Final, Bruins 6-3: That’s it, and that’s all. The Bruins pulled away late, and they’re now 5-1-1 in their last seven games.
Third period, 16:35, Bruins 6-3: The Bruins killed off the Gregory Campbell penalty, and the game is back to even strength.
Third period, 14:35, Bruins 6-3: There’s another New York power play coming here.
Gregory Campbell was just called for hooking, and the B’s are down a man.
Third period, 13:00, Bruins 6-3: Carl Soderberg just went knifing through the New York zone and generated a near scoring chance.
That chance was broken up, but Soderberg has had a really nice night while centering the Bruins’ third line.
Third period, 8:12, Bruins 6-3: Zdeno Chara has his 500th career point, and this game is just about over.
Chara just scored from the point as he just threw a shot at the net from the blue line that Kevin Poulin just completely screwed up. Poulin watched the bouncing softie go by, and now he’s going to watch the rest of the game from the bench.
He was pulled and Evgeni Nabokov is in.
Third period, 6:00, Bruins 5-3: The Bruins aren’t showing any signs of letting up.
David Krejci just stepped around a defender in the neutral zone for an odd-man rush. He tried to hit Milan Lucic with a saucer pass, and Kevin Poulin was able to get something on the puck either before it got to Lucic or on the shot.
Third period, 2:17, Bruins 5-3: The Bruins killed the penalty, and just seconds later, they scored their fifth goal of the game.
Brad Marchand did a fantastic job of winning a puck battle in the New York zone, as he was able to find the puck right in front of the net. Marchand passed it to Patrice Bergeron, and Bergeron beat Kevin Poulin with a one-timer from the slot.
Third period, 0:01, Bruins 4-3: The third period is underway, and the Bruins will have to kill off the Patrice Bergeron to start the period.
End second period, Bruins 4-3: For the second straight period, the Bruins are whistled for a penalty at the 20:00 mark. Brad Marchand was called for tripping, and the Bs wilil start the third down a man.
Second period, 19:28, Bruins 4-3: Carl Soderberg just put the Bruins ahead in the final minute of the second.
He just abused the New York defense by getting around the Isles’ D-men and then lifting a shot over Kevin Poulin. That one was pure strength and finishing ability.
Second period, 18:01, 3-3: The Bruins have killed off the Dougie Hamilton penalty.
Second period, 16:01, 3-3: Now the Bruins are going to have to kill off a penalty.
Dougie Hamilton was called for hooking, and the Isles get the man-advantage.
Second period, 15:08, 3-3: The back-and-forth affair continues, as the Islanders have tied the game yet again.
Kyle Okposo had just come out of the penalty box, which worked out perfectly for New York. Michael Grabner had just stolen the puck in the Boston end and took off the other way. That’s when Okposo hopped out of the box. Grabner passed it to Okposo, and the forward took care of the rest by beating Chad Johnson for the equalizer.
Second period, 13:00, Bruins 3-2: The Bruins are going back on the power play, thanks to a shady goal. Kyle Okposo was just given a cross-checking penalty, and Boston will look to add to its lead.
Second period, 12:28, Bruins 3-2: The Bruins have wrestled back the lead.
Reilly Smith continued his impressive season when he just pushed his 17th goal of the season by Kevin Poulin. Smith was the beneficiary of a great pass from Shawn Thornton to set up the goal.
Second period, 8:20, 2-2: The Islanders have responded, and we’ve got a tie game again.
The Bruins’ fourth line as well as Johnny Boychuk and Zdeno Chara just had a miserable shift, and the puck ended up in the Boston net. Gregory Campbell turned the puck over in his own zone, which kept the play alive. Jordan Caron was going to be called for a tripping penalty, but that was negated when Michael Grabner ripped a shot from the slot to tie the game.
Second period, 4:50, Bruins 2-1: Brad Marchand is on some kind of a roll.
The Bruins forward just scored his 17th goal of the season to give the Bruins the 2-1 lead. That was a gorgeous triangle play as Reilly Smith had the puck along the sidewall, passed it to Patrice Bergeron in the high slot, and Bergeron made a great pass to Marchand who buried the goal in front.
Second period, 2:00, 1-1: The Bruins killed the penalty, but it was not easy.
The Islanders peppered Chad Johnson with three shots. One of those shots was in close on Frans Nielsen as Johnson just got his left pad out to make the save up against the post.
Second period, 0:01, 1-1: The second period is underway with Zdeno Chara in the penalty box after a roughing penalty as the first period expired.
End first period, 1-1: When the second period begins, the Bruins will be on the penalty kill.
Zdeno Chara took exception to what he thought was a high hit from Cal Clutterbuck, and the Bruins captain responded with a right jab. He gets called for the roughing penalty, so the Islanders will start the period with a full power play.
First period, 18:49, 1-1: The Bruins were not to generate much of anything on the power play. Boston struggled mightily to gain the zone, and that was as big of a reason for the lack of chances as anything else.
First period, 16:49, 1-1: The Bruins are going on the power play after a Thomas Hickey tripping penalty.
First period, 15:29, 1-1: The Bruins haven’t been able to capitalize on their chances save for one, and the Islanders have tied the game.
Kyle Okposo found Frans Nielsen with a gorgeous slap-pass. Chad Johnson made the original save on Nielsen, but the forward scored on the rebound.
First period, 14:10, Bruins 1-0: The Bruins were able to kill off the penalty, but it wasn’t easy.
The Islanders were able to generate a handful of chances, but Chad Johnson looks like he’s picking up right where he left off in his last outing.
First period, 12:10, Bruins 1-0: The Islanders get the game’s first power play, and that’s a unit that has given the Bruins fits this season.
Johnny Boychuk was the guilty party as he was called for interference.
First period, 11:30, Bruins 1-0: The Bruins continue to just dominate the play, and there’s really no signs of the Islanders fighting back at this moment.
Reilly Smith just had the Bruins’ latest chance when he wheeled and shot a backhander in front of the net, but Kevin Poulin made the pad save.
First period, 7:47, Bruins 1-0: It was just a matter of time, but the Bruins have the game’s first goal.
Loui Eriksson took a gorgeous pass from Daniel Paille, and slammed it home right in front of the net just to Kevin Poulin’s left.
First period, 7:33, 0-0: The shot advantage in favor of the Bruins is now at 10-1. They are suffocating the Islanders.
First period, 4:18, 0-0: This has been just the kind of start the Bruins wanted, and while they haven’t found the back of the net yet, they are dominating play in the opening minutes.
Milan Lucic just had arguably the best scoring chance of the night when he tried to tip a centering pass by Kevin Poulin, but the goalie made the save. Poulin has not done a very good job of controlling the rebounds, and it seems like a matter of time before Boston takes advantage of that.
First period, 0:01, 0-0: And we’re off. The game is underway.
6:55 p.m.: Claude Julien announced this morning that Ryan Spooner was feeling better after dealing with a bout of the flu. However, he will not be back in the lineup tonight.
According to pregame line rushes, Jordan Caron will be back in the Boston lineup after playing Saturday in Spooner’s place. Carl Sodeberg will center the third line with Daniel Paille on his left and Loui Eriksson on the right. Caron will slide into Paille’s fourth-line left wing spot.
6 p.m.: The New York Islanders have been one of the league’s most disappointing teams for much of this season after making the playoffs last season and putting a scare in the heavily favored Pittsburgh Penguins. Despite those struggles, though, the Isles have had the Boston Bruins’ number.
The two teams will conclude a three-game season series Monday night on Long Island where the Bruins are hoping to salvage a game out of the season set. New York has one the first two meetings between the two — on Nov. 2 and Dec. 31 — and they’ll look to make it three in a row on home ice.
The Bruins do come into the final matchup on a bit of a surge. Boston has won three of its last four and appears to be turning the corner after a bit of a lull in recent weeks. The B’s are coming off of a 6-1 drubbing of a hapless Philadelphia Flyers team on Saturday, and they’ll look to keep the streak going. The Islanders are playing pretty well at the moment, too. They’re 10-4-1 in their last 15 games.
Backup goalie Chad Johnson will get the start in net for the Bruins. He’s seen an uptick in work recently and is making his third start in the last eight games. Johnson was in goal for the B’s on Nov. 2 where he allowed three goals to the Islanders, but that was in large part due to defensive breakdowns in front of him than anything else.
In other lineup news, Ryan Spooner will be back in the lineup Monday. He missed Saturday’s game due to illness, but Claude Julien announced the third-line center will be on the ice against the Isles.
Puck drop from Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum is set for 7 p.m.
