Game 3 SCF Preview: On D Day Bruins try to make it a series

Today is a historic day for not just our country but for democracy and freedom. It was 67 years ago on June 6, 1944 that our soldiers helped achieve the greatest win in World War II history. D Day is a special day of Remembrance of all those lives sacrificed in the Battle of Normandy along the coastline of Belgium that finally ended the war. It's a day to reflect and thank those before us who fought for our independence.

Perhaps on 6/6/11, the American team involved in the Stanley Cup will actually make it a series tonight in Beantown. For the Boston Bruins, that requires a maximum effort against the faster and more talented Vancouver Canucks, who by sweeping the first two at home, are two steps closer to the franchise's first Cup. Yes. Both Games 1 and 2 were competitive but only due to outstanding play from certain Vezina selection Tim Thomas, who stood on his head giving his team a chance to steal home ice. If not for a couple of key breakdowns, it would've been enough. Instead, thanks to Raffi Torres' heroics, Daniel Sedin and Public Enemy No.1 Alex Burrows, who took the 'bite' right out of Claude Julien's guys a jaw dropping 11 seconds into sudden death, the B's find themselves in a huge hole as they return to TD Garden.

They'll have to have short memories if they want to make it interesting over the next 72 hours. In the NBA, the expression is a series doesn't start until the road team wins. Using that philosophy, all the Bruins have to do is hold serve and get it to a pivotal Game 5 even. If they can, anything could happen like it did in '09 when the Penguins became only the second team to rally from an 0-2 deficit to win Lord Stanley. Of course, they still lost Game 5 before winning a third straight at home and then finally becoming the lone road team to win in a dramatic Game 7 that's still fresh in Pens' fans memory banks. Marc-Andre Fleury stacking the pads to deny Nick Lidstrom's last second bid.

What has to happen for the Bruins to turn the tables starting tonight on the Canucks?

1.Get a 2-goal lead- they say the 3-goal lead is the worst in hockey and Julien's club are proof. However, they've yet to build a cushion and put the pressure on Vancouver. How will they react if it happens? Against the Blackhawks early on, we saw what happened when Chicago was ahead, digging out of a 3-0 hole to force a seventh game that required overtime where the all too familiar Burrows clinched it.


2.Don't sit back- one of the fundamental flaws with Julien's Lemaire-esque system is they often try to hold on instead of pushing for more. Throw out the perfect regular season record. At this point, that doesn't matter. Especially against an opportunistic club like Vancouver, who only needs a few chances to cash to turn a game. We saw it the other night when they predictably tied it up with over 10 minutes left and then took it to OT where the B's never recovered.


3.Chara Time- simply put, Zdeno Chara is a beast on the ice who logs a ton of minutes in every situation. While the Boston captain did set up Mark Recchi's go-ahead tally, he also was caught out for Sedin's equalizer and didn't recover to stop Burrows from skating around Thomas and stuffing a wraparound for the stunning winner. Chara must be better along with Julien, who got duped by Alain Vigneault's on the fly change that caught Andrew Ference instead of reliable partner Dennis Seidenberg. With the last change on home ice, that can't happen.


4.The Horton Affect- when Nathan Horton scores, good things happen for the black and gold. The big man has been instrumental during their run, scoring big overtime goals while setting up teammates. When the going got tough against Tampa, the ex-Panther shined brightest with two goals and two assists over the last three games including the series clincher. He'll need to be a factor in front of Roberto Luongo, who hasn't dealt with much chaos compared to his busier counterpart.


5.Shoot The Puck- there were opportunities to shoot the puck when it was tied late in regulation that the B's mysteriously passed up. One such chance saw a streaking Johnny Boychuk passing up an open shot from the right circle, instead overpassing to a covered teammate. Vancouver's D is too stingy. They take away that East/West option, which hardly works during this time of year. The Bruins must pepper Luongo from every angle. He's good at making the first save but will let out juicy rebounds, which the B's must be in position to pounce. Fire away and score in the dirty areas.


6.Special Teams- the B's have been brutal on the power play but finally connected when ultimate warrior Recchi parked himself in front of Luongo and neatly deflected a Chara blast that steered them ahead. Vancouver has a dangerous PK that comes right at you. Their tendency is to overcommit. So, crafty playmakers like David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron must distribute the puck quickly. Short, concise passes can trap Canuck attackers high, giving them a decided edge down low. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Vancouver boasts the best PP with many weapons ranging from the Sedins to Ryan Kesler, Burrows plus sharp shooters Christian Ehrhoff, Sami Salo and Alex Edler. The advice is simple. Stay out of the box, which requires not targeting Burrows or knucklehead Max Lapierre.

On paper, it sounds like they'll have to play a perfect game just to give themselves a chance. However, these are all winning qualities good teams execute during a primetime series such as this. It's not won early but late. All depending on how you adjust. We'll see if Boston can use the crowd to their advantage. They'll be loud. The B's haven't won the Cup since 1972 when Bobby Orr skated the fancy chalice in front of Dad after beating the Rangers. They've failed five times since then including back in 1990 to Mark Messier's Oilers, who won the last of their six Cups. Starting tonight on Versus, we get to see what they're made of.

Canucks win exciting Game 1 but Burrows ruling baffles

A couple of days ago, everyone in Twitter land was rejoicing. Colin Campbell will no longer be League Deputy in charge of disciplining players. Brendan Shanahan takes over the challenging role, giving fans and press hope that future endeavors will be more consistent. Be that as it may, we get to last night's Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final that after way too many whistles, finally saw the Bruins and Canucks put on quite a show with Raffi Torres providing a stirring ending that left Boston cooked with 18.5 seconds left in regulation.

While the criticism of the stripes is well deserved, let's give some credit for no offside on a hustling Ryan Kesler, who again managed to make the biggest play that allowed his team to prevail. We'll never grasp how the gritty do everything American who in our view is the leading Conn Smythe candidate, stayed on side. However, replays confirmed the miraculous play that allowed Jannik Hansen to set up Torres for a tap in that touched off some fireworks. The play of Hansen was imminent all night with a superb Tim Thomas stoning him on a breakaway moments earlier. So, it wasn't too surprising that Hansen was involved. But Torres?!?!?!?! A borderline player who plays his role well. I guess that's what makes this Vancouver team the best one they've ever had. It doesn't matter who it is. They all contribute. That's why they're a favorite in this series and explains our Canucks pre-playoff prediction, ironically over the Bruins in seven. Still, I did err in going against myself when taking my regular season pick the Flyers in Round Two over Beantown. Oops.

When they were allowed to play, the hockey was riveting with each club playing a frenetic pace, generating quality chances. Even if Vancouver's were better especially in a lopsided third that if not for Kesler's dramatics, was headed to overtime. It made for compelling play with nobody passing up a check. And the action was fast and furious. Exactly what you'd want from the two best teams left. If only that was the whole story.

What would a great game to kickoff the fight for Lord Stanley be without controversy? It came in the form of Alex Burrows at the end of the first. Not surprisingly, following a hard fought period, the two teams got together behind Thomas' net. First, Burrows challenged Patrice Bergeron. He of a concussion history who fought back to return last round. Intelligent. As if that weren't enough for a quite capable player who's scored some big goals this tournament, he then took a bite out of Bergeron's glove, stunning NBC production talent that included Doc Emrick, Ed Olczyck, Pierre McGuire, Mike Milbury and Keith Jones. All called the instigator out and expected him to be suspended for Game 2, which would've been the logical thing to do.

When you're talking about a league that after retaining Phoenix, allows Atlanta to relocate to Winnipeg and then threatens fans before they even get hockey again, there is no logic necessary. That may explain how Mike Murphy somehow concluded that Burrows did nothing wrong. That even with video replay, which seemed to indicate Bergeron taking off the glove and bleeding, he ruled that there was no 'conclusive evidence.' Even if it looked like a bite to a vast majority including a large audience that made Game 1 of the SCF its highest rated to start a Cup Final in 11 years thanks to NBC, our opinions didn't matter. Unfortunately, one person is ultimately responsible for such pivotal decisions.

Burrows' large appetite reminded us of Jarkko Ruutu when he got nabbed for two games after treating Andrew Peters' glove like a snack. Biting incidents have also been alleged with a recent case if memory serves coming from the Flyers. In this game, you never know what can happen. Players will do anything to gain an edge. Though we're baffled as to what purpose Mr. Burrows had in mind at the end of a period on one of our faves, the classy Bergeron. Mystifying. Had it been the regular season, the NHL would have had more time and used better judgment. Perhaps the Canucks would've lost Burrows for two games. Instead, he gets of scot free and once again leaves fans, media and the blogosphere alike wondering how this is possible on such a big stage.

Like it or not, this is how our game operates. I am out of answers.

King Henrik makes case for Vezina

King Henrik isn't done shutting out opponents. Neither is his run towards a first Vezina, which could finally be in the cards. His 26 saves against a potential first round opponent, the Bruins boosted the Rangers to their eighth win in 10. Lundqvist pitched his career and league leading best 11th shutout, allowing rookie Derek Stepan's 20th goal to stand up in Beantown.

Until a late second period surge that included Patrice Bergeron bumping into Lundqvist shorthanded, his day had been routine thanks to outstanding defensive efforts from everyone. Both the D and forwards were in synch, keeping the Bruins on the perimeter while the Blueshirts forechecked vigorously.

Sean Avery was back in for Mats Zuccarello and had a solid afternoon, playing mostly with Erik Christensen and Wojtek Wolski on the fourth line. When John Tortorella sent the trio out, they did a solid job along the boards, generating a couple of chances including a Marc Staal shot that Tuukka Rask shutdown. Filling in for Tim Thomas, the second-year Finn was outstanding finishing with 22 saves. The only blemish a nifty Stepan redirect of a Mike Sauer shot due to a controversial faceoff. I didn't catch it but apparently the refs screwed up. Guess we'll hear more about this later.

The Rangers misfired on three power plays, including one Marian Gaborik had all day to shoot but remarkably chose a low percentage pass to a covered teammate. That kind of play was particularly frustrating for our star, who after the nice stretch of five goals in five games has cooled off. It would also be his silly boarding penalty that awakened the Bruins from their mid-day nap. Though they didn't capitalize thanks to strong penalty killing with Brian Boyle returning after being hobbled by Ruslan Fedotenko accidentally bumping into him. Boyle and sidekick Brandon Prust didn't miss a beat nor did the rest of a PK that got the job done. In particular, Dan Girardi who was big all game with some outstanding work alongside partner Marc Staal while improving rookie tandem Ryan McDonagh and Mike Sauer stifled the B's.

A Girardi clean freight train on Lucic frustrated the big power forward, who eventually got duped by Brandon Dubinsky into a phantom slash. By then, Boston was finally playing better, ratcheting up their trademark physicality. One reason why I don't want to see them early assuming we make it. With nothing happening on the power play, Staal misjudged a puck, allowing the Bruins to come two-on-one. Brad Marchand got the puck to a streaking Bergeron, who had a step on Staal and crashed into Lundqvist after he denied the centerman's shorthanded bid. In truth, there was nothing Bergeron could've done as his momentum carried him into Henrik, who stayed down for a good minute before looking punch drunk when trainer Jim Ramsay came out. Amazingly, the guy I said is tougher than he looks stayed in and saved his best for last.

While Justin and I searched for birthday cards for a girl's party tonight, Lundqvist was doing his best to stifle an all out Boston assault. At least it wasn't criminal. :P When we got back to the car for the final eight minutes, the Bruins were like bees getting in Lundqvist's path. But he stood up to every challenge, denying the dozen shots sent his way. When he wasn't robbing someone, his hustling Ranger teammates were sacrificing their bodies in full playoff mode, blocking some 16 shots in one period. That's got to be some sort of record for a regular season game.

The last four and a half minutes was all Bruins. They fired from everywhere with a couple of times, it sounding like Kenny Albert was ready to say, "They score." But that moment never came as me and Justin looked at each other. In between all the huge saves Lundqvist made were crucial blocks by Boyle, Girardi, Sauer, Callahan and countless others. That's what's defined this team from Day One. Not the flat account they gave the other night versus Ottawa. It's that kinda resiliency which makes this the most rootable Ranger team I can remember in over a decade. Their work ethic wins you over along with the desire to get it done, which has always been Tortorella's mantra.

The last three games, our offense has cooled considerably, scoring only once in each yet we've come away with five of six points- thanks in large part to Lundqvist who has half his four shutouts over the three since Martin Biron went down. The 28 year-old Swede has started 20 straight and notched four of his league high 11 blankings. The way he has stepped up is what you expect from your best player. Make no mistake about it. It's Lundqvist who's defined this run with some of his finest work during his sixth season. One which started shaky with Biron even giving him a few nights off. There have been peaks and valleys but when the chips are down, Lundqvist's stepped up like a real King.

To win his first Vezina, he'll have to beat out a strong cast that features Tim Thomas, Carey Price and Pekka Rinne. All worthy candidates who have had great seasons. Only Price has been the most valuable, which is why I'd throw him and Marc-Andre Fleury in for the Hart if that's still permitted. In a down year offensively aside from The Sedins, where would the Habs or Pens be without their goalies? Enough of this Corey Perry MVP talk when his team may not even make it. Steven Stamkos still is in the convo as well.

What about Lundqvist, who on a team minus a 60-point scorer, more often than not becomes the story when his team looks in trouble. How about the shots he's taken, which scared the beejesus out of Garden Faithful. I thought he looked woozy after the Bergeron incident. Of course, he stayed in. The same man who responded to his coach's challenge earlier this week following another collision with Benoit Pouliot. The man has so much pride and must do it under the spotlight. Sure. The other candidates are good. But if it really is coming down to goaltending and pressure without much of a security blanket, then it should come down to Lundqvist versus Price. You can make a pretty good case for Price, who's also suffered some pepperings from us and recently these same B's who couldn't solve our goalie.

Counting today's yeoman effort, The King is up to 33 victories, 11 shutouts, 2.24 GAA and what would be a new career best in save percentage (.924). It's all but impossible to ignore how he's performed during this run. Over the last 10 games, Lundqvist's 8-1-1 with a 1.67 GAA, .936 save percentage plus three shutouts. This is the kinda superior goaltending our team's needed just to reach this point. Last year, they fell one point shy with the skill competition doing us in. Today's win matches the points (87) they had last year with six remaining. Now, the Rangers get three days off to rest their franchise netminder, who hopefully will be fresh for a crucial test in Buffalo Wednesday before paying a visit to Long Island the following day.

Ryan Callahan is the heart of this team. Brandon Prust the warrior. Brian Boyle the soul. Brandon Dubinsky the axe. Henrik Lundqvist is the backbone. It's time for him to win the Vezina.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Derek Stepan, NYR (20th goal of season for GW-5 20-goal scorers for NYR-06-07)
2nd Star-Dan Girardi, NYR (outstanding defense, four hits, four blocked shots in 26:24)
1st Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (26 saves-league leading 11th SHO, career No.35)

Ousted Sabres taught lesson

Well, so much for one half of my Cup pick. As it turned out, maybe the Sabres knew that the Bruins were the wrong match-up. At least that would explain pulling Ryan Miller to try to get back in that final regular season showdown against the Devils. Regardless, it sure didn't workout for either as each bowed out in the first round disappointing each fanbase.

Tonight, it was Buffalo's turn to lose doing so by a 4-3 final against a hungrier Boston club who did all the little things that win in the playoffs. You know. The same kinda stuff the Flyers did to New Jersey. Indeed, Lindy Ruff's club was outgritted by the Bruins, who took the closely fought series in six. It'd be easy to argue that the Sabres could've/should've won, referencing the good start taking Game One and leading 2-zip in Game Two before the roof caved in. Twice in this series against a hated opponent, Buffalo couldn't put it away, blowing two leads after the second for the first time all season. One thing about those stats which we researchers used all the time up at Bristol. They're meaningless at this crucial time of year. It's all about who wants it most. No lead is safe. Especially in the new NHL. You just can't approach it the same way in the playoffs.

Sure. Ruff's club missed Vanek, who returned from a high ankle sprain tonight netting a late goal with Miller pulled to get them within one with still 73 seconds left. It only delayed the inevitable, allowing former Sabre Miro Satan to notch the series winner a few days after crushing Buffalo hearts with his sudden death winner in Game Four. How could this happen? To quote my good pal Brian, "It's Buffalo." Where anything unforeseeable takes place. No goal. Check. No goal II. Check. Injury after injury defying logic when the '05-06 seemed on the verge of winning it all. Of course. Now you can add a once great Sabre who was washed up to the point where the desperate B's took a flier on him. And no. Normally, I don't write this script because it's the one that shall be echoed by our Buffalo contingent. I can see it now.

"Just another chapter in Buffalo sports lore."

How can we argue? We didn't even include football. I got nothing. I really liked this Sabre team and felt they could go a long way. Especially with Ryan Miller standing on his head. If he doesn't win the Vezina, something's wrong. No disrespect to Ilya Bryzgalov or Martin Brodeur. But Miller's the best goalie this season. Though I'd also like to see Bryzgalov get recognized with the Hart because no player was more valuable to their team. Especially the Coyotes, who get their crack at history tomorrow in the Desert. As for Miller, even in a special season where he played out of his mind, he gets silver in Vancouver and falls in the first round to shafted rookie Tuukka Rask. To think that the Maple Leafs gave away the Finn for Andrew Raycroft, who now backs up Roberto Luongo in Vancouver. Wow. Being that Bri absolutely loathes Toronto, they're to blame for this. Even when that franchises misses again, they somehow screw Buffalo. Pretty whacked.

Nobody feels worse than Miller, who gave his team every opportunity. Bottom line. The Bruins were peskier winning many board/puck battles as was evidenced at TD Garden. Minus Vanek and Jochen Hecht, the Sabres couldn't finish enough. They got nothing from Derek Roy and Tim Connolly, who may as well have been ghosts. When Nathan Gerbe does more in two games, you got issues. How come the B's got much more out of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, who torched Buffalo for two goals and a helper in the coup de grat. Ah. The power play. What a foreign concept that was for these Sabres, who may as well have had on half Devils and Rangers gear on. Special teams are so vital in playoffs. And like the other Battle participant, Buffalo failed miserably. If you're having trouble scoring and can't win the battle of special teams, you're screwed.

Why did Boston win? Because Claude Julien's club wanted it more. Forget how little they led until the clincher. They kept coming. One can't say the same for Buffalo, who seemed content to rely heavily on Miller to bail them out. That's not a good recipe this time of year. It'd also help if Toni Lydman could play his position. The Bruins got more out of journeyman Johnny Boychuk. And can anyone please tell me who the heck Adam McQuaid is. This ain't Total Recall. What else? Well, the Bruins had no trouble advancing minus Marc Savard. Grinders like Milan Lucic, Vladimir Sobotka and ex-Sabre Daniel Paille (Paille's Revenge???) owned the wall. Even Satan mixed it up. Their best players also were their best, meaning Zdeno Chara, Dennis Wideman, Bergeron, Krejci and Rask did their thing.

How many Sabres could you say that for outside of Miller? Jason Pominville (2-2-4) was fairly quiet. Tyler Myers struggled, perhaps hitting a rookie wall. The aforementioned Roy/Connolly went into the tank. Oh. Buffalo's grinders showed with Adam Mair, Mike Grier, Patrick Kaleta, Paul Gaustad, Cody McCormick and Tim Kennedy doing their part. But if there's one defining moment, it had to be 42 year-old dinosaur Mark Recchi knocking Matt Ellis off the puck and setting up Bergeron in Game Three. Brutal. Recchi knows what it takes and leads by example. How frustrating was it that deadline pickup Raffi Torres was reduced to a healthy scratch the last two? Only Buffalo.

It wasn't all bad as kids like Gerbe and Tyler Ennis distinguished themselves. Hell. Ennis came close to tying it. The miniscule 5-9, 163 pound center looked just fine putting up a goal and three assists in his first playoffs after tallying nine points in 10 games. With Myers the cornerstone of the blueline, the future looks bright. Problem is there are enough vets to challenge now. Miller's already 30. How many peak years does he got left? Buffalo can't afford to waste them which is why Roy and Connolly were so disappointing.

Maybe we're being too hard. This was their first taste of the playoffs in three years. Perhaps Boston's experience showed. Even though they went down fighting, it still was a tough way to end a good season. Hopefully, the lesson was learned.

Bruins edge Flyers in Winter Classic Finish

The 3rd Annual NHL Winter Classic did not disappoint at prestigious Fenway Park. In a battle of old rivals, the Boston Bruins rallied back to defeat the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 before nearly 40,000 screaming fans at the great ballpark on Yawkey Way. History was made as the B's became the first home team to win the signature even on New Year's Day. In the inaugural played at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, the Sabres fell to Sid The Kid and the Pens in a shootout. Last year in the Windy City, the Blackhawks came up short to the Red Wings at Wrigley Field.

It looked like the visitors would go three-for-three. Michael Leighton looked on his way to a second straight shutout. But a late power play goal from wily vet Mark Recchi and Marco Sturm's overtime winner gave the home supporters plenty to cheer in what amounted to the best of the three Classics to date. With apologies to Sidney Crosby for that glorious skill comp winner in the snow, watching Sturm win it in more conventional fashion was better. There's something about seeing a player score in OT as opposed to the more scripted gimmick where it's decided by a one-on-one. In today's game, we don't get enough of those cool celebrations. Even with four-on-four, a majority have needed the gimmick. So, it was cool to see Patrice Bergeron thread the needled to an open Sturm for a nifty tip past Leighton for the decider 1:57 into the extra five. Plus the celebration with the proud German slamming the glass before being mobbed by teammates was great on what amounted to a perfect winter day in Beantown.

The weather held up with ideal conditions as temps ranged from 28-35, thankfully minus rain with plenty of cloud cover. It was classic pond hockey for a bunch of paid pros playing a game they remember as kids. That's what makes this event so special. It's hockey in its purest form. Outdoors in all the elements. A big thanks must go out to Larry Lucchino for agreeing to host such a game. Just seeing the background of the Green Monster along with the mini rink on the side where kids skated was pretty damn jaw dropping. They did a fantastic job putting this together. A huge thank you to all the maintenance who worked so hard to get this thing ready. Hockey ain't done there either. There's also a college double header featuring BU vs BC on the men's side.

While it's true the first couple of periods weren't on the edge, it definitely picked up in the third, elevating for a memorable finish. Still, just getting to see two legends on each side greet their players as they were introduced was priceless. There was Bobby Clarke wearing the Flyer 'C' along with a few boos smirking as he skated up to meet old rival Bobby Orr for the ceremonial puck drop. One of the coolest aspects. Two of the greatest players who each led their team to a pair of Cups side by side, yucking it up. One arguably the best to ever play the sport. Ask my Dad or any of our older generation and the nod goes to Orr or Gordie Howe over Gretzky, Lemieux and Messier. Makes for a great bar debate.

Even if one of the most well known bloggers didn't care for a vast majority of a hard fought game, how could you not love that scrap between Daniel Carcillo and Shawn Thornton? Another Classic first as the two combatants dropped the gloves 8:01 in with the mustached Carcillo (ode to 70's Flyers) getting the decision by landing a clean right to drop Thornton. Class was shown as he immediately backed off and allowed the Bruins' enforcer to get up with each sending New Year's greetings. Good stuff.

Neither side scored in a tactical first which saw the clubs feel each other out. After the Bruins held a 9-6 SOG edge, the second was all Flyers. They entered riding a four-game win streak, aiming to go five-for-five on a six-game road trip. Like they had in the 6-0 Ranger trouncing, the Flyers played solid in front of Leighton not giving an anemic Boston offense much. If scoring was a strength last year, it's certainly not this time around as they are feeling the effects of no more Phil Kessel and Milan Lucic remains out. So much for making it back for the big game at Fenway.

With the B's unable to mount a consistent attack, the Flyers generated off their forecheck, forcing Team USA selection Tim Thomas to make some good saves. If not for the rating Vezina winner, it might've been ugly. Especially in a period where Philly doubled up Boston in shots (12-6). However, they were only able to beat Thomas once when Danny Syvret got his first NHL goal, giving the Flyers a 1-0 lead at 4:42. Off some nice work by Scott Hartnell and Jeff Carter, Syvret was able to beat the Boston netminder with a low shot through traffic. Leading by one, the Flyers also got the only power play in the first 40 but failed to cash in with Zdeno Chara in the box. There were some close calls but a scrambly Thomas kept them out. His play gave the B's a chance.

Thru two, Claude Julien's guys had totaled just 15 shots. The Flyers themselves had 18 but a cool dozen in the second and were far more aggressive. During intermission, he emphasized one missed chance in particular where Marc Savard passed to Thornton instead of shooting. Apparently, his team got the message quickly testing Leighton early, including a harmless shot from the outside that snuck through his legs and just off the right post. All day, players finished checks giving us the kind of hockey we see in the playoffs. In the third, the intensity picked up with alternate "Let's Go Bruins," and "Let's Go Flyers" chants in the stands. Feeding off the energy, each side came even harder. It opened up as a more desperate home team searched for the equalizer. That led to a couple of odd-man rushes. One in which Carter was set up perfect by Briere but couldn't finish it, narrowly missing wide with Thomas outstretched in the crease. The other was blocked.

With the B's coming close to tying as the minutes got into single digits, it was only a matter of time before they found an opening. With Chara driving the net, they nearly tied it but wound up with a power play when Kimmo Timonen hauled him down. The Flyers killed a good chunk but couldn't hold them off when some great passing allowed Recchi to tie it with 2:18 left. The play was started by Team Canada selection Patrice Bergeron, who dished across for Derek Morris. Morris then worked a textbook give-and-go with David Krejci, before firing a shot pass to Recchi in front for a neat redirect to a thunderous ovation. Tie game!

Urged on by the crowd, the Bruins drew another power play when Briere took down another player with 46 ticks left in regulation. To Philly's credit, they killed it off including the remaining 1:14 when it became 4-on-3. Hell. The Bruins almost turned it over at the blueline for what would've been a clean shorthanded breakaway for Mike Richards. Instead, the teams skated four-on-four each going for broke. The Flyers again came close but Thomas said no.

The winner came when Bergeron spun around Richards and then skated down the left wall before firing in front for Sturm, who deflected it home for his club-leading 14th- touching off a nice celebration that included fireworks. Chara started it, also drawing an assist. Just an outstanding play by Bergeron, who's bounced back in a big way with 11 goals and 20 helpers for a team best 31 points to make Canada. Last year, he returned from a concussion playing in 64 games with eight goals and 31 assists totaling 39 points.

Amazing to think that at only 24, he's already in his sixth season. Bergeron was in the same great '03 class as Team USA's Zach Parise, Carter, Richards, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, MA Fleury, E. Staal, Thomas Vanek, Dion Phaneuf, Dustin Brown, Ryan Kesler, Nathan Horton, Milan Michalek, Brent Seabrook, Ryan Suter, Braydon Coburn and Brent Burns. If you're a Ranger or Islander fan, duck and cover. Bergeron wasn't taken till 45th overall with gems Loui Eriksson and Shea Weber also slipping while somehow Joe Pavelski fell to Round 7. Dustin Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom went in the eighth round! Jaroslav Halak in Round 9. Rather than focus on the obvious, it's nice to see Bergeron back healthy and returning to form.

Congrats to the B's on a thrilling comeback that moves them temporarily within three of the Sabres, who also play tonight hosting the Thrashers at the bottom of the hour.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Patrice Bergeron, Bos (assist, 3 SOG, hit, takeaway, 7-10 draws, +1 in 18:05)
2nd Star-Tim Thomas, Bos (24 saves incl.11/12 in 2nd)
1st Star-Marco Sturm, Bos (Winter Classic OT winner, 3 SOG in 17:29)