Lessons From Last Night's Game

You won't get far against good teams without a power play.

Ryder and Sturm might not be superstars, but losing them has really hurt the Bruins at both ends of the ice... and particularly on the power play (see #1).

You can't plan for, or defend against, fluke goals. Don't put too much stock in a game decided by them.

You can't plan for, or defend against, fluke injuries. Don't plan your season around having everyone healthy.

If the Bruins are going to play only half a game, it's better they play the second half.

When two good hockey teams go head-to-head, it's a beautiful thing to watch... no matter who wins.

As a fan, don't put too much emotion into a February matchup, no matter who's playing. If you win, the buzz only lasts for a day or two. If you lose, it's not fun anymore. Either way, there's another game right around the corner.

Leafs vs. Bruins: Takeaways

All things considered, this was a good win for the Bruins. Down 2 goals to enter the third period, missing the majority of their scoring punch, heading into the All-Star break and riding a 2-game losing streak... that's when you need your best players to step up.

Three stars of the night:

Blake Wheeler - I'm going to stop calling him a "kid" before too long. He stepped up and publicly took responsibility for the Blues loss, then came out and played a key role in taking this game away from the Leafs. Big, big, big kudos to him for having that kind of chutzpah.

Marc Savard - There's an unknown highlight that you'll never see on Youtube -- with 6:00 to go in the second period, Savard completely took control of a shift in Gretzky-like fashion. Even though it didn't lead to a goal, he made four different setup passes to different players, each a no-look touch pass on the move. Then he made the key assist on Chara's tying goal. Only a few players in the world can control a game like that.

Martin St. Pierre - That penalty in overtime was the kind of thing that can get a guy sent back to the AHL, but Julien showed faith in the kid in the skills competition... not unlike his choice of Wheeler in Monday's shootout. That's great coaching, and it's paying huge dividends in confidence.

Other game reviews:
Stanley Cup of Chowder
The Hockey Blog Adventure
The Bear Cave

Also of interest:
Hub Hockey asks -- was Tim Thomas' hit on Jason Blake legal? Leave your 2 cents in the comments.
Leafs Hockey Analysis provides a fascinating, detailed look at the Bruins' rebuilding plan and what lessons the Leafs might take away from it.
All Habs is convinced that Tim Thomas is nothing but "smoke and mirrors". Here are Part 1 and Part 2 of the debate.

Bruins vs. Thrashers: Takeaways

For the first time this season, I got the chance to see the Bruins live tonight. As good as NESN makes them look, there's nothing like the real thing.

- Philips Arena is a fairly nice, though character-free, place to see a hockey game. It's part of the CNN Center, which is basically a mall/hotel complex, which makes for a Whaler-esque gameday experience. Go to the mall, grab a taco, see a hockey game.

Believe it or not, there are a decent number of Thrashers fans who really support the team. Unfortunately they are a minority in their own building -- more than two-thirds of the crowd is either visiting fans or casual attendees. Though the game presentation is sharp and the hardcore fans are dedicated, the overall atomosphere in the arena (even on a holiday weekend with a smoking-hot Original Six opponent) is muted. Well, muted is a soft word. Let's use "dead" instead.

Does the NHL belong in Atlanta? I think so. But only when the Thrashers organization gets its act together, and connects its fans with a promising and exciting team, will we see any rewards from this gamble. If the league decides to cut its losses and the Thrashers move, it won't be without collateral damage to the fanbase who continue to support them in spite of a mountain of challenges.

- Make no mistake, the Bruins didn't play winning hockey tonight. They were sloppy with the puck, especially in their own end, and took foolish penalties at bad times. Manny Fernandez stood on his head but was also very lucky not to let in 3 or 4 goals. With 10 minutes left in the game, I had that "We're playing right into their hands" feeling.

For their part, the Thrashers played very conservatively and spent the evening looking for a game-breaking play. Their problem isn't a lack of effort or coaching, but a lack of talent from top to bottom. This is not a roster that would be fixed by upgrading one, two, or even five roster slots. What can you do when you're in that position? I wonder how their fans feel about the second half of the season.

- David Krecji's assist on the game-winning goal was truly a thing of beauty. Only a truly special playmaker would've had both the vision and the skill to identify Michael Ryder's charge to the net and deliver a perfectly flat, precisely-timed pass across the entire zone while skating full speed and dodging a defenseman. It's becoming more and more obvious that the addition of Krecji is the single greatest factor in Boston's improvement over the past 12 months.

- Great to see Aaron Ward on the ice again. His game was mostly quiet, though he threw a crunching check in the 2nd. It'll be nice to start hearing scuttlebutt about Andrew Ference's return as well.

- Next up: Pittsburgh in a home-and-home to close out 2008 and open 2009. We've won 4 of 5 on this roadtrip so far and will be heading into our biggest homestand of the season. Should be a barn-burner at the Igloo.

Bruins vs. Devils: Lazy Takeaways

Hey, it's Christmas. Give me a break.

- The Bruins' 2-0 win over New Jersey was worth more than any 7-3 win over Atlanta. Not because they dominated, not because they built an unsurpassable lead in the first half-period, but because it was the closest thing we've seen all season to playoff hockey. Both teams were disciplined and playing as if they knew that it would be a one-goal affair. Winning games like this can make the difference in May.

- When they were called up, we expected Vlad Sobotka and Matt Lashoff to be NHL-ready players. I didn't have the same feeling about Martin St. Pierre. Scoring a point a game in the AHL doesn't bear any relevance to NHL success, and St. Pierre didn't exactly explode off the Bruins' depth chart. But he's played pretty well in his two games, forechecking hard and making safe plays in difficult situations. He's also taken faceoffs with occasional success.

- Speaking of which, take a closer look at the faceoff numbers from that game: Savard was 2-10, St. Pierre was 1-6, Yelle was 8-16. Not so great, right? Then you get down to David Krejci, who was 10-12. Have I mentioned how incredibly pleasing it's been to see that guy develop into a legit star?

- Manny says: "Touche, Timmy."