Shootout, Bruins 2-1:
Round 1
Boston — Tyler Seguin scores
Toronto — Tyler Bozak scores
Round 2
Boston — Patrice Bergeron scores
Toronto — Nazem Kadri stopped by Tuukka Rask
Round 3
Boston — Brad Marchand stopped by James Reimer
Toronto — Nikolai Lumelin stopped by Tuukka Rask
Bruins win.
End overtime, 2-2: It looks like 65 minutes won’t be enough to settle things between these two rivals, which means we are headed for the shootout. The Leafs outshot the Bruins 3-2 in the overtime.
Overtime, 2:50, 2-2: Still no real scoring chances here in overtime, as the ice has yet to really open up.
End third period, 2-2: The Bruins are once again able to salvage a point despite trailing heading into the third period.
We’re going to overtime tied 2-2.
Third period, 18:55, 2-2: Tuukka Rask does it again with the glove, this time gloving a shot from Joffrey Lupul.
Third period, 17:42, 2-2: Tuukka Rask just made his best save of the period and maybe of the game, robbing Nazem Kadri with a glove save to keep it 2-2.
Third period, 13:08, 2-2: Andrew Ference and Dion Phaneuf are getting penalties after both attempt to defend their teammates.
Phaneuf was defending his goalie after Brad Marchand took a shot a hair after the whistle blew on an offside, and Ference then jumped into the middle of a scrum to defend Marchand.
The end result is matching roughing minors for Phaneuf and Ference.
Third period, 10:36, 2-2: The Bruins appear to be back with their “regular” lines, and they’ve tied the game as a result.
It didn’t look like a very good idea for the last few minutes, as the Bruins weren’t doing much of anything. That was until Patrice Bergeron struck.
The Bruins forward scored on a backhand after a pass from Dougie Hamilton, and the game is now tied 2-2. That goal was really the product of two things. The first was a wonderful individual from Hamilton who carried the puck down below the goal before putting it in front for Bergeron. The second came from James Reimer who just has to make that save.
Third period, 6:05, Maple Leafs 2-1: The intensity appears to be picking up here in the third period between these two teams who are becoming a little too familiar with each other after the home-and-home.
The post-whistle scraps are starting to pick up as well, with some extracirriculars following just about every whistle.
In terms of actually scoring goals and things like that, the two teams have combined for just three shots here in the third period.
Third period, 3:07, Maple Leafs 2-1: The penalty is over, and the Bruins were able to kill it off successfully.
Third period, 0:30, Maple Leafs 2-1: The Bruins are going to have kill off a penalty very early here in the third.
Patrice Bergeron, one of the club’s best penalty killers, was just given a hooking penalty.
Third period, 0:01, Maple Leafs 2-1: The second period is under way, and the Bruins are looking to at least salvage a point.
Second period reaction: It was an up-and-down second period for the Bruins, and while they finished the period on a little bit of a run, the fact remains that they trail heading into the third period. The B’s don’t find themselves trailing after two, but they’ve done a good job of at least getting points in those situations this season. They’re 2-2-2 this season when trailing after two. Toronto, on the other hand, is 14-2-0 when leading after the second.
Offensively, the Bruins showed some life in the second period. That Milan Lucic could prove to be huge, but only if he and the B’s make it huge. It appeared to give them something of a jump after he scored it, now it’s on them to carry that over into the third. Interesting to note: Daniel Paille has a game-high five shots on goal; Nathan Horton and Tyler Seguin have combined for zero.
Defensively, the Bruins are going to have to clean it up in the third period. It’s unsurprising that they do their best work in the third when they turn things on defensively. Both Toronto goals came, at least to some extent, on some defensive breakdowns. It would also help if Tuukka Rask comes out with a shutdown period and somehow helps Boston steal a win here. They could certainly use it.
End second period, Maple Leafs 2-1: The second period comes to an end, and the Bruins are sent off with some applause from the crowd. That’s a far stretch from where they were just a few minutes ago when the club was down 2-0.
The B’s were able to kill off the Dennis Seidenberg and even got a couple of shorthanded chances out of it from Rich Peverley and Daniel Paille.
After the penalty expired, Boston got another scoring chance when Nathan Horton parked himself in front of the net and created some havoc. However, the forward wasn’t able to corral the puck in front of the net.
Second period, 16:37, Maple Leafs 2-1: The Maple Leafs will get another chance to score on the power play, after Dennis Seidenberg proves to be too strong for Phil Kessel’s stick.
The Boston defenseman hammered down on Kessel’s stick and broke the twig in two. That gets him the slashing call.
Second period, 14:56, Maple Leafs 2-1: Things have started to pick up in a big way here in the second period after a pretty listless first period.
It certainly looks like Milan Lucic has gotten a jump out of scoring the goal. He’s skating harder and skating with more confidence right now, and he just had another chance when he stopped on a dime before firing wide from the right wing.
The Bruins’ offense in general looks a little more engaged right now as well, as they’ve started to up the energy and tempo following the goal.
Second period, 9:49, Maple Leafs 2-1: There it is.
Milan Lucic scores his first goal since Feb. 21, and it gets the Bruins back into the game. Rich Peverley passed it ahead to Lucic and the big forward got around the defensemen before sliding one through the legs of James Reimer.
The Bruins are obviously hoping that’s what gets Lucic going after a very lengthy goal-scoring drought.
Second period, 8:01, Maple Leafs 2-0: Things just went from bad to worse for the Bruins.
This time it’s Nikolai Kulemin who gets the Maple Leafs a goal after he breaks out of his own zone and gets a beautiful pass from Nazem Kadri. Kulemin saw that a Bruins’ shot had been deflected, and he just took off behind the Boston defense. Kadri passed it ahead through the neutral zone, and Kulemin did the rest, beating Tuukka Rask with a shot over the goalie’s right shoulder.
Second period, 6:22, Maple Leafs 1-0: The Bruins followed up the Joffrey Lupul goal with a couple of solid rushes, but they still have nothing to show for it.
They’re outshooting Toronto 13-8, but they’ve yet to secure any real scoring chances in the second. Instead, it’s been plays like the Daniel Paille shot we just saw that landed directly in the middle of James Reimer’s chest. Chances like those aren’t going to do anything other than padding the B’s shot totals.
The Bruins do have the advantage in scoring chances, but they’re still not doing enough to really jump-start the offense.
Second period, 2:04, Maple Leafs 1-0: Now the Bruins are forced to play catch up.
Joffrey Lupul is back from a two-game suspension, and he’s not wasting any time making a difference. The forward just scored a power-play goal, and Toronto takes the 1-0 lead.
Second period, 0:27, 0-0: The second period is under way, and the Bruins are already on the penalty kill.
Aaron Johnson gets the interference call, and Boston is called on to kill a penalty for the first time in this one.
First period reaction: Well, that wasn’t overly exciting.
Playing for the second time in three nights, the Bruins and Maple Leafs have played a tight-checking game through 20 minutes and the result is, well, there are no results. The teams combined for just 15 shots (with the B’s outshooting the Leafs 9-6), and not much in the way of scoring chances.
One of the big storylines heading in was what was going to come of the Bruins’ new lines. Obviously one period is too small of a time frame to really go off of, but this is a results-based business, and so far there have been no results to speak of. If you’re the Bruins, though, you have to like what you see out of the Patrice Bergeron line. There wasn’t much change there, with Daniel Paille moving up to replace Brad Marchand who went to the David Krejci line. However, the Bergeron line has seen a couple of scoring chances early on. It’s kind of easy to see why they may be effective. There’s a lot of speed on the wings now with Paille and Tyler Seguin. We know that Bergeron has a knack for being in the right place at the right time, and both of those factors almost paid off for the B’s when Paille and Bergeron almost combined for a goal in the first period.
That was the club’s most effective line in the first period, though. There wasn’t much in terms of offense on either side, and that’s evidenced by the shot totals and the like.
Tuukka Rask has looked pretty good in his first start since last Tuesday. He hasn’t been challenged much, but when he has, he’s made the saves, including a nice save on Mikhail Grabovski.
End first period, 0-0: The first period comes to an end, as it has too often as of late for the Bruins, scoreless.
The B’s couldn’t do anything with the power play following the Colton Orr penalty. They did have one terrific chance, though. Rich Peverley had a chance to slam home the rebound, but the forward ended up hitting the side of the net in what might have been the club’s best scoring chance of the period.
The Patrice Bergeron line also had a chance before the power play when Daniel Paille shot one on net and Bergeron followed the play in the slot. The rebound went right to Bergeron, but James Reimer made the save.
First period, 17:19, 0-0: Colton Orr gets the game’s first penalty after delivering a hard check on Matt Bartkowski behind the Boston net.
Orr gets two minutes for boarding.
First period, 14:22, 0-0: We spoke a little too soon, apparently, when it comes to Milan Lucic.
The big forward showed some signs of life a few minutes ago when he charged up the ice, and joined the rush into the slot before firing a shot from the slot. The shot was stopped by James Reimer, and the B’s couldn’t do anything with the rebound, but it was encouraging nonetheless.
The B’s continue to ensure that Tuukka Rask has an easy go of it, as the Maple Leafs still only have three shots.
First period, 10:44, 0-0: So far, no real noticeable changes from the Bruins after the line shuffling.
Milan Lucic continues to be a non-factor, as does Nathan Horton. These line changes were presumably centered much around them, especially Lucic, and they haven’t shown much difference. However, it’s still very, very early in this process, and you can’t really get on them after just 10:44 with new linemates.
This one has been a defensive struggle, too. The two teams are tied 3-3 on the shot counter through half of the first.
First period, 6:52, 0-0: The Bruins have gotten a couple of chances in the early going, but they haven’t been able to bury them yet.
Arguably the best came from the new David Krejci line, which now features Brad Marchand. It was Krejci who passed the puck into the slot for Marchand, but the winger’s one-timer attempt went just wide of the net.
The fourth line also had a chance as well that was born from an Andrew Ference shot from the right point. Ference put the wrist shot on net, and it started to trickle through James Reimer, but there was no Bruin who was able to get the loose puck behind Reimer before the goaltender covered it up.
First period, 0:01, 0-0: The game is on, and here we go. The Bruins and Leafs are under way from a very loud TD Garden.
6:35 p.m.: As expected, the Bruins will start Tuukka Rask in net. He’ll be opposed at the other end by James Reimer. The Bruins are wearing their road whites for this one, while the Maple Leafs will don their alternate blue sweaters.
As mentioned earlier, the Bruins have done some shaking up of the lines. This is how they’ll look to start at least.
Brad Marchand-David Krejci-Nathan Horton
Daniel Paille-Patrice Bergeron-Tyler Seguin
Milan Lucic-Rich Peverley-Jordan Caron
Jay Pandolfo-Gregory Campbell-Shawn Thornton
Backup goalie Anton Khudobin was one of the last Bruins off of the ice for pregame warmups. He didn’t stay out to get any extra goaltending work in, though. The backup goalie jumped in and took a bunch of shots on net, working on his wrist shot. Perhaps he’s hoping to jump onto one of these new lines as well.
6 p.m.: Welcome in, ladies and gentlemen to TD Garden for the fourth and final matchup between these two longtime rivals.
The Bruins are getting set to open a big week, but it’s also a week that will feature some rare rest. The B’s have Thursday and Friday off, which will mark their only break of consecutive days between Feb. 24 and the end of the season. In other words, Thursday and Friday will mark the only time the rest of the season that the B’s will have two days off in a row. From there, it’s games every other day at the very least.
But that’s getting a little head of things. There are a couple of big Northeast Division tilts between now and Thursday, and that begins with the Maple Leafs. Boston will look to start a new stretch of hot play against the Leafs. The Bruins’ loss to Toronto on Saturday night broke an eight-game win streak against Toronto, as well as a nine-game point streak.
4 p.m.: Since there was no morning skate and Claude Julien offered no hits, we don’t know who will be the starting goaltender for the Bruins in this one.
There’s a good chance, however, that it will be Tuukka Rask. The No. 1 goalie hasn’t made a start since Tuesday night in Winnipeg, and Anton Khudobin is coming off of a shaky start on Saturday in Toronto in which he was pulled.
You also have to consider Rask’s career numbers against Toronto as well. He’s owned the Maple Leafs in his career entering Monday’s tilt with a 7-1-0 record for his career against Toronto to go along with a 1.41 goals against average and a .951 save percentage. Rask shut out the Leafs on Feb. 2 in a 1-0 Bruins win up in Toronto.
2:40 p.m.: The Bruins didn’t have a morning skate prior to their return to the Garden, but Claude Julien says that’s more for rest than anything else.
The head coach, who understandably sounds like he’s starting to get a little frustrated with things are going, also talked about a few other things when he met with the media this morning.
One of the more interesting things is what he said in regards to a question about the Bruins coming out and playing angrier, starting with this game against the Leafs.
“I think we need to be angry at ourselves, not at the Toronto Maple Leafs,” Julien said before praising Randy Carlyle’s club.
“There’s a lot of good things going on with that team, so we recognize that, but what is disappointing is that right now we’re not playing the type of game we should. Tonight, if we’re mad, we got to be mad at ourselves for not playing our game and going out there being a little bit more hungry. Hopefully, our work ethic and the talent that we feel we have on our team will take over.”
The Bruins haven’t really had one of their signature “angry” games this season. You know, the games where they rack up a ton of penalty minutes, a bunch of fights and a line brawl or two. If that is the type of game Boston wants to play Monday night to try and right the ship, they could have just the team they need on the other side of the ice. The Maple Leafs lead the league in fights (according to HockeyFights.com), and they have six more than the second-most pugilistic club, the Columbus Blue Jackets.
12:40 p.m.: The banged-up Bruins will once again be without Johnny Boychuk on Monday night against Toronto.
The Boston defenseman left practice Friday with a foot injury, and that’s not at the point where he can return. In fact, Claude Julien told reporters following morning skate that Boychuk hasn’t skated since injuring the foot. That means it’s likely that Matt Bartkowski remains in the lineup against Toronto. Bartkowski played 13 minutes Saturday against the Leafs and was a minus-2.
Julien also added that Boychuk remains day-to-day with the injury.
10 a.m. ET: The Bruins have won just once in their last four games, and they have scored just six goals over that stretch. Apparently that’s enough for Claude Julien to make some changes.
The B’s return to Garden ice for the first time since March 16 on Monday night when they finish up a home-and-home with the division rival Toronto Maple Leafs. When the B’s do, it’s expected that they’ll be featuring some new-look lines after Julien juggled things on Sunday at practice.
Using “because I can” as one of his reasons, Julien finally decided to move things around on the Bruins’ forward lines. Most notably was moving Brad Marchand up to the “first line” alongside David Krejci while “demoting” Milan Lucic to the defacto third line. That also means that Daniel Paille moves up to skate with Patrice Bergeron and Tyler Seguin, while Jay Pandolfo finds himself on the fourth line.
Boston is looking for a little revenge Monday night against the Leafs. Toronto picked up a rare win against the Bruins on Saturday night in Toronto, holding off a late Boston charge to win it 3-2.
It marks the beginning of a very important week for the Bruins (but then again, they all are at this point). They get the Leafs on Monday before welcoming Montreal to town Wednesday and finishing the week with road back-to-backs over the weekend in Philadelphia and Buffalo.
Puck drop from the Garden is set for 7 p.m.
