Final, Bruins 3-0: That’s it and that’s all. The Bruins win it pretty easily, and return to first place in the division.
Third period, 19:00, Bruins 3-0: The Bruins almost made a mess of the power play, but Tyler Seguin bailed them out. Tuukka Rask got aggressive on a breakaway and he left the net wide open, but Seguin hustled back and blocked the shot to keep the shutout alive.
Third period, 16:49, Bruins 3-0: Nicklas Grossman, who has been running around laying the wood all afternoon, is going to be slowed down for two minutes.
He just got a cross-checking penalty, which means the Bruins are going back on the power play, their second of the day.
Third period, 15:45, Bruins 3-0: The Bruins killed the penalty to Jordan Caron, but it was a little more difficult than the other two kills of the afternoon.
Tuukka Rask made his most impressive save of the day with a big-time glove save on a Kimmo Timonen blast from the right point, and it’s starting to look like the Flyers are just playing out the string.
Third period, 12:00, Bruins 3-0: The Flyers got a pretty good chance at scoring their first goal of the afternoon on their last power play, and they’ll get another chance now.
Jordan Caron was called for slashing, which will give Philadelphia its third power play of the afternoon.
Third period, 11:02, Bruins 3-0: The Bruins were able to successfully kill off the penalty for too many men, but they got a little help from the goalpost.
Jakub Voracek hit the goalpost with a blast from the right wing that rang the iron, but did no damage.
Third period, 6:59, Bruins 3-0: Good news and bad news for the Bruins right now.
The good news is that David Krejci has returned to the ice, as he continues to battle something.
The bad news, however, is that the Bruins’ penalty kill has to go back to work. The B’s were just whistled for too many men on the ice, and Shawn Thornton will serve that.
Third period, 5:18, Bruins 3-0: David Krejci has not returned from the locker room for the third period. There has been no announcement yet about his status, though.
Third period, 0:01, Bruins 3-0: The third period is under way here at the Garden.
Second period reaction: Seriously, guys, there’s not much to react to in the second period.
The big thing, I guess, would be the Shawn Thornton-Zac Rinaldo fight. The Bruins enforcer once again stepped up for a teammate after Rinaldo blew up Johnny Boychuk in the corner with a good, legal hit. That didn’t matter to Thornton, though, and Rinaldo was willing to answer the bell. That was a regrettable decision, however, as Thornton fed Rinaldo a couple of big, heavy right hands. They probably didn’t taste very good. Thornton spent much of his penalty time icing his hand which goes to tell you that he landed most of the punches he threw.
Tyler Seguin came close to scoring yet another goal midway through the period when he was fed a pass in the slot, but he ended up hitting the post to the right of Ilya Bryzgalov.
The Flyers don’t look very good at all. They’ve only been able to muster 12 shots on goal through 40 minutes, and they almost have three times as many hits (34) as they do shots on goal.
End second period, Bruins 3-0: The second period comes to an end without much of anything happening, which is pretty much how this game has gone so far.
Second period, 14:51, Bruins 3-0: And just like that, David Krejci returns to the Bruins bench.
Second period, 14:51, Bruins 3-0: David Krejci still hasn’t returned to the Boston bench after suffering an injury.
Gregory Campbell is skating with the first line in the meantime.
Second period, 12:00, Bruins 3-0: Something to keep an eye on: David Krejci went right down the runway after the last whistle with an injury. He appeared to be holding his arm, but that’s just speculation at this point.
Second period, 11:05, Bruins 3-0: Shawn Thornton just woke the TD Garden crowd up in a big way.
The Bruins enforcer goes right after Flyers forward Zac Rinaldo after Rinaldo wallops Johnny Boychuk with a huge body check in the corner.
Thornton definitely got the better of the fight as he landed a couple of heavy right hands late in the bout for the win.
Second period, 5:58, Bruins 3-0: The second period is starting a lot like the first one did. We’re almost six minutes into the middle period, and there’s been just one shot on goal in the period thus far.
That came from Luke Schenn who put a wrist shot on net from the right point, and it was a shot that Tuukka Rask never saw. Luckily for the Bruins, though, the puck hit the goalie in the left shoulder and bounced away.
Second period, 0:01, Bruins 3-0: The second period is under way, and the Bruins will look to add to their 3-0 lead.
First period reaction: That was kind of a weird period. It took more than six minutes to see a shot out of both teams, and it took the Bruins 10:50 to finally get one on net.
But once the Bruins did that, they were able to really get things going. They did so with the power-play goal and then goals from the third and fourth lines, respectively. All three are good to see as the power play has been an issue, as has the production from the bottom two lines.
For the third line, you have to like seeing Jordan Caron step in and contribute. The young forward was a little underwhelming in Providence this season, but it looks like he’s going to try and make the most out of his opportunity back with the big club. He made a very nice pass to set up Chris Kelly for the Bruins’ second goal of the period.
Production out of the fourth line is gravy, especially with how they’ve been playing as of late, but it’s nice to see them rewarded for their improved play with the goal. Shawn Thornton started the whole play by taking a big hit at the Flyers’ blue line, but he was able to move the puck in the process, and that allowed the Bruins to gain possession into the Philly end. Daniel Paille, who has a habit of not converting breakaway opportunities, didn’t let the opportunity get away. Of course, he got some help from Ilya Bryzgalov, who allowed the soft goal to give Boston the 3-0 lead.
Of course, the Bruins can’t let up. We saw just a few nights ago what happens when you let your foot off the gas, as the club blew a three-goal lead in Washington and ended up losing in overtime.
End first period, Bruins 3-0: The Bruins only had six shots on goal in the first period. The problem for the Flyers, however, is that three of those went in the net.
The B’s take the 3-0 lead into the dressing room, and they’re obviously going to be pretty pleased that they do so, with the way the first period started.
First period, 14:11, Bruins 3-0: It’s looking like it might be one of those days for Ilya Bryzgalov. Now that the Bruins have remembered how to get pucks on net, they aren’t missing.
The B’s just scored yet again, and this time it’s the fourth line coming up with the tally.
Shawn Thornton did a great job of taking a check at the Flyers blue line, but he moved the puck in the process, and Gregory Campbell took it into the Philly zone. He then moved it to Daniel Paille who broke in and beat Bryzgalov with a back-hander through the five-hole.
First period, 13:28, Bruins 2-0: Jordan Caron is not wasting any time making an impact in his return to Boston.
The recently called-up forward just found Chris Kelly in the slot, and Kelly sniped one from the slot to give the B’s the two-goal lead.
First period, 11:53, Bruins 1-0: The Bruins have woken up, and they did so thanks to the power play of all things.
The B’s find rare power-play success, thanks to a beautiful play in front from Milan Lucic. The big forward found Tyler Seguin with a no-look pass from in front of the net, and the B’s young sniper buried it by Ilya Bryzgalov.
First period, 11:12 0-0: Kimmo Timonen was just left no choice but to hook Tyler Seguin in front of the Flyers’ net, which means the Bruins will get their first power play of the afternoon.
First period, 10:50, 0-0: Check that. The Bruins were credited with a shot on their last shift. It was a generous scoring to say the least.
First period, 10:50, 0-0: So, there’s 9:10 left in the first period, and the Bruins still don’t have a shot on goal.
It’s been a mucky first period offensively for the B’s, and that shot total only reinforces that. For both teams, this has looked exactly like you might expect a Saturday afternoon game to be played, which isn’t exactly exciting or interesting.
First period, 6:25, 0-0: It’s still early, so maybe both teams are still waking up, but it’s been a pretty listless pace thus far.
The Flyers just registered a shot on a goal, a usually meaningless achievement, and it was the first for either team. It came 6:12 into the game. So that’s kind of what we’re dealing with here.
First period, 3:36, 0-0: The Bruins are yet again successful in killing off the penalty, as Philadelphia doesn’t even get a shot off during their first power play of the afternoon.
First period, 1:03, 0-0: The Bruins’ penalty kill won’t waste any time getting to work.
David Krejci was called for holding in the neutral zone, and Philly goes on the power play.
First period, 0:01, 0-0: It’s time to play hockey. The Bruins and Flyers are under way from the Garden.
1 p.m.: It’s going to be Jordan Caron making his season debut for the Bruins, as he’s the one who will be in the lineup, not Jay Pandolfo. The veteran is one of the healthy scratches.
The Patrice Bergeron line gets the start for the Bruins.
12:42 p.m.: It looks like it really is going to be a gametime decision for the Bruins’ third line.
Both Jay Pandolfo and Jordan Caron took part in pregame line rushes with the third line, so it’s unclear at this point which one will get the nod.
12:35 p.m.: Tuukka Rask leads the Bruins out of the tunnel, and Ilya Bryzgalov leads the Flyers out. That means they will be the starting goaltenders in this one. No surprise there.
12:15 p.m.: Good afternoon from TD Garden where Garden organist Ron Poster just finished up his cover of “Tempted By the Fruit of Another.”
Bruins coach Claude Julien just got done meeting with the media, and he confirmed that Tuukka Rask will be back in net for Boston. It will be his first appearance against the Flyers since the 2010 playoffs.
Julien wouldn’t admit as to who would be in on the third line, however. He said it will be a gametime decision as to whether it’s Jay Pandolfo or the recently called-up Jordan Caron on that line.
8 a.m. ET: The Bruins and the Flyers have had some memorable playoff series recently, but they might not get a chance to meet this season if Philadelphia can’t turn things around.
They’ll have another chance to do so on Saturday afternoon when they come to Boston to take on the B’s at TD Garden. Peter Laviolette’s bunch has stumbled out of the blocks this season, and they currently find themselves sitting in the bottom of the Atlantic Division. The Flyers are doing anything but flying high right now, as they come to town with an 11-13-1 record on the season. Philly has lost its last two games — including squandering a 4-1 lead to the Penguins on Thursday night — and the Flyers are just 5-5-0 in their last 10 games.
The Bruins, meanwhile, got back on the winning track Thursday night against Toronto, as they continued their dominance of the Maple Leafs. The B’s have now won eight straight against the Leafs, and they have also had their way with the Flyers recently. Counting the 2011 playoffs, the Bruins have are 10-1-1 in their last 12 games against the Flyers. Interestingly, Tuukka Rask hasn’t faced the Flyers since the 2010 playoffs where he and the B’s coughed up a 3-0 series lead — and a 3-0 lead in Game 7. He’ll likely be the starting goaltender after Anton Khudobin was between the pipes Thursday against the Maple Leafs.
Puck drop is slated for 1 p.m. from the Garden.
