For the second time in a week, the Bruins (22-9-2) face off against the Calgary Flames (13-15-5) in their first home game since December 7th's game against the Penguins.
The Flames haven't improved much since the last time we saw them. In the past week they've been 2-1-1 and have managed to maintain a -20 goal differential. In their last three, they were still scoring around 2 goals per game while allowing 2 goals against per game, which isn't something you want to see if you're hoping to come out of a game with two points. As a result of all this, they are still sitting pretty at 13th in the Western Conference.
The Flames haven't improved much since the last time we saw them. In the past week they've been 2-1-1 and have managed to maintain a -20 goal differential. In their last three, they were still scoring around 2 goals per game while allowing 2 goals against per game, which isn't something you want to see if you're hoping to come out of a game with two points. As a result of all this, they are still sitting pretty at 13th in the Western Conference.
The Bruins are coming into this game with a chip on their shoulder after Saturday's 6-2 loss to the Canucks. We are still playing with a laundry list of injuries, which you can find here, and one lengthy suspension (which is currently being appealed).
But as I've been saying since the laundry list of injuries began, we are fully capable of winning games. Although the loss to the Canucks may be a minor set back, the Bruins don't usually get held up on losses. We're relatively good at moving past them and at least attempting to fix the mistakes we made that caused us to lose.
This game will be no different. It's obvious the Bruins realize how poorly they played against the Canucks. I mean Tuukka Rask himself said "I'm not going to make any excuses. I was pretty bad." And Milan Lucic even went out drinking after the game to "blow off some steam" and almost walloped a guy during an altercation outside a Vancouver bar. Although recognizing the issues you had during a hockey game by threatening to kill someone isn't exactly a good thing, recognition in general is crucial to being able to move forward.
And playing a team who we've beat once already during our "the hockey gods hate the Bruins" period is definitely going to help us move past Saturday's game and return to the good old Bruins hockey we all know and love.
But as I've been saying since the laundry list of injuries began, we are fully capable of winning games. Although the loss to the Canucks may be a minor set back, the Bruins don't usually get held up on losses. We're relatively good at moving past them and at least attempting to fix the mistakes we made that caused us to lose.
This game will be no different. It's obvious the Bruins realize how poorly they played against the Canucks. I mean Tuukka Rask himself said "I'm not going to make any excuses. I was pretty bad." And Milan Lucic even went out drinking after the game to "blow off some steam" and almost walloped a guy during an altercation outside a Vancouver bar. Although recognizing the issues you had during a hockey game by threatening to kill someone isn't exactly a good thing, recognition in general is crucial to being able to move forward.
And playing a team who we've beat once already during our "the hockey gods hate the Bruins" period is definitely going to help us move past Saturday's game and return to the good old Bruins hockey we all know and love.
Now, our last win against the Flames may have not been the prettiest of wins, but we got the job done well enough all things considered. But as much as I might like a win coming from well enough, I would definitely prefer a win done very well.
To do this, we need to start with our defense, who looked more like swiss cheese than they did a professional hockey defense. I'll cut them a minor break considering the illnesses and injuries, but it can't be excused. We were out there looking like chickens with our heads cut off because for some reason there seemed to be no chemistry amongst our defensive pairs. They weren't coordinating plays or strategy and this resulted in them creating more turnovers and rushes than opportunities. Our defense needs to regain some form of cohesion and they need to do it fast. The pressure to help with this is going to fall heavily on our veteran d-men, who know the Bruins game inside and out and know what is to be expected after a loss.
Overall, our defense just needs to focus on literally just playing simple defense. We were struggling with basic defensive concepts: blocking rushes, shooting lanes and passing lanes. Keeping the puck in the offensive zone or forcing it out of our own zone. Being forceful and efficient on the backcheck. It's all basic hockey that the Bruins defense is capable of playing, they just need to find their rhythm again.
Our offense wasn't innocent either. If we want to win tonight, our offense needs to, first and foremost, actually get the puck into the offensive zone for more than two seconds. If we can do that, then we need to focus on actually shooting the puck like we're professional hockey players, not pee wee level. All through the Canucks game the Bruins were firing at Luongo's chest and what do you know, we barely scored any goals. The only two goals scored were when Reilly Smith buried the puck UNDER Luongo's gloved hand and UNDER his stick side.
This ability to shoot at something other than the goalie's chest is going to be key if we plan on scoring any goals tonight. Berra is not a difficult goalie to beat. He's got a huge five hole and tends to be a bit slower on his gloved side. He's also a little bit slower with his pad slides and his reset. All the Bruins have to do is keep pressure on him and attempt to take advantage of his weaknesses and we will score goals.
At this point, I can't really say who in particular to watch. Everyone (outside of Reilly Smith) was kind of struggling last game so it should be interesting to see how they all recuperate from it and move forward. If anything, I would keep a close eye on Tuukka Rask, who we all know probably destroyed some milk crates after his performance against Vancouver.
To do this, we need to start with our defense, who looked more like swiss cheese than they did a professional hockey defense. I'll cut them a minor break considering the illnesses and injuries, but it can't be excused. We were out there looking like chickens with our heads cut off because for some reason there seemed to be no chemistry amongst our defensive pairs. They weren't coordinating plays or strategy and this resulted in them creating more turnovers and rushes than opportunities. Our defense needs to regain some form of cohesion and they need to do it fast. The pressure to help with this is going to fall heavily on our veteran d-men, who know the Bruins game inside and out and know what is to be expected after a loss.
Overall, our defense just needs to focus on literally just playing simple defense. We were struggling with basic defensive concepts: blocking rushes, shooting lanes and passing lanes. Keeping the puck in the offensive zone or forcing it out of our own zone. Being forceful and efficient on the backcheck. It's all basic hockey that the Bruins defense is capable of playing, they just need to find their rhythm again.
Our offense wasn't innocent either. If we want to win tonight, our offense needs to, first and foremost, actually get the puck into the offensive zone for more than two seconds. If we can do that, then we need to focus on actually shooting the puck like we're professional hockey players, not pee wee level. All through the Canucks game the Bruins were firing at Luongo's chest and what do you know, we barely scored any goals. The only two goals scored were when Reilly Smith buried the puck UNDER Luongo's gloved hand and UNDER his stick side.
This ability to shoot at something other than the goalie's chest is going to be key if we plan on scoring any goals tonight. Berra is not a difficult goalie to beat. He's got a huge five hole and tends to be a bit slower on his gloved side. He's also a little bit slower with his pad slides and his reset. All the Bruins have to do is keep pressure on him and attempt to take advantage of his weaknesses and we will score goals.
At this point, I can't really say who in particular to watch. Everyone (outside of Reilly Smith) was kind of struggling last game so it should be interesting to see how they all recuperate from it and move forward. If anything, I would keep a close eye on Tuukka Rask, who we all know probably destroyed some milk crates after his performance against Vancouver.
Score Prediction: 3-2 Bruins Win
Until after the game,
Keep calm and Bergeron
Keep calm and Bergeron