Patrice Bergeron paced the offense with a hat trick, which finally came in the third after his initial third goal was credited to Brad Marchand.
The Bruins have now scored 10 unanswered goals since falling behind 2-0 to Pittsburgh. They’ll look to continue the run when they host Philadelphia on Thursday.
Third Period, 16:52, Bruins 6-0: You’d think Ottawa would want to get this one over with, but Mike Fisher takes a delay of game for clearing the puck over the glass.
Third Period, 14:50, Bruins 6-0: Unlikely combatants to say the least in the third scrap of the night, as Ottawa heavyweight Matt Carkner forces the issue with Daniel Paille.
Carkner is in control early as expected, and the linesmen jump in quickly. Paille then lands a few lefts with the linesmen holding Carkner. A bit cheap, but then again, so is Carkner going after a non-fighter like Paille in the fist place. Carkner gets an extra two for roughing to give Boston a power play.
Third Period, 14:10, Bruins 6-0: Thomas is up to 30 saves now, as the Bruins hold a 37-30 edge in that category.
Third Period, 10:35, Bruins 6-0: Thomas with a poke check to break up a Chris Neil bid in front. Thomas definitely wants to add to his shutout total.
Third Period, 7:30, Bruins 6-0: Claude Julien rewarding some of his grinders with power-play time, as Cambell, Thornton and Marchand open the man-advantage, with Ference and Boychuk at the points.
Third Period, 6:58, Bruins 6-0: The Bruins finally get their first power play of the night, with Jarkko Ruutu off for roughing.
Amazing that Boston has built a 6-0 lead without a single power-play chance.
Third Period, 5:04, Bruins 6-0: Now it’s a hat trick. No doubting this one, as Bergeron officially scores his third of the night as he goes short-side from the left slot coming in off the boards.
That’s Bergeron’s first career hat trick. It’s just a wonder so many fans still had hats to throw on the ice after the false alarm in the second.
Third Period, 1:00, Bruins 5-0: The Senators have put Mike Brodeur in goal to start the third.
The announced crowd is 17,565, the 50th straight sellout for the Bruins at the Garden, including both the regular season and playoffs.
Third Period, 0:00, Bruins 5-0: The final frame is under way here at the Garden. The Bruins are 16-0-1 when leading after two period, while Ottawa is 0-12-3 when trailing after two.
The lone blemish for Boston came with their last lead going into the third on Saturday in Montreal, but this five-goal advantage should be a little safer.
Second Intermission Notes: The Bruins turned in another strong period, and have dominated the Senators so far through 40 minutes.
Boston outshot Ottawa 17-13 in the second and 27-22 overall, and it’s a balanced attack with 15 different players registering shots and no one with more than three. Seven different Bruins have points and four different players have goals, with Patrice Bergeron scoring a pair. He briefly had the hat trick before his third goal was ruled to have gone in off Sergei Gonchar and credited to Brad Marchand.
Boston still hasn’t initiated enough of the physical play as they’re being outhit 17-12, but they’ve responded well when challenged. Both Nathan Horton and Shawn Thornton answered the bell in bouts in the second, which were the first non Adam McQuaid fights for the Bruins since the Atlanta brawl game back on Dec. 23.
End Second Period, Bruins 5-0: The Bruins continue to pour it on, scoring three more goals in an entertaining second period that also featured a pair of scraps.
Boston has outscored its opponents 9-0 in the last 43:23.
Second Period, 15:26, Bruins 5-0: Tyler Seguin gets in on the scoring as he rips home a wrister from the slot off a feed from David Krejci to make it a five-goal game.
That fourth goal has been changed to Marchand as it did go in off Gonchar, so no hat trick for Bergeron, at least not yet.
Second Period, 14:07, Bruins 4-0: And Bergeron completes the hat trick with a strange one.
Marchand carried the puck down the left side and threw it out front from behind the goal line, and it hit off Bergeron in front and bounced in.
That hat trick is in jeopardy, as it appeared that the puck went in off Gonchar’s skate in front instead of Bergeron.
Second Period, 13:22, Bruins 3-0: Thomas getting a little help from the iron in this one, as Alfredsson clangs the near post from the right slot.
Second Period, 10:26, Bruins 3-0: The gloves are off again, and this one is a heavyweight affair between Thornton and Carkner.
Carkner caught him early when he switched to the left, sending Thornton to a knee. But Thornton rallied with a big right that sent Carkner’s helmet flying and it was a pretty even and spirited exchange from there until Carkner ended it with a big right.
Second Period, 9:05, Bruins 3-0: Savard then nearly scores at the other end, following a Horton shot from the slot with a rebound at the top of the crease that appeared to hit the crossbar.
Second Period, 8:35, Bruins 3-0: Daniel Alfredsson with a steal from Savard to create a break, but Thomas comes up with the save.
Second Period, 5:46, Bruins 3-0: The Bruins kill off another penalty, though ex-Bruin Sergei Gonchar did clang one off the post during that power play.
Second Period, 3:46, Bruins 3-0: The Bruins are on the PK again, with Andrew Ference getting a roughing call.
Second Period, 3:23, Bruins 3-0: The gloves come off in a quick scrap between Horton and Jesse Winchester along the boards. Winchester wanted that a lot more, but just five each for fighting.
Second Period, 2:50, Bruins 3-0: The Bruins strike again, just after the penalty expired to extend the lead to three goals.
Great work by Bergeron, who stole the puck in the corner of the Boston end, stole it again at the blue line to get it out of the zone, then broke in with Wheeler. Bergeron tried to get it across but it was blocked. he regained control and batted it in from the top of teh crease.
Second Period, 0:46, Bruins 2-0: The Bruins are back on the penalty kill, as McQuaid is sent off for interference.
Second Period, 0:12, Bruins 2-0: Wild scramble in front of the Senators net after Horton forced a turnover by Elliott, but the puck stays out despite Savard and Ryder each taking whacks at it.
Second Period, 0:00, Bruins 2-0: The second period is under way. The Bruins are 13-0-1 when leading after one, while Ottawa is 2-10-3 when trailing after one period.
Bartkowski Sent Back: Quick note between periods here, as the Bruins have just announced that Matt Bartkowski has been returned to Providence.
The rookie got in one game in his hometown of Pittsburgh on Monday, but he’ll have to wait for his next recall to make his Garden debut. With Adam McQuaid back the Bruins sent Bartkowski back to the AHL.
First Intermission Notes: The Bruins picked up where they left off in Pittsburgh, scoring twice in the first 9:47 of this one after scoring four unanswered goals in the final 3:23 on Monday.
Adam McQuaid has shown no signs of the injury that kept him out of that game. He’s a plus-1 with two hits and a blocked shot in 5:45. Nathan Horton has been less of a factor in his return, with one shot in 4:54.
The Bruins hold just a 10-9 edge in shots, but Tim Thomas has been strong, as he usually is against Ottawa. Still not much in the physical department from the Bruins though, with Ottawa holding a 9-8 edge in hits in a relatively quiet opening 20 minutes.
End First Period, Bruins 2-0: The Bruins kill off Seguin’s penalty and head into the first intermission with a two-goal lead.
First Period, 17:40, Bruins 2-0: The Senators get the first power play of the night, and the Bruins are lucky it’s just a two-minute one.
Carkner leveled Seguin with a big hit at the blue line, and Seguin came up with his stick and caught Carkner in the face.
First Period, 16:51, Bruins 2-0: The Senators put some pressure on Thomas with their top line, but the all-star netminder stands his ground. The toughest stop came on a deflection in front by Michalek.
First Period, 14:48, Bruins 2-0: Thomas smothers a point shot from Carkner. Almost 15 minutes into this one, and that was just the fifth shot for Ottawa. The Bruins have two goals on eight shots so far.
First Period, 12:56, Bruins 2-0: Thornton gives Matt Carkner a bump as he goes off for a change, and the two exchange some words. The clubs’ respective heavyweight could be setting up a date later in the game.
First Period, 9:47, Bruins 2-0: The Bruins double the lead as Blake Wheeler converts a feed from Tyler Seguin, tapping the puck in at the right post behind Elliott.
The play was reviewed to see if it was deliberately kicked in, but the goal was ruled good, giving Wheeler his 10th of the year.
First Period, 9:10, Bruins 1-0: Ottawa fourth-liner Zack Smith got away with a trip there, upending Greg Campbell with no call.
First Period, 8:05, Bruins 1-0: Good energy on that shift from Brad Marchand, who continues to fit in well playing a more expanded role with Bergeron and Recchi.
First Period, 3:33, Bruins 1-0: The Bruins strike first quickly, as Patrce Bergeron takes advantage of an Ottawa turnover to open the scoring.
Sens defenseman Chris Campoli tried to pass it out from behind his net to Mike Fisher in the slot, but the pass went off Fisher’s stick and between his legs. Bergeron pounced on the loose puck and fired a wrister into the top right corner.
First Period, 3:15, 0-0: Lots of possession time in the Boston end early for Ottawa, but not many real chances yet.
First Period, 1:05, 0-0: Nathan Horton is back out for his first shift after missing two games. He’s back at right wing alongside Marc Savard, while Michael Ryder shifts over to the left with Lucic out.
First Period, 0:00, 0-0: This one is under way, with the Bruins looking to carry over the momentum from Monday’s dramatic win in Pittsburgh as they open up a four-game homestand against Ottawa.
6:57 p.m.: The Bruins have announced their scratches, and Adam McQuaid is back in the lineup.
Matt Bartkowski will be the healthy scratch on defense, while Milan Lucic is out up front with an undisclosed injury.
The line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and Mark Recchi will start, with Zdeno Chara and Steven Kampfer on defense and Tim Thomas in goal.
6:55 p.m.: The Senators have scratched defenseman Brian Lee and will be starting their top line of Milan Michalek, Mike Fisher and Daniel Alfredsson, with Chris Phillips and Erik Karlsson on defense and Brian Elliott in goal.
The Bruins have not finalized their scratches yet.
6:45 p.m.: The Bruins and Senators have wrapped up their warm-ups, and there’s still no clear indication of whether Adam McQuaid will be able to return or not.
He looked fine skating, but alternated with Matt Bartkowski in the line drills. McQuaid’s status will be determined after talking with the training and coaching staffs about how he felt.
Here are the lines the Bruins used in the warm-up:
Horton-Savard-Ryder
Wheeler-Krejci-Seguin
Marchand-Bergeron-Recchi
Paille-Campbell-Thornton
Defense pairs were Chara-Kampfer, Seidenberg-Boychuk and Ference with McQuaid and Bartkowski alternating.
6:30 p.m.: The teams have taken the ice for warm-ups, and Tim Thomas and Brian Elliott led their respective clubs out.
That will be the goaltending matchup as expected.
Adam McQuaid and Nathan Horton are both on the ice for the warm-up.
6 p.m.: The Bruins will open a four-game homestand in about an hour against the Senators, but they’ll do it without leading scorer Milan Lucic.
Lucic suffered an undisclosed injury late in Monday night’s win in Pittsburgh and will miss this matchup. He is day-to-day, according to coach Claude Julien.
The good news is that Nathan Horton will be back after missing two games, while defenseman Adam McQuaid will be a game-time decision. McQuaid missed Monday’s game with an undisclosed injury of his own, but will take the warm-up and could play against Ottawa.
8 a.m.: The NBA is supposed to be the league where you only need to watch the final few minutes of each game for all you need to see. But don’t tell that to the Bruins, who have been on both ends of fantastic finishes in their last two games.
After blowing a 2-0 lead in the final 2:22 of regulation en route to a 3-2 overtime loss in Montreal on Saturday, the Bruins bounced back with a dramatic win of their own in Pittsburgh on Monday. Boston trailed 2-0 before exploding for four goals in the final 3:23 for a 4-2 win.
Now the Bruins hope to maintain that momentum as they return home to open a four-game home stand against Ottawa on Tuesday night.
The Senators haven’t had much late-game success themselves, or success at any time for that matter. They come in having lost five straight, having been outscored 18-7 in that span.
Ottawa is without forwards Jason Spezza (shoulder) and Alex Kovalev (knee) and goalie Pascal Leclaire (lower body), while forward Mike Fisher also left Saturday’s 2-1 loss to Tampa Bay after blocking a shot and is questionable for this game.
The Senators do have the advantage of being rested, having not played since Saturday, while the Bruins are traveling back from Pittsburgh to play on back-to-back nights. Ottawa also won the last meeting between the clubs in Boston, as Brian Elliott made 31 saves to blank the Bruins 2-0 on Nov. 13.
That game also featured some fireworks as Zdeno Chara had his only fight of the year against Chris Neil and Mark Recchi dropped the gloves for the first time since 2004 to take on Chris Campoli. Chara’s fight was in response to the teams’ first meeting of the year, which Boston won 4-0 in Ottawa on Oct. 30.
Tim Thomas made 29 saves for the shutout, but late in the contest, Neil picked a fight with the usually mild-mannered Dennis Seidenberg. That didn’t sit well with the Bruins, and Chara challenged Neil on their first shift together early in the rematch. It wasn’t much of a fight, as Chara fell down quickly, but it does add some flavor to this matchup of division rivals.
The puck drops at 7 p.m., so check back here throughout the day for updates on all the action.
