This trend seems to be a continuation from last year, when the B's were 21-13-7 away from home but just 18-17-6 on Causeway Street (and at Fenway Park, to be precise). Maybe B's fans should start going to home games in opposing colors to try to trick the players.
  

The Rest

• Good to see the B's do something for Veterans Day with their "Send a Soldier to the Game" program. Last night's game against the Habs was part of the program, as is Monday's game against the Devils, which happens to be Military Appreciation Night. If you have tickets and can stomach giving them away, it's certainly a worthy cause and a great way to thank a veteran for his or her service.
• The train wreck that is the New Jersey Devils limps into town on Monday night. How bad are things for the Devs right now? They're 4-10-2 (tied for least points in the league with Edmonton), they're missing some of the most talented players, and this happens to their $100 Million Man with the game on the line. Ouch. Heads are going to start to roll in Jersey soon if things don't pick up.

Attaboy: Caaaaaaaaaaaaaa-rey. Continues to play well under intense pressure in Montreal. If Halak continues to be lights-out in St. Louis, the pressure will only rise, but a more mature price appears to be up to the challenge this year.

Providence shuttle: The hometown blues. What, do the B's not like their fans or something? They won in Jersey earlier this year, and there were as many B's fans there as Devils fans...

Monday Musings, 11/8/10

Boy, things sure can change quickly, huh? After Wednesday, the B's remained on fire. They were 7-2-0, Tim Thomas was 7-0-0 and the team seemed to be firing on all cylinders.


Now, on Monday, the team is 7-3-1, Tim Thomas got pulled from a game against the Caps, Tyler Seguin got benched, David Krejci looks like he'll miss more than a couple of games and some fear that there are choppy seas ahead for the S.S. Bruin.


Come on, it's just two games. And the team has still taken points in 8 of 11 games this year. Here are some thoughts on this windy Monday afternoon in Boston:

• Admittedly, the Krejci injury is worrisome. The Czech pivot was really buried by Oshie, and the fact that his head slammed off of the dasher made matters worse. Krejci looked out of it, despite skating off with some assistance. Word came down earlier that he'd be out at least a week, while GM Peter Chiarelli termed Krejci's concussion "moderate," and said that he was experiencing headaches and some amnesia, according to Matt Kalman's Bruins Blog. I have no problem with the hit by Oshie; it was a clean, hard play, one that the somewhat slight Krejci might want to avoid in the future. He's not the biggest guy as is, and initiating contact with a guy like Oshie, who is the same height but nearly 30 pounds heavier than Krejci, probably isn't the best idea.
• The biggest immediate issue is who will fill the number-one center spot in Krejci's absence. Marc Savard remains a long way off, so it appears, according to ESPNBoston's James Murphy, that Patrice Bergeron will be stepping in on the top line, playing between Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton. It also appears that Blake Wheeler is getting at least a bit of a look at center, as he was between Jordan Caron and Mark Recchi this morning. Daniel Paille will likely see his first game action since the season opener, and Brian McGrattan was waived down to Providence, a move that is, in all likelihood, a precursor to the B's calling someone up from the Baby B's. Tyler Seguin and Gregory Campbell remain in their third- and fourth-line center sports, respectively.
• Speaking of Seguin, the youngster was apparently (I say "apparently" because I missed the game) benched for much of the third period of Saturday night's loss to the St. Louis Blues. According to Kalman, Claude Julien wasn't really trying to punish the rookie, but trying to shorten his bench as the B's pushed for the tying goal. The "benching" was the first real bump in the road this year for Seguin, but he appeared to get over it pretty quickly: he scored the B's only goal in that night's shootout.
• Some are concerned that Tim Thomas' miracle run to start the season ended in a hurry on Friday night, as Thomas was pulled after the second period with the B's down 3-0. However, the fact of the matter is that Thomas pretty much kept the B's in that game; were it not for his effort, it probably would have been 5-0 after two. Claude Julien said as much after the game: he was pulled to spark the team, not because he played poorly. Thomas looked decently solid, and was beaten on a screened point shot, a wicked wrister by Mr. Faux-Hawk himself and a beautiful 3-on-1 passing play. It certainly wasn't Thomas' fault that the B's lost in D.C.
• Will Tuukka Rask ever get a win? The young Finn must be wondering that himself at this point. Rask has taken the loss in all four games in which he's appeared this year. His current record requires a strong stomach if one wants to look at it: 0-3-1. However, his other numbers are much more reassuring: his save percentage is .921, while his GAA has fallen to a more respectable 2.66. Also, according to NESN.com, he hasn't lost his confidence yet, something that is key to a goalie's success. From what I've read and seen in highlights, Rask played pretty well against a good St. Louis team on Saturday. On Friday, the one goal he allowed in relief of Tim Thomas came from a point shot off that he probably never even got a clean look at. The thought here is that Rask is simply a victim of poor circumstances so far this season; he'll pick up the pace soon.
• Check the main site later on for another "Behind Enemy Lines" piece, this time a "Washington, D.C." version. Not a bad trip, despite the B's loss.
  

Game 8: Bruins 4, Senators 0

The Good

• Tim Thomas Do I even have to write anything?
• B's Youth Movement The Bruins certainly do have a decent amount of depth in their system, as they have a couple of skilled youngsters on the team right now and a number of them waiting in the wings in Providence. The youth movement was on full display in Ottawa, as Jordan Caron and Tyler Seguin, the B's two brightest rookies, both scored in the 4-0 win. Caron showed great skill on his breakaway goal, and Seguin turned on the jets and burnt past two Sens defenders to score a power play goal on a beautiful pass from Mark Recchi. Seguin now has a goal in two-straight games. If these two freshmen continue to play like this, the future will be now for the B's, not later.
• Penalty Kill The B's were perfect on the penalty kill again, killing all three of Ottawa's power play chances. The Bruin PK ranks first in the NHL with a 93.1% success rate.
• Big Money Seids Strikes Again! Another solid game from Seidenberg, who got in a late scrap with Chris Neil and recorded an assist. Big Money Seids now has three assists in the last three games and eleven blocked shots in the last two.

The Bad

• Marchand Might Never Score The poor kid just can't seem to bury one, despite having a number of great chances. This isn't really bad, but I needed something to complain about, right? It's getting almost comical. But the thought here is that Marchand will get of the schnide soon, and will have an epic goal celebration when he does.

The Rest

• B's Rookies Celebrate Halloween Check out some video of the younger B's bringing some Halloween cheer to some local kids at Children's Hospital.
  
• Next game for the B's is a playoff rematch against the Sabres in Buffalo on Wednesday night.
  

Attaboy: Tim Thomas. Again.

Providence shuttle: Halloween parties that start at 9. I had to miss most of the third period. Good thing it was a blowout.