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Boston Bruins Blogger •
It was May 12, 2009. The Boston Bruins had just knotted their second round playoff series at three apiece with the Carolina Hurricanes, victorious by a score of 4-2 in game six on the road. The significance? It was the last time the B’s put together back-to-back wins.
Here they are six months later, entering game 17 of the year, looking to put together their first winning streak of the 2009-10 season. It will be a tall task, as the reigning champion Pittsburgh Penguins visit the TD Garden for Tuesday’s tilt. The Penguins currently sit atop the Eastern Conference with 24 points and a sensational 7-2-0 record on the road.
The Bruins put a halt to a disturbing three game losing streak on Saturday, busting out with four goals against rookie Jhonas Enroth and the Buffalo Sabres. It was the first time a Bruins’ game was more entertaining than watching paint dry in quite a while. In their previous three games combined, they found twine just once. At one point, Boston was held scoreless for over 192 consecutive minutes of hockey. Zdeno Chara, Mark Recchi and Marco Sturm finally put an end to their lengthy goal-less streaks, with Sturm netting his first tally in a dozen games.
The B’s managed to pot two power play goals on the evening, scoring on the man advantage for the first time since before the wheel was invented. Their PP jumped from 30th to 27th, but it still sits at a paltry 13.8% success rate. Pittsburgh, despite their illustrious lineup, is just a sliver better at 14.7% (25th). Hurry back now, Geno.
The Penguins, meanwhile, enter the game having allowed 10 goals in their last two outings, their first two losses away from home in 2009-10. Sidney Crosby and last year’s pivotal playoff pickup Bill Guerin have hit a lull as of late. Crosby has been held pointless in four straight contests, while the veteran winger Guerin has just a single point in his last five games. Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, pulled Saturday night in an eventual 5-0 loss in San Jose, is 0-2-0 in his last 2 starts with a 5.90 GAA and .825 Sv%.
Boston’s netminding duo has been solid as a rock in the midst of the offensive power outage. Rask is 2-0-0 in his last two starts with a 1.00 GAA and .959 Sv%, while Tim Thomas has gone 0-2-1 with a 1.32 GAA and .947 Sv% in his last three outings. Over the last seven games, Michael Ryder and offensively gifted blueliners Dennis Wideman and Matt Hunwick have all been held pointless.
The B’s were 2-1-1 against the Pens in 2008-09, and would have had another crack at them in the Eastern Conference Finals were it not for that Scott Walker goal that will haunt Bruins’ fans for all eternity in game seven. Beating the Penguins this past spring would have given Boston their first finals appearance since 1990. Beating them tomorrow night will give the B’s their first winning streak of the 2009-10 season. One step at a time as they say, right?
JC
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Here they are six months later, entering game 17 of the year, looking to put together their first winning streak of the 2009-10 season. It will be a tall task, as the reigning champion Pittsburgh Penguins visit the TD Garden for Tuesday’s tilt. The Penguins currently sit atop the Eastern Conference with 24 points and a sensational 7-2-0 record on the road.
The Bruins put a halt to a disturbing three game losing streak on Saturday, busting out with four goals against rookie Jhonas Enroth and the Buffalo Sabres. It was the first time a Bruins’ game was more entertaining than watching paint dry in quite a while. In their previous three games combined, they found twine just once. At one point, Boston was held scoreless for over 192 consecutive minutes of hockey. Zdeno Chara, Mark Recchi and Marco Sturm finally put an end to their lengthy goal-less streaks, with Sturm netting his first tally in a dozen games.
The B’s managed to pot two power play goals on the evening, scoring on the man advantage for the first time since before the wheel was invented. Their PP jumped from 30th to 27th, but it still sits at a paltry 13.8% success rate. Pittsburgh, despite their illustrious lineup, is just a sliver better at 14.7% (25th). Hurry back now, Geno.
The Penguins, meanwhile, enter the game having allowed 10 goals in their last two outings, their first two losses away from home in 2009-10. Sidney Crosby and last year’s pivotal playoff pickup Bill Guerin have hit a lull as of late. Crosby has been held pointless in four straight contests, while the veteran winger Guerin has just a single point in his last five games. Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, pulled Saturday night in an eventual 5-0 loss in San Jose, is 0-2-0 in his last 2 starts with a 5.90 GAA and .825 Sv%.
Boston’s netminding duo has been solid as a rock in the midst of the offensive power outage. Rask is 2-0-0 in his last two starts with a 1.00 GAA and .959 Sv%, while Tim Thomas has gone 0-2-1 with a 1.32 GAA and .947 Sv% in his last three outings. Over the last seven games, Michael Ryder and offensively gifted blueliners Dennis Wideman and Matt Hunwick have all been held pointless.
The B’s were 2-1-1 against the Pens in 2008-09, and would have had another crack at them in the Eastern Conference Finals were it not for that Scott Walker goal that will haunt Bruins’ fans for all eternity in game seven. Beating the Penguins this past spring would have given Boston their first finals appearance since 1990. Beating them tomorrow night will give the B’s their first winning streak of the 2009-10 season. One step at a time as they say, right?
JC
ROCK THE VOTE: Fan Poll Friday: The Best Hockey Gift You've Ever Received
QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS?: Email HockeybuzzBruins
ARCHIVE FOOTAGE: The HockeybuzzBruins Youtube Channel
FOLLOW ME TO FREEDOM: JC's Tweets
BOOKWORM: The Details of JC's New England Hockey Book in the Works
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