It appeared as if Milan Lucic broke Ryan Miller‘s spirit when he drilled him outside of the crease, and subsequently sidelined the Buffalo goaltender with a concussion/stiff neck. But now, as the Buffalo Sabres sit a mere two points out of the playoff picture, it’s been the 31-year-old Miller that’s resurrected the Sabres' playoff hopes.

Winning seven of his last nine starts, Miller's been the brick-wall Buffalo needed when it came to avoiding a premature demise evident by his .938 save-percentage since the start of February. Yet, it's the Bruins -- the same team that ran Miller back in November -- that have had the hardest time when it comes to beating the Michigan-born netminder.

In two post-hit appearances against Boston, Miller is a perfect 2-0-0, and has allowed just one goal on 72 shots faced. That's an otherworldly .986 save-percentage. Seriously. Hell, dating back to the hit, Miller was a tame 5-6-0 with a .908 save-percentage before getting trucked by the truck wearing No. 17. Since then? He's 18-12-5 with a .916.

At the other end of the rink, the B's will counter with Tim Thomas for his third straight start. Stopping 25 of 29 in Tuesday's 5-4 win over the Maple Leafs, it was the second straight contest where the 37-year-old had allowed at least four goals in a game. It was the first time he's done since Feb. 13 and 15 of last year, when he allowed four against the Red Wings and then four against the Maple Leafs. Overall, Thomas has 10 wins in 21 career starts against Buffalo with a 3.14 goals-against-average.

Game-Changers

Hard to go to anyone besides Jordan Caron if you're looking for a major player tonight. The 21-year-old Caron has doubled his point total in the past two games -- tallying three goals and adding two assists in the last 120 minutes of play -- and comes into the game on Boston's third line wing, where the Bruins will undoubtedly need a strong effort to get some secondary scoring on the board once again.

Look for Buffalo's Jason Pominville to continue to make life hell for the Bruins. With two goals and two assists in four games against Boston this year, the Buffalo captain rolls into town with 35 points in 43 career games against the Bruins. Also known as a notoriously streaky player, the 6-foot winger is coming off a two-point performance in last night's win against Carolina.

Stats of Note

- The Bruins are 13-0-0 when Zdeno Chara has a multi-point night.

- Boston forward Brad Marchand has one goal/point in the last seven games.

- David Krejci has a point in all four games this month.

- Buffalo blue-liner Christian Ehrhoff has two goals and four assists in eight career games against the B’s.

- Cody Hodgson does not have a point in five games with the Sabres.

- Sabres’ Thomas Vanek has seven points in six Thursday games this year.

News and Notes

New Boston back-up Marty Turco will be on the bench for tonight’s tilt. Turco practiced with the club yesterday, and the 22-year-old Michael Hutchinson has been returned to Providence in response.

Forward Max Sauve and defensemen Mike Mottau are expected to be the Bruins’ healthy scratches, and both Andrew Ference and Daniel Paille will not suit up as they remain ‘day-to-day’ per Claude Julien.

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