(Welcome to the TD Garden for tonight's match-up between the Boston Bruins and visiting Edmonton Oilers.)

With three straight wins, the B's will find themselves going for the fantastic win number four. The bad news: In town? The Northwest-leading Edmonton Oilers. Seizing 15 of a possible 20 points in their last ten games, the Oilers arrive to Boston in search of their first victory over the B's in their last nine meetings.

"This is a team that’s played extremely well and the skill level again on that team is certainly not a question mark," Claude Julien said of the Oilers. "Their goaltender has been outstanding which we’ve seen him do in the past so he’s capable of doing it and I think that’s our challenge tonight is defending against their skill and finding away to score against a hot goaltender."

For the first time in 2011-12, Tuukka Rask will get his second straight start in net. Stopping 24 of 26 in Boston's 6-2 win over the Islanders on Monday, Rask will get the nod looking to remain perfect in his career against the Oil. With a 2-0-0 record in two nods against Edmonton, the 24-year-old Rask has stopped 34 of 36 shots and has one shutout.

He'll be opposed by Edmonton back-up Devan Dubnyk. This will be Dubnyk's first start since Nov. 5, when he allowed three goals on 29 shots in a 4-2 loss to the Phoenix Coyotes.

On an injury note, the B's will enter play without both Danny Paille (broken nose) and Rich Peverley (undisclosed), paving the way for the 2011-12 debut of Zach Hamill. Widely regarded one of the many first round draft busts from 2007, the 23-year-old Hamill had five goals and 10 points in 14 games with the Providence Bruins prior to this call-up. He'll be skating on Boston's third line.

FIRST PERIOD

19:30 - The Oilers nearly score right off the bat! Ryan Smyth's shot rings the cross-bar. Scary start for the B's there.

13:39 - B's with a flurry of chances in this one as Brad Marchand gets things going for the Bergeron line but Dubnyk says no.

12:49 - Boston will jump out to a 1-0 lead when Johnny Boychuk blasts home his

11:05 - And just like that, it's 2-0 in favor of the Black and Gold. Jordan Caron will get the goal, his first of the season, and Hamill will get the assist. That's a very old Dubnyk-esque goal.

10:57 - Rask with a beauty of a point-blank save from an Oiler. Huge save there to preserve the 2-0 lead.

7:58 - Ryan Smyth on the doorstep and the B's lead is cut in half. That's a six-game point streak for Smyth, now. And the Oil are 5-0-1 in 2011-12 when #94 has a tally.

7:29 - Tie game! Taylor Hall with a beautiful pass to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and he knows what to do with that. Beats Rask cleanly and we're all squared away at 2-2.

3:00 - Oilers are really controlling the second half of this period, they've caught up to the Bruins in shots. The B's lead by six shots at one point.

1:43 - Theo Peckham going off for two minutes. Roughing is the call. Hamill's the victim.

THOUGHTS AFTER 20

Considering the way that the Oilers skated around them, it's fair to say that the Bruins were pretty lucky to get two goals in that period. Leading the shots 13-to-12 through the first period, Boston will begin the second frame with 17 seconds left on their power-play, but really need to find a way to keep Edmonton's 'Kid Line' in check. They've been dicing up the B's defense all game long.

Proving that no team really has an edge, it should be noted that the Bruins come into the night with a 3-2 record when scoring first while the Oil counter with a 3-2 record when allowing the first goal. Meanwhile, the B's are 1-2-0 when tied after one while the Oilers are 7-1-0 when in such a situation.

SECOND PERIOD

17:51 - Tyler Seguin with a strong rush up ice, looking for separation, but gets slowed down by Jeff Petry hook. Rather soft call, if I do say so. Boston going back on the power-play.

16:10 - B's regain the lead as a Joe Corvo shot is tipped down and through Dubnyk by Brad Marchand. That's Marchand's first goal in nine games.

13:36 - Pinball wizard! Puck bounces all over the place, looks like it's off Corey Potter and into the back of the cage. B's regain their two-goal edge. Tyler Seguin will get credit for the goal (somehow) and now has a two-point night for those keeping track at home.

10:31 - Shawn Thornton's going off for hooking.

8:11 - Really nice penalty-kill from the Bruins on that one. Edmonton did a great job of cycling the puck and putting shots on net, and even though he's aged quite a bit, Smyth remains as one of the NHL's best net-front presences. Boston will take their timeout after an icing call. Same penalty-killers who had been out there nearly a full two minutes will stay out there.

5:00 - No Andrew Ference on the B's bench. Not sure what happened.

4:42 - Ales Hemsky with a dandy of a move around Zdeno Chara. No goal to show for it as Rask stands tall, but wowzers.

3:12 - Edmonton youngster Jordan Eberle will take two in the sin-bin. Interference the call on him, and Boston's power-play goes back to work.

3:00 - Ryan Jones just smashed Corvo with a clean open-ice hit. Ouch.

0.0 - Nothing comes about on the Boston power-play.

THOUGHTS AFTER 40

This game is just flying by, huh? B's lead Oilers on the scoreboard by two, and on the shots marker by five. With 22 shots through 40, the Bruins really took control of the second period and held Edmonton to just about nothing. They had five shots, and no goals in a period that saw guys like Hall and Nugent-Hopkins play nearly seven minutes.

Look for an early put-away goal from the B's to begin the third.

THIRD PERIOD

20:00 - Andrew Ference will not return to the game per B's PR staff. Not sure what happened.

18:55 - Net's off the moorings and Corey Potter is going to the box for high-sticking. Boston getting another chance on the power-play.

13:45 - Boston going back on the penalty-kill. Gregory Campbell off for hooking Eric Belanger. He's not happy about it.

9:00 - This period has been all Edmonton. Tremendous passing, great shooting lanes, and some straight-up scary lapses in the Boston defense from their pressure. The only thing missing? A goal or two.

6:35 - Edmonton gets another crack on the power-play. Eberle gets high-sticked..with his own stick. Patrice Bergeron called for it. He's not happy, either. Nobody's happy!

4:42 - Give them that much time, and they'll score. B's can't clear the puck once, and Smyth gets his second of the night. He was making Rask's life absolute hell on that man-advantage. The Bruins have no had no answer for Smyth all night long.

3:04 - Dumb penalty to take if you're Cam Barker. He shoves a Bruin down and the Oil will be shorthanded for the next two minutes. Seguin draws the call.

2:47 - There's your insurance, Milan Lucic deflects a Corvo shot and it's 5-3 in favor of the B's.

2:03 - Make it three. Marchand rips it and it's now 6-3 Boston. The wheels on Dubnyk's bus come off, off, off. Marchand's second of the night.

0.0 - B's win big. More from the locker room in a bit.

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