Final, Canadiens 4-1: The game has come to an end after both teams went through the motions in a scoreless third period.
Not the Bruins’ best effort, that’s for sure.
Third period, 18:17, Canadiens 4-1: Alexei Emelin just landed a hit on Milan Lucic. The Bruins forward responded by taking a jab at the back of Emelin’s head. That was enough to earn a roughing penalty for Lucic.
Third period, 14:56, Canadiens 4-1: Nothing came of the Bruins’ power play, which shouldn’t surprise you if you watched any of this game.
The B’s were almost able to jam a puck by Peter Budaj in the midst of a scramble in front, but the goalie did a good job of getting his pad to the post and taking away any openings.
Third period, 12:26, Canadiens 4-1: The Bruins are getting a power play.
Lars Eller is in the box for holding the stick.
Third period, 9:39, Canadiens 4-1: The Bruins are putting some more pucks on net midway through the third period, but they’re far from quality scoring chances.
The Bruins appear content for settling on shots just inside the Montreal blue line, and those aren’t exactly high-percentage shots. So it’s not a huge surprise they haven’t got on the board here in the third period.
Third period, 4:00, Canadiens 4-1: Montreal has come out and kept the pressure on the Bruins, which isn’t good news for the Bruins. That’s because they’re chasing four goals in the third period.
Chad Johnson has made a couple of nice saves early in the period for the Bruins.
Third period, 0:01, Canadiens 4-1: The third period is underway.
End second period, Canadiens 4-1: The Bruins’ power play was lethargic at best and did not take advantage of the P.K. Subban penalty.
The second period is over, and the B’s find themselves in a three-goal hole.
Second period, 17:40, Canadiens 4-1: The Bruins are going to get a power play in the final minutes of the second period.
P.K. Subban is being sent off for tripping Carl Soderberg.
Second period, 13:46, Canadiens 4-1: The Canadiens are turning this into a laugher.
Danny Briere just streaked down the ice on a breakaway and beat Chad Johnson high glove to push the lead to 4-1.
Second period, 11:54, Canadiens 3-1: The Canadiens are now leading by a pair again.
Brian Gionta tipped a shot by Tuukka Rask that dribbled by the goalie. The power-play goal will chase Rask from the game, and Chad Johnson is the new Boston goalie.
Second period, 11:43, Canadiens 2-1: Brad Marchand is having another very involved game, but he just crossed the line and will go back to the penalty box.
Marchand cross-checked Brendan Gallagher at the end of a breakaway. Tuukka Rask made the easy save on Gallagher’s chance, but Marchand’s extra cross-check sent Gallagher flying and sent Marchand to the penalty box.
Second period, 7:14, Canadiens 2-1: The Bruins are playing a much better period here in the second, and while it hasn’t produced results yet, you get the feeling they’re about to break through.
After being outshot 14-13 in the first period, the B’s hold a 6-1 advantage in shots on goal here in the second period. Peter Budaj has been able to make the saves so far, but if the Bruins get a little more traffic in front of the net, they’ll start finding the back of the net. Budaj has left some rebounds in front so far.
Second period, 4:36, Canadiens 2-1: The Canadiens just burned their timeout.
Second period, 3:31, Canadiens 2-1: The Bruins’ power play is over, and they have nothing to show for it. That wasn’t the prettiest man-advantage.
Second period, 2:12, Canadiens 2-1: The Bruins are getting their first power play.
Rene Bourque just held Chris Kelly on a mini-breakaway, and he’ll serve two minutes for that.
Second period, 0:01, Canadiens 2-1: The second period is underway.
End first period, Canadiens 2-1: The siren just sounded on an entertaining first period, and the Canadiens are up by a goal after 20 minutes.
First period, 18:29, Canadiens 2-1: Tuukka Rask is keeping the Bruins in this game.
Rask just made an incredible pad save on David Desharnais’ 2-on-1 breakaway attempt, and the B’s are still only down by a goal.
First period, 15:38, Canadiens 2-1: The Bruins are right back in it.
Just a couple of shifts after seeing the deficit get to two, the B’s are on the board. Dougie Hamilton took a shot from the right point, and David Krejci was there in front to tip it by Peter Budaj to cut the lead in half.
First period, 14:32, Canadiens 2-0: The Bruins have some work to do now.
David Desharnais just made a great hustle play and it turned into the Canadiens’ second goal of the period. Desharnais charged back into the Boston end on the backcheck to steal a Gregory Campbell pass. That immediately turned into offense for the Habs as they went back the other way with Max Pacioretty out front.
Pacioretty raced into the Boston zone and beat Tuukka Rask five-hole. Johnny Boychuk tried to get back for the B’s, but he couldn’t catch up to Pacioretty, and the B’s find themselves in a two-goal hole.
First period, 10:25, Canadiens 1-0: The Bruins killed off the Brad Marchand penalty.
That was thanks in large part to a huge Tuukka Rask glove save on P.K. Subban’s one-time bomb from the blue line.
First period, 9:18, Canadiens 1-0: Montreal is going on the power play now.
Brad Marchand just picked up a boarding penalty, and the Bruins will be shorthanded.
First period, 9:07, Canadiens 1-0: The Bruins started to fight back after the Montreal goal with a really good shift from the first line and a solid showing from the second line. However, the defensive lapses continue.
The Canadiens’ first line just had a commanding shift in the Boston zone that led to a handful of a scoring chances. A couple of those came after the Bruins looked like they were about to clear the zone. A bad turnover from Zdeno Chara set up a couple of really nice chances in front, but Tuukka Rask made a save on one and was bailed out by the side of the post on another.
The Bruins’ defense has been porous at best, and the Canadiens have the B’s running around in their own end in a big way right now.
First period, 2:16, Canadiens 1-0: This has been a disastrous start for the Bruins.
The Canadiens have just taken the lead on what was already their sixth shot of the period. Alexei Emelin just ripped a shot from the point through traffic that beat Tuukka Rask to give Montreal the 1-0 lead.
The Bruins look flat so far, to say the least.
First period, 1:32, 0-0: Lots of shots in less than two minutes.
The best of them comes from Rene Bourque who was just robbed with by a Tuukka Rask glove save.
First period, 0:01, 0-0: The game is underway.
6:29 p.m.: Pregame warmups are underway.
Tuukka Rask led the Bruins out for pregame warmups, and he’ll get the start for the Bruins, as expected. At the other end of the ice, Peter Budaj will indeed get the start for the Canadiens. This is just his 14th appearance of the season.
5:40 p.m.: Good evening and welcome into TD Garden where the Bruins and Canadiens will meet in just under an hour and a half. When they do, it will be the first meeting between the historic rivals in Boston this season.
Going off of the morning skates, it appears as if Tuukka Rask will be in net for the Bruins. He won’t be opposed by Carey Price — who posted a shutout against Carolina on Tuesday — but Montreal will instead turn to Peter Budaj. The veteran goalie does have solid career numbers against the Bruins. He’s 3-1-0 with a 2.71 goals against average and .901 save percentage in five career games against the Bruins.
The morning skate line rushes also indicate that Chris Kelly will at least start the game by centering the fourth line with Gregory Campbell on his left and Shawn Thornton on his right. That’s because Daniel Paille looks to be staying on the third line next to Carl Soderberg and Loui Eriksson.
11 a.m. ET: The wait is finally over.
The Boston Bruins welcome the Montreal Canadiens to TD Garden on Thursday night for the first time this season. The meeting of the longtime rivals has been a long time coming, as the league’s new alignment and scheduling guidelines apparently called for pushing the first Boston meeting between these two until late January. This is actually the longest it has taken for the two teams to meet in Boston, at least in terms of the Bruins’ home schedule. The two clubs didn’t meet in Boston until Feb. 1 during the 2000-01 schedule, but that was Boston’s 26th home game of the season. Thursday will be the Bruins’ 28th home game of the year.
The Bruins have played some of their most dominant hockey in their last three games. Boston has potted six goals apiece in its last three games with convincing wins over Philadelphia, the New York Islanders and Florida. The Bruins have won four straight overall and five of their last six. They haven’t lost in regulation since Jan. 14. Much of the Bruins’ recent success is thanks to dominant play from the second line. It’s the hottest line in the league, as Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and Reilly Smith have combined for 30 points in their last seven games. Marchand has been especially hot, with seven goals and five assists in the last seven games.
That’s bad news for the Canadiens, who are heading in the opposite direction of the Bruins. The Habs did win Tuesday in Carolina, but that win snapped an embarrassing four-game losing streak. The Habs allowed at least four goals in each of those four losses, including a 5-0 loss on home ice to the lowly Washington Capitals. That defeat had fans booing the Canadiens off the ice.
Recent issues notwithstanding, the Canadiens have gotten the better of the Bruins lately. The Bruins are 0-3-1 in their last four games against their hated rivals, and that includes a 2-1 loss in Montreal on Dec. 5.
Puck drop from the Garden is slated for 7 p.m.
