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Bruins, 3-2 (SO -- final)

Email|Link|Comments (17) Posted by Fluto Shinzawa, Globe Staff November 23, 2008 12:01 AM

For the first time since Dec. 4, 2006, the Bruins claimed a win at the Bell Centre.

And not just any win. A 3-2 shootout win over the hated Habs that puts the Bruins all alone in first place in the East, two points ahead of the Rangers.

"There were a lot of things we still had to accomplish as a team," said Claude Julien. "One of them was to win here in this building in the regular season. It had been a while. So it was a good win for us. I thought the guys battled hard. We knew it would be a tough game but we stood up to the challenge and found a way to win."

Tim Thomas foiled Alex Kovalev, Andrei Markov, and Saku Koivu in the shootout. Blake Wheeler, Boston's first shooter, beat Carey Price.

Predictably, much of the post-game buzz revolved around Milan Lucic and his night under Georges Laraque's verbal assault. Laraque spent most of the first period trying to get Lucic to drop the gloves. Julien, however, had instructed Lucic not to fight Laraque. "Pretty simple," said Julien. "We've got a good hockey player who's 20 years old and is a first-line player. Simple as that. You think we were going to send him against probably the toughest guy in the league?" Lucic declined to offer any specifics on his confrontations with Laraque, only to say that he'd never been shadowed like that by a tough guy.

Thomas made starts on consecutive nights for the second time this season. Thomas was sharp again and had no chance on either of Montreal's goals.

Lucic led all players with nine hits. Steve Begin and Francis Bouillon led the Canadiens with six hits each.

STICK SALUTE: Lucic. It must have been challenging for Lucic to swallow his pride and decline to fight Laraque. But Lucic responded by scoring his team's first goal and earning the respect of his coaches and teammates.

SIN BIN: Tomas Plekanec. The slick center absolutely killed the Bruins during the regular season last year. But he had only one shot and little presence in 18:50 of ice time.

tags Blake Wheeler, Milan Lucic, Tim Thomas

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17 comments so far...

Wow...Montreal played really well but Thomas blocked everything against. He's amazing so far and i wish Ryder 30 goals (i doubt it tho..)

Posted by Montreal JF November 23, 08 12:34 AM

I am officially in love with the 2008 Bruins.

Posted by nate November 23, 08 01:01 AM

Montreal played alright considering the B's were playing their 5th game in 8 days (second in 2 days).

Posted by Rich November 23, 08 01:12 AM

Dang! When are the fans going to embrace this team again! They've beaten their archrival 2 games in a row! On a night the Habs retire Roy's number!
They are #1 in the Eastern Conference. And showing they can beat their supposed challengers.

I've been posting throughout the offseason that the Bs WILL surprise this year. And so far, they are doing even more.

I guess it's like the Celtics. The Garden will sell out come April...

Posted by nick November 23, 08 02:14 AM

Nick, the true fans have always been here to embrace them, and thats all that matters. When the bandwagon fills up, just remember that we've always been there from the begining of time and never waivered.
Nate, couldn't agree more. This is a real good team and a really fun team to watch.

Posted by Harry Stamper November 23, 08 08:33 AM

Milan Lucic is a hypocrite little wimp. Doesn't have the guts to face the music and dance with Laraque.

Classless player from a classless organization.

Posted by Adrian Pagano November 23, 08 09:21 AM

Very true, Harry. Even though the last 15+ have, at times, been hard to watch, the real fans kept the faith and filled the seats.
I'm real happy for Don Sweeney, Chirelli, and Neely. What a wonderful job they've done so far.
I live in Europe now, but I stay up and watch each and every game online, even if it means only getting to bed at 4 a.m. It's worth it! Go B's!!!

Posted by PeteH November 23, 08 10:19 AM

oncce again that sissy boy LUCIC tucks his tail between his legs when BIG GOERGE wanted to dance. WHAT A COWARD.

Posted by JOE November 23, 08 11:49 AM

"Hypocrite little wimp?" Is that all the trolls can come up with after getting taken out again? "Classless organization?" First in the conference.

While you are worrying about Montreal's fighters, we were watching Boston beating them again.

Face it chump, the Bruins are for real.

Posted by Harv November 23, 08 12:16 PM

why would lucic risk going to the box for 5 minutes for fighting a guy who barely plays 5 minutes a game?

you dont have someone from your top 2 lines and PP units fight a goon who rides the bench. that would just be dumb. Lucic's job is to help the team win games with his skill. Thorton's job is to fight the goons.

i think montreal having BGL shadow Lucic all night hurt their game

Posted by mattyw November 23, 08 12:59 PM

I think Lucic's hands needed some healing after destroying Nick Boynton....no use crippling his sore hands on BGL cement head....hes too valuable to be sitting in the sin bin.....Julien played it right and Looch listened to his coach....It was up to Thornton to step in and do the job that he is there for....Chara could wipe the ice up with Laroque but once again he is not being paid to be an enforcer....it was Thornton who disappointed me.....never the less the Bruins who I thought at times seemed a bit sluggish ( understandably so considering their busy schedule) still beat the habs....Imagine when they are rested!

Posted by Wayne November 23, 08 03:33 PM

I predict that lucic will take on george and win at some point this season. How many goals does laraque have?

Posted by LOOOCH November 23, 08 04:46 PM

Lucic gets a shadow. Lucic = Gretzky. Bwahahahaa.

Hey, Montreal trolls, a "classless" player doesn't obey his coach. Lucic did. His coach says "don't fight," he doesn't fight. How difficult is that to understand?

Winning the game is more important than satisfying the wants of Canadiens fans.

Posted by duinne November 23, 08 07:14 PM

here come the sell outs, higher ticket prices, and quieter crowds...I guess it comes with success (see: Red Sox from 2004-present, and the Celtics of last year). But who can really complain? This is the most fun I've ever had watching the Bruins. They should start having a "fan test" to determine who can buy tickets to the games.

Posted by Josh November 23, 08 08:43 PM

While we're on the subject of classless, any Habs fans in here want to explain Steve Begin's cross-check to Savard's back from behind last season? He's a player who's made a name playing with his tail between his legs.

Furthermore, Habs fans, do any of you recall Thornton and Laraque's first fight in your home opener? When Laraque lost his balance in the tussle, Thornton let him back up to his skates. Classy, eh? He didn't hit a guy while he was down and defenseless ... that's really more of a Steve Begin thing.

And the obvious has already been stated in this forum, but if Lucic had defied the coach and put his team in jeopardy by fighting, that would be classless.

Posted by Adam November 24, 08 05:09 AM

It's not always necessary or smart to exact revenge by dropping the gloves when sometimes the best revenge just comes from playing good hockey. Lucic's goal was poetic justice, plain and simple. Having a little class goes a long way.

Posted by stephanie November 25, 08 12:18 AM

A Canadiens' fan on a Bruins blog complaining about how classless The Bruins' and Milan Lucic are? Awesome. Winning on Patrick Roy night hurts a bit doesn't it? It definitely doesn't make all the games Roy beat the B's any better, but it sure feels good spoiling his party.

Posted by derek November 25, 08 05:40 PM