Phil Kessel can go ahead and thank his lucky stars, as Bruins' captain Zdeno Chara will miss his first game of this season tonight. The B's blueliner is suffering from a lower-body injury, keeping him from suiting up against the Maple Leafs.

Chara, who currently has five goals, 30 assists and a +6 rating on the year, proved be the other "shoe to drop" after the Bruins announced the emergency recall of Jeff Penner yesterday. So far in 2009-10 for Providence, the 5'10" d-man has six goals and 21 assists. Currently in his second professional season, tonight will mark the NHL debut for the 22-year-old native of Manitoba.

Kessel has been blanked in all four meetings against his former team, as Chara and the rest of the B's blueliners have held the speedy winger to 12 unsuccessful shots. Kessel owns a -3 rating on the year against the Black and Gold. Opportunities should prove to be drastically easier to come by without an imposing 6'9" Norris Trophy winner shadowing him.

Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe expects the following lineup:

Sturm - Bergeron - Recchi
Wheeler - Krejci - Ryder
Lucic - Sobotka - Satan
Paille - Begin - Thornton

Hunwick - Seidenberg
Stuart - Wideman
Penner - Boychuk

Thomas
Rask

Thomas' lone start against the Leafs came just days ago in a 3-2 shootout victory. The 35-year-old netminder stopped 24 of 26 shots, and followed it up by blanking the Leafs on all three attempts in the shootout. Tuukka Rask, who has returned to the squad but will serve backup duties this evening, is 3-1-0 on the year against Toronto with a sparkling .938 Sv% and 2.01 GAA.

The Leafs have had a heap of trouble burying the puck lately. Toronto has just eight goals over their last six games. Keeping the puck out has been equally as challenging for Ron Wilson's squad, notably for Jean-Sebastien Giguere. The former Conn Smythe winner has an 0-3-1 record in his last four games with a 3.45 GAA and .882 Sv%.

Jonas Gustavsson, who picked up a 25-save shutout against the Bruins earlier on the year, has started just one of the Leafs' four games since the Olympics concluded. The Swedish netminder stopped 24 of 25 in a 2-1 OT victory over the Sens on Saturday.

This will be game three of a seven-game road trip for the Bruins. Thus far they are 1-1-0.

JC

BE A FRIEND: JC's New Facebook Page

LISTOMANIA!: The Top Five Candidates for the 2009-10 Calder Trophy

QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS?: Email HockeybuzzBruins

ARCHIVE FOOTAGE: The HockeybuzzBruins Youtube Channel

BOOKWORM: The Details of JC's New England Hockey Book in the Works

Join the Discussion: Chat Room » Message Board »

» All Is Quiet in the Hub of Hockey: Calm Before the Storm?

» Poor Prioritizing Will Make Cap Mess a Tough Fix for Chiarelli

» Fan Poll: If You Could Fire One Current NHL Head Coach...

» Name Your Price: How Much is Blake Wheeler Worth?

» Will the Savard Situation Cost the B's Their Captain Next Summer?