What: Eastern Conference Quarterfinals Game 3
When: Monday, Apr. 19, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. EST
Where: TD Garden – 100 Legends Way, Boston, MA
Watch: NESN (HD), Versus (HD)
Hear: 98.5 FM The Sports Hub

Tonight, the Bruins bring a 1-1 series back to Boston to for Game 3 against the Buffalo Sabres. This will be their 42nd playoff game in their lifetime series with the B’s holding a 21-19 record and the 145-135 scoring edge. This Quarterfinals match-up is also their eighth lifetime playoff series meeting, and the fifth with the series being tied at one game a piece — Boston holds the 3-1 record. The Black-and-Gold are 29-12 when the come out on top in Game 3 of a best-of-seven series, and just 10-32 when they lose the third game.

The goaltending duel:

Tuukka Rask: 1-1-0 record, .918 save-percentage, 2.52 goals-against average, 56 saves on 61 shots

Ryan Miller: 1-1-0 record,  .928 save-percentage, 2.52 goals-against average, 64 saves on 69 shots.

The stats:

• The B’s have outshot the Sabres 70-61 thus far in this series.
• In the regular season, the Bruins held a 18-17-6 home record. But Stanley Cup of Chowder dug a little deeper at the actual numbers and stats proving they weren’t as bad inside the TD Garden as most fans thought.
• The Sabres loss in Game 2 was their first loss in 32 games in which they led after the second period.
• Boston went 4-4 (100%) on the penalty kill on Saturday afternoon in Game 2, and successfully killed off all nine times short in this playoff series. Dating back to the regular season, the Bruins have made is 42-45 (93.3%) over their last 15 contests.
• The Bruins’ Achilles, power play, went 0-2 in Saturday’s Game 2 matinée for a 1-4 (25% proficiency) playoffs total.
• The NHL officials credited both teams for 99 total hits last game. Thus far, the Bruins have been out-hit by the Sabres, 89-76 total.

Bruins’ playoffs leaders:

Goals: Chara, Recchi, Ryder with 3
Assists: Wheeler (2)
Points: Chara (3)
Penalty minutes: Chara (6)
Shots on goal: Chara (10)
Face-offs: Bergeron 26-44 (59.1%)
Hits: Sobotka (9), Begin (8)
Blocked shots: Wideman (5)

Listen LIVE Tuesday night!

Keep tabs on more Bruins news over at The Hub of Hockey and follow Mark on Twitter @BruinsExaminer

For more Sabres news, check out Die By the Blade over at SBNation.

And join us tomorrow night (Tuesday) at 10pm for On the Ice as we are joined by the guys from Die By the Blade to talk about the series. There will be fans from both camps in the chatroom and on the phone lines so be sure to represent your team!

AP Photo/Frank Franklin II

• The New York Rangers didn’t do the Bruins any favors last night by defeating the Philadelphia Flyers, 4-3, in regulation. With their win, however, the Rangers have kept their playoff hopes alive — another regulation-time win tomorrow against the Flyers, and they’re in.
• Boston will have to take matters in their own hands now: “Win and you’re in”. But the ‘Canes — with nothing to lose — could play spoiler against the B’s.
• This is the 174th time in this lifetime series (including franchise totals as the Hartford Whalers) with the Bruins having a 91-64-16-2 record and 598-516 scoring edge. Boston is 2-1-0 on the season against the ‘Canes.
• The Bruins conclude their NHL-season-high 17th set of back-to-back games this season, with game 81 today and 82 tomorrow in Washington. Boston holds a 6-7-3 record in the first game, and are 8-6-2 in game twos.
• Boston’s goaltending is flirting with another Jennings Trophy this season — up from 2.42 goals-against on Mar. 23 to 2.32 entering today’s contest — thanks to Tuukka Rask. The 22-year-old  needs some serious consideration for Calder Trophy this season as the NHL’s rookie of the year, as he tops all goaltenders in goals-against average (1.97) and save-percentage (.931) in 44 games played. Add on another 10 games or so, and the Finland native could be a top-3 candidate for the Vezina.
• Rask is also 3-1-1 in his last six games played with one shutout, a .960 save-percentage (144 saves on 150 shots-against) and a goals-against average south of 1.20. No wonder he was the NHL’s Third Star of the Month.
• Not so powerful-play: After going 0-for-5 on the power play last night, the B’s have been held scoreless with the man advantage in six straight games, 0-17.
• Man-down: Overshadowed by their anemic PP, Boston’s penalty-kill remains among the best in the NHL — having successfully killed-off 14 of their last 15, and 27 of 30 in their last 11 games.

Who’s Hot:

AP Photo/Charles Krupa

• Satan Scores:  Three goals in his last three games
• Quit the Wideman “boos”: A three game point streak with 2-1–3 totals and 3-4–7 totals in his last 10.
• One man Recchi’ng Crew: 3-3–6 totals in his last eight games.
• Busted-beak Big Z:  A three game point streak with 0-3–3 totals and 2-6–8 totals in his last nine contests.
• Holy Krejci: With 3-7–10 totals in his last nine contests and 6-13–19 over his last 18 games played.
• Looch! It’s 2008-09!: two game point streak with two assists and 1-5–6 totals in his last ten contests.

On the Bruins huge two-point victory over the Buffalo Sabres: “It was for sure big points on the line and so we are happy with the win and we got to get ready for next game.” Zdeno Chara said to the media on Thursday night. “We’ll see what’s going to happen around the league but we can’t rely on other teams losing. We got to keep moving forward and try to win as many games as possible ’til the end, which is two games left.”

It’s going to a battle of the Finnish net-minders tonight, as Tuukka Rask is expected to get the nod between the pipes for Boston, and Antero Nittymaki for the Lightning.

Niittymaki has never faced the Bruins in Boston and is likely to get the start over Mike Smith.  In his only start against the B’s this season, Niittymaki was yanked after the first 20 minutes when he gave up four goals on 21 shots in the Bruins’ 5-4 win, back on Feb. 11 in Tampa, FL.

Niittymaki (19-16-1, 2.72 GAA) made 27 saves against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night – a 3-2 overtime win – ending a  four-game losing streak for the 29-year-old. It was also the 13^th time in his last 19 contests that he did not allow more than two goals in a game. With his 1-4-0 record in his last five, Nittymaki has posted a .907 save-percentage and a goals-against average right around 2.80.

For Boston, Rask has been nothing short of sensational all season long, and is making a legitimate case for this  year’s Calder Trophy winner (rookie of the year).  In 37 games played this season, the 23-year-old is 18-10-4, with four shutouts (9^th), a .930 save-percentage (1^st) and a 2.02 goals-against average (1^st). In his last five, Rask has posted a 3-1-0 record, one shutout, a .954 save-percentage, and a goals-against average of under 1.40.

Away Team, Tampa Bay Lightning: 29-32-12 – 70 points, 4th Southeast Division, 12^th Eastern Conference, 10-20-6 on the road, 3-6-1 last 10

• 20^th with 2.59 goals-for per game
• 3.01 goals-against ranks the Lightning 24^th overall
• 9^th in the NHL with a 18.8% rate on the power play
• 21^st in the league with an 80.7% success rate on the penalty kill

Who’s Hot: (Tampa Bay Lightning Examiner)

• Steve Downie recorded his 20^th goal of the season, a career high.  He now has 20 goals and 200 penalty minutes this season, making him the first player since Theo Fleury in 2001-02 (24 goals and 216 PIM)
• Vincent Lecavalier extended his point streak to four games with two goals and four points; additionally he played a team-high 23:35 in ice time.
• Martin St. Louis has recorded at least a point in his last 20 out of 26 contests and is 1 assist away from setting a new career-high total.  The Lightning  is 3-13-2 if St. Louis does not get at least a point in the game, and the Lightning have 25 goals total in the 18 games he has not tallied at least one point in this season.

IR: Ryan Malone, Mattias Ohlund

Home Team, Boston Bruins: 33-27-12, 78 points, 4^th Northeast Division, 8^th Eastern Conference, 15-14-6 at home, 5-4-1 last 10

• 30^th with 2.38 goals-for per game
• 2.39 goals-against ranks the B’s 2^nd overall
• 20^th in the NHL with a 17.2% rate on the power play
• 1^st in the league with an 86.3% success rate on the penalty kill
• David Krejci: Easily the second-best player for the Bruins behind Rask. No. 46 has elevated his game in lieu of Savard and is looking like the 73-point Krejci of last season. 4-7-11 and a plus-4 rating over his last 10 games.
• Milan Lucic: 1-2-3, plus-4 in his last two contests and has been playing like it’s the 2008-09  playoffs.

Not Hot:

• The Bruins power play is now 1-for-21 in their last eight games – without Marc Savard

IR: Marc Savard

Trent Whitfield has been recalled from the AHL Providence Bruins as Vladimir Sobotka remains doubtful for tonight’s contest.

The Bruins and Thrashers are meeting for the 40th time in their lifetime series, with Boston holding a 23-11-2-3 record and a 132-123 scoring edge.

Coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. EST on NESN and at 98.5 FM The Sports Hub. Live game coverage begins at 7:00 p.m.

Away Team, Boston Bruins:

32-278-12, 4th Northeast Division, 8th Eastern Conference,  17-13-6 away, 5-4-1 last 10 games

• Goals-for: 2.35 (30th)
• Goals-against: 2.42 (3rd)
• Penalty kill: 86.2% (1st)
• Power play: 17.3% (20th)

Pre Marc Savard injury:

PP: 18.7% (39/212) Were 4-for-19 in their last seven games with Savvy
PK: 86.3% (31/227)

Without No. 91:

PP: 17.3% (40/231) 1-for-19 in their last seven.
PK: 86.2% (34/246)

Previous results:

Nov. 19, 2009: Bruins 4, Thrashers 3 – SO. Tuukka Rask stopped 32-of-35 shots for the Bruins, including all three in the SO, and Patrice Bergeron scored the lone shootout goal for the W as Boston improved to 9-8-4 on the season.

Dec. 28, 2009: Bruins 6, Thrashers 4. Zdeno Chara had a scoring line of 1-2-3 for the night; Boston scored three goals in a 1:08 span in the first period; and Tim Thomas kicked aside 22 of 26 shots for the Bruins’ 18th win of the season.

Dec. 30, 2009: Bruins 4, Thrashers 0. Rask earned his 10th win of the season, and second shutout, stopping all 18 Atlanta shots.

The Bruins hold a record of 20-12-8 this season when they put 30 or more shots on net; and post a 23-7-4 record when they score the first goal of the game.

Career vs. Atlanta:

Satan: 34 GP, 24-20-44 totals, 105 SOG
Bergeron: 16 GP, 6-10-16 totals, 44 SOG
Recchi: 36 GP 12-26-38 totals, 89 SOG
Rask: 2-0-0, 1.44 GAA, .943 SV%, 1 SO
Krejci: 10 GP, 2-8-10 totals
Ryder: 22 GP, 12-8-20, 57 SOG
Wideman: 11 GP, 2-9-11 totals, 7 PPP, plus-4

Home Team, Atlanta Thrashers:

32-29-11, 75 points, 2nd Southeast Division, 9th Eastern Conference, 18-13-5 at home, 4-5-1 last 10 games

Winners of four-straight, the Atlanta Thrashers are breathing down the Bruins’ necks for that all-important eighth seed in the East – now just one-point back. The Thrashers’ last five games of the season, in April, are twice against the Capitals (No. 1 team in the NHL); twice against the Penguins (1st in the Atlantic Div., 2nd in the East); with the NJ Devils (2nd Atlantic, 4th East) sandwiched in between.

• Goals-for: 2.97 (6th)
• Goals-against: 3.11 (28th)
• Penalty kill: 80.9% (20th)
• Power play: 16.6% (24th)

Career vs. Boston:

Maxim Afinogenov: 47 GP, 14-26-40 totals, 123 SOG
Evgeny Artyukin: 7 GP, 2-3-5, 17 PIM
Eric Boulton: 23 GP, 69 PIM
Slava Kozlov: 40 GP, 13-20-33 totals, 16 PPP
Ondrej Pavelec: 4 GP/GS, 0-1-1, 6.56 GAA, .815 SV%

However, this is a perfect example of, “quality, not quantity” of injuries for the Black-and-Gold.

Twenty-eight [28]: That’s the number of games missed for Bruins’ No. 1 center, Marc Savard – 40% of the season. That’s a tough pill to swallow when that player is the catalyst of your teams’ overall offense, including the power play.

Here are some staggering, year-to-date stats:

When No. 91 is in Boston’s line-up, the Bruins have a power play success rate of just under 22-percent, and average 1.17 points per game [in the standings]

When Savvy is out of the line-up, those numbers dip to roughly 10-percent success rate on the man-advantage, and 0.89 points-per game.

Coincidence? I think not

The Bruins are now zero-percent on the man-advantage in their last three games. Over those three games, they were obviously without their No. 1 center, Marc Savard, who is probably dunzo for the rest of the 2009-10 season. While other players have picked-up their games – Sturm-Bergeron-Recchi – they haven’t done so on the power play, now having gone 0-6.

In Boston’s four games prior – Montreal on Mar. 2 through Mar. 7 versus Pittsburgh – the B’s totaled 3-13 (23.1%) with the man-advantage. No. 91 contributed on two of those three power play points.

Savvy assisted [11^th PPA on the season] on Marco Sturm’s power play goal against the Habs on Mar. 2; and netted his sixth power play goal on the season [second-most on the squad] – the game-winning goal – in their 3-2 victory over the New York Islanders on Saturday, Mar. 6.

Currently holding down the eighth-place spot in the Eastern Conference with 72 points, the Bruins look to close-out their seven-game road trip tonight on a winning note against the Carolina Hurricanes at the RBC Center. The B’s have compiled a road-trip record of 2-3-1 thus far, and could make things even more difficult for the ninth-place Rangers [71] – who are also in action tonight, against the seventh-seed Montreal Canadiens [76] – and their playoff hopes.

Boston has a league-high, 17 sets of back-to-back games. Tonight will conclude their 15^th set, having gone 6-6-3 in game ones and 6-6-2 in game twos.

The Bruins and ‘Canes will be meeting for the third of four meetings this season, splitting the series 1-1, where the home teams’ have each won their previous contest. In their lifetime series, this will mark the 173^rd meeting between the two – with Boston holding the 90-64-16-2 winning record and a scoring edge of 593-415.

We’ll see if Savard-less B’s can improve their power play and take advantage of Carolina’s 20^th ranked penalty-kill tonight.

The general manager’s meeting wrapped-up in Boca Raton, Florida, yesterday after three days of deliberating, discussing, and debating multiple NHL topics. The number one area of focus was blindside hits to the head, and the recommendations of changing the existing rule(s). The new rule, which could possibly take effect next season, would allow referees to call a minor or major penalty — hopefully the latter — to the violator who contacts an opponent where primary point of impact is to the head.

With Boston’s center Marc Savard possibly out for the season with a Grade 2 concussion, many people are still up-in-arms with Campbell’s decision — including Bruins’ brass, Peter Chiarelli.

From Examiner.com

“There’s a chance that Marc may be out for the year. He’s one of our best players. It’s devastating to us.” said Chiarelli this morning from Philadelphia’s Wachovia Center. “The league made it clear, Colin made it clear that he knows this players [Cooke] is a multiple, repeat offender.

“He knows how bad Marc is hurt” added Chiarelli “He couldn’t make that connection to levy a suspension. You know, it’s devastating to us.”

The Bruins, and even its coaching staff, have been ripped-apart nationwide for their lack of retaliation on Sunday following the incident. it could be in part due to the “last five minutes” instigator rule. And it could be because the Bruins were down 2-1 at the time — playing for two-points — fighting for their post-season hopes. Whatever the reason, Chiarelli wasn’t too fond of their response, or lack-there-of.

“I said yesterday that I was disappointed and I was disappointed. There are certain ways to react and I felt that we didn’t.  And I’ll leave it at that.” said Chiarelli.

There’s no doubt that the Bruins’ backers ticked-off for the Black-and-Gold’s lack of response to avenge their No. 1 center’s unnecessary injury on Sunday — and rightfully so. But the Bruins will host the non-suspended Matt Cooke and the Penguins in their first home game back from their long road-trip, at the TD Garden, next Thursday, Mar. 18. So maybe with Chiarelli’s recent comments and the recent ripping of the team’s heart and toughness by the Boston faithful,the Bruins will make Matt Cooke eat his lunch one-week from today.

Read more of Chiarelli’s comments on Examiner.com

The Black-and-Gold embark on their longest road trip of the season today, in Long Island, as they battle the John Tavares and the Islanders at 2 p.m. EST. Their seven-game stretch will last 12-days, all against Eastern Conference teams, and end on Tuesday, Mar. 16 against the Carolina Hurricanes.

The B’s will be competing in two sets of back-to-back games — sets 14 & 15 of 17 on the season —  during this tough road-trip. Mar. 6 at the Islanders and Mar. 7 against the Penguins; Mar. 15 at New Jersey and Mar. 16 at Carolina. They hold a 5-5-3 record in game ones, and 6-5-2 in game twos in consecutive games’ sets.

Saturday, Mar. 6: Bruins @ Islanders | 2:00 p.m. EST

These two Eastern Conference teams are meeting for the fourth and final time this season. The Bruins are 1-1-1 against the Isles thus far, and have been outscored 10-7 over that three-game span. This will be the 139th meeting in their lifetime series with the Bruins having a 69-46-21-3 record and a 474-419 scoring edge.

NYI: 26-30-8, 60 points, 5th Atlantic Division, 13th Eastern Conference

• 29th w/ 75.3% success rate on the penalty kill
• 15.3% on the power play for 29th in the NHL
• 3.09 goals-against per game, 26th overall
• 25th with 2.50 goals-for per game

BOS: 28-23-11, 67 points, 3rd Northeast Division, 7th Eastern Conference

• 30th with 2.32 goals-for per game
• T-4 with 2.44 goals-against per game
• 18% on the power play for 18th in the NHL
• 1st w/ 86.4% success rate on the penalty kill

Sunday, Mar. 7: Bruins @ Penguins | 3:00 p.m. EST

The Bruins travel to the Mellon Arena to take on the Atlantic Division leaders and reigning Stanley Cup champs, the Pittsburgh Penguins. This will be the third of four meetings between the two clubs; with a 1-0-1 record for the B’s and outscoring the Pens 10-6. Boston holds a 100-51-22-3 record against Pittsburgh with a 697-549 scoring edge

PIT: 38-22-4, 80 points, 1st Atlantic Division, 2nd Eastern Conference

• 5th in the NHL with 3.06 goals-for per game
• 2.88 goals-against per game in 21st in the league
• 2oth overall in the power play, 17.3%
• 11th with an 82.9% success rate on the penalty kill

Tuesday, Mar. 9: Bruins @ Maple Leafs | 7:00 p.m. EST

This will be the fourth of six meetings between these two longtime rivals. The Bruins hold a 3-1-0 record against the Leafs this season and have outscored Toronto 15-8. In their lifetime series, the B’s are 273-253-98-5 against Toronto in 632 meetings, but have been outscored by the Maple Leafs 1,884-1,861.

TOR: [will be updated per games played] 19-32-12, 50 points, 5th Northeast Division, 15th Eastern Conference

• 72.2% success rate on the penalty kill for 3oth overall
• 26th overall with a 16.3% power play
• 3.38 goals-against per game, 29th
• 2.60 goals-for per game, 21st

Thursday, Mar. 11: Bruins @ Flyers | 7:00 p.m. EST

The Big Bad Bruins and the Broad Street Bullies will meet in their fourth-and-final game on Thursday. Boston is 1-1-1 on the season against Philadelphia, and have been outscored 8-6 over that span. This will be the 169th lifetime meeting between the two rivals, with the Bruins holding a 86-56-21-5 overall record and 551-508 scoring edge.

PHI: [will be updated] 33-26-4, 70 points, 3rd Atlantic Division, 6th Eastern Conference

• 81.2% success rate on the penalty kill for 18th overall
• 3rd overall with a 22.6% power play
• 2.70 goals-against per game, 14th
• 3.00 goals-for per game, 7th

Coming back from the Olympic break, the Canadiens will embark on a four-game road trip tonight, and a total of 14 games in the month of March.

The Bruins have an even longer road ahead of them this month: 16 games in 31 calendar days, including three sets of back-to-back games, and seven consecutive away games in 11 days.

Tonight will also be the 704th lifetime meeting between the two clubs, with Boston holding a 263-331-103-6 overall record. But, the Canadiens have the scoring edge of 2,133-1,860 over the B’s.

[Goaltender comparisons]

Home Team: Boston Bruins: 27-22-11, 65 points, 3rd Northeast Division, 7th Eastern Conference,  13-12-6 at home, 4-3-3 last 10 games.

[Update: Patrice Bergeron will not play tonight due to a groin injury]

• 134 man-games lost
• 30th/last with 2.35 goals-for per game
• 4th in the NHL in goals-against, 2.42
• 18.1% on the power play ranks the B’s 18th overall
• 86.0% success rate on the penalty kill is 3rd best in the league

The Bruins are looking for their first five-game win streak since Mar. 22 – Apr. 4, 2009. Tonight will snap a club record 23 days between home games, with their last contest at the TD Garden against the Vancouver Canucks on Feb. 6, 2010.

All Bruins players were at the morning skate at the TD Garden except Patrice Bergeron — including Mark Stuart [finger] and Johnny Boychuk [orbital bone], both of who should be available, and playing tonight.

Away Team: Montreal Canadiens: 29-28-6, 64 points, 4th Northeast Division, 8th Eastern Conference, 14-15-2 away, 4-5-1 last 10 games.

• 212 man-games lost due to injuries
• 25th with 2.52 goals-for per game
• 15th in the NHL in goals-against, 2.72 per
• 24.6% on the power play ranks the Habs 2nd overall
• 83.5% success rate on the penalty kill in 7th best in the league

Jacques Martin said Carey Price is expected to get the nod between the pipes tonight for the Canadiens.

From HabsInsideOut: “Benoit Pouliot and Andrei Kostitsyn should be in the lineup after missing time before the break with injuries, and Andrei Markov will be back on the blue line for the Canadiens.” Marc-Andre Bergeron [lower body] and Mike Cammalleri [right MCL] remain on the IR; Paul Mara day-to-day [upper body].

See more work like this from Mark Marino at The Hub of Hockey.

Trying to ascertain just who would be the core of Florida Panthers going into tonight’s game as of Friday morning was looking to be an exercise in futility. Call-ups, team meetings, letters from ownership, and canceled practices all conspired to pave the way for a flurry of player acquisitions and roster turnover before the Olympic trade “freeze” of 3pm. Alas, cooler heads prevailed, at least from a management perspective, and no shotgun moves were made simply to please the weary-eyed Florida fanbase. Other than dealing UFA forward Dominic Moore to Montreal for a second-round pick in 2011 on Thursday, nothing further ensued. Rest assured there will be others once the freeze is lifted.

Going into Saturday’s match in Sunrise, the Bruins will face a Cats squad which has no definable identity; even the general manager has made it crystal clear that no one on the roster is safe, though it’s reasonable to assume winger David Booth won’t be looking over his shoulder. This is essentially the same club Boston faced in South Florida on December 27th, when the Bruins picked up a 2-1 win against netminder Scott Clemmensen. For the record, “Clemmer” hasn’t appeared in a game since, as Tomas Vokoun has been the Cats’ goaltender for every second of action from that time forward. Booth is back to the lineup as well, but has had little luck on the scoresheet after returning January 31st (6gp, 2a, -2). Then again, no one is scoring for this club, which has netted just 13 goals over the last 12 games. Needless to say, the eighth spot in the East has drifted to the distant horizon. Not an impossible task, but certainly improbable.

What to expect? The Panthers were shutout by Roberto Luongo’s Canucks Thursday, and Vancouver by no means played a perfect 60 minutes. But it was good enough to snuff out whatever life the Cats may have still possessed; Vokoun, understandably, was not pleased with the outcome. Has any member of the organization given more to win in the past three seasons than T-Vo? A hot name on the trade market, Vokoun has a NTC but spoke recently of waiving it under the right circumstances. Whether Florida can muster up enough energy to out-muscle the Bruins is debatable: after the speeches, meetings, and angry letters – not to mention the current five game losing streak – this bunch is toast, mentally. If Vokoun starts – and as a favor to him and his Olympic obligations, he may not – plan for a low-scoring evening, but there’s no reason to believe the Panthers have turned the corner on their collective scoring woes. We’ve got a ways to go before that. At least the rebuild is underway.

As for lines, who knows? Coach Peter DeBoer is fond of changing things up on a dime, and the surreal lame-duck status of the team makes experimentation entirely within the realm of possibility. Other than Booth-Stephen Weiss-Michael Frolik making up the first unit, all bets are off. Keep in mind this may be a final audition, so to speak, for many on the Panthers’ payroll. And it’s about time.

Away Team: Boston Bruins:  13-10-5 away

The Bruins are looking to extend their win-streak to four tonight, as they face the Panthers for the 62nd time in their lifetime series, and third of four meetings on the season. The Bruins hold a the slight edge with a 26-25-6-4 record, but have been outscored 172-168 during this span. The B’s and Cats have split their previous two meeting: a 1-0 Panthers win on Nov. 12, and a Boston 2-1 victory on Dec. 27.

The last time the Bruins won four-straight was back on Nov. 19-25.

For five straight game, the B’s have opened each game with a 2-0 lead, and have gone 3-0-2 over than span. On Thursday, the Black-and-Gold stormed the Lightning with a 5-0 lead, but watch Tampa Bay climb back into it with four unanswered goals.

Michael Ryder scored twice, bringing his 2009-10 totals to 15-10-25.

Miroslav Satan snapped an 11-game goal-less streak by netting his third goal in 18 games with the Bruins.

Marc Savard dished-out two assists; now giving him 0-6-6 over a four-game point-streak.

Derek Morris’ efforts were also rewarded by adding two assists. Morris now has a two-game assist-streak with 0-3-3 totals.

And Milan Lucic was credited with two goals of his own [one tip and another deflection off his body] to bring his season totals to 5-5-10 in 27 games played. Boston won the nail-biter 5-4 in Tampa, but it shouldn’t have been that close.

“With those two-nothing leads, that’s one thing we need to rectify as quick as possible before it comes back to bite us.” Claude Julien said yesterday after practice in Florida. “Certainly last night the two points, I don’t know if it was more relief than it was anything else. But we’ve got to smarter and learn to play better with the lead. That’s probably the thing that’s hurting us the most because the rest of our game is coming around.

“It’s more about the way we gave up the goals.” Julien added. ” And it wasn’t by trying to make more of those goals. It was blind-passes, turnovers, not sharp, not strong on  the puck. Maybe too comfortable. We need to play a little better and a little smarter when you’ve got the lead.”

Tuukka Rask, who should also start tonight, stopped 31 of 35 shots to record his 13th win of the season.

“Right now we’re riding him because we’re winning games.” Julien said convincingly. “We just have to try and do the right thing for the team for the moment, and when a guy keeps winning, you got to almost stick with him.”

The 22-year-old Rask has started the last five games for the Bruins, and has gone 3-0-2 during that span. Rask’s longest consecutive starting-streak is at six – back from Nov. 16-27 when he filled-in beautifully for the then-injured Tim Thomas. Rask has the league’s third-best save-percentage [.928] and the second-best goals-against average [2.09].

Recent “questionable” players: Shawn Thornton and Milan Lucic may have a bit of food poisoning, as they both missed yesterday’s practice. “Thorny and Looch have been sick today, so they stayed back at the hotel.”

Steve Begin was given a maintenance day-off.

Miroslav Satan flew back to Boston yesterday to see some doctors regarding a lacerated hand. “Miro ended up having stitches in his hand.” Julien said Satan’s injury was probably sustained with the butt-end of his stick during his brief altercation with Tampa Bay’s Steve Downie on Thursday night. “No tendon damage or anything like that, so it’s just a laceration. Day-to-day.”

See more work like this from Mark Marino at The Hub of Hockey.

The Bruins visit the Lightning for the third of four games between these two teams this season. Boston took the first match, 4-1 at the TD Garden on Dec. 2. Tim Thomas made 39 of 40 saves for the W, as Mike Smith stopped 35 of 39 shots that came his way.Tampa Bay took the second game, at home 2-1, in the same goaltending dual. Thomas kicked-aside 37 of 39 Lightning shots; while at the other end of the ice, Smith was near perfect with 31 saves on 32 shots against. Unfortunately, these two net-minders won’t be able to settle the score, as Nittymaki and Rask and sure to get the nods on Thursday.

The Lightning will be looking for their first five-game winning-streak since Nov. 2007, while the Bruins look for their first three-game-streak since Dec. 21 – 27 of this season. These two Eastern Conference squads are neck-and-neck in the standings – and with just two games remaining before the Olympic break – these two-points on Thursday night are immense for both teams.

Home Team: Tampa Bay Lightning (26-21-11, 63 points 2nd Southeast Division, 6th Eastern Conference, 17-6-6 at home, 7-2-1 last 10)

• 20th with 2.55 goals-for per game
• 2.71 goals-against ranks the Lightning 18th overall
• 9th in the NHL with a 19.2% rate on the power play
• 22nd in the league with an 80.0% success rate on the penalty kill

Nutz and Boltz By: TB Lightning Examiner, Althea Pashman:
Goalies don’t get much hotter than Antero Niittymaki is right now. He’s won four straight starts and seven of his last eight, with one overtime loss mixed in to improve his season record to 16-9-5. Lightning goaltenders have allowed a league-best mark of 59 goals at home and have put up good individual numbers as well. Mike Smith is 7-3-3 at home this year with a .930 SV% and a 2.14 GAA, while Antero Niittymaki is 10-3-3 at home with a .944 SV% and a 1.75 GAA.

The Lightning are 10-1-2 in their last 13 games at the St. Pete Times Forum and has outscored their opponents 37-22 in those contests. The team’s 17 wins at home come in 7th place in the NHL and they hold the league’s 3rd-best mark along with Minnesota, Chicago, and Dallas for the least amount of losses at home with 6, behind leaders San Jose (5) and Washington (3).

Feb. 11 lineups:
Steve Downie-Steven Stamkos-Marty St. Louis
Stephane Veilleux-Vinny Lecavalier-Alex Tanguay
Ryan Malone-Nate Thompson-Jeff Halpern
Todd Fedoruk-Zenon Konopka-Kurtis Foster

Mike Lundin- Mattias Ohlund
Victor Hedman- Andrej Meszaros
Matt Walker- Matt Smaby
Kurtis Foster

Antero Niittymaki
Mike Smith

PP1: Vinny Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis, Steven Stamkos, Kurtis Foster, Andrej Meszaros
PP2: Ryan Malone, Alex Tanguay, Jeff Halpern, Steve Downie, Victor Hedman
IR: David Hale (Broken Leg)

Antero Niittymaki: Has posted a 7-0-1 record in his past eight games, including a .965 save percentage and a 1.09 GAA
Steven Stamkos: Netted his team-high 33rd goal against Vancouver on Tuesday night and league tying 14th power-play goal. Has a career-high 10 game streak going 8-7-15 during this span, with 11 points in his last seven games.
Martin St. Louis: 7-4-11 in his last seven contests. Riding a seven games point streak and has collected at least a point in 10 of the last 11 contests
Steve Downie: 0-7-7 in his last seven contests, currently riding a five game point streak (0-5-5)

“We’re just getting great plays from him [Niittymaki] and Marty and Stamkos scoring every game, said Rick Tocchet. I’ve got to give credit to the Thompson line. They shut down the twins [Henrik and Daniel Sedin] pretty good tonight. Halpy and Bugsy [Halpern and Malone] did a nice job. Obviously Niitty’s definitely earned his keep. He’s playing really good for us right now.”

“As long as you are winning,” Rick Tocchet said of the three-man winning formula. “We’re putting the finger in the dikes right now, and I just hope we get some other people scoring before it dampers. But you know, we’re winning games. That’s just the way it is. You’ve got to be excited about that, and other teams go through it, you line up a couple of hot guys and you go with it.”

“We’re finding a way. Like I said, the reason for that is Niitty [goaltender Antero Niittymaki]. We know we have to play better in front of him, but we’re finding ways to get goals at key times. You can’t dissect it too much. We look at some clips and try to get better, but we’re finding a way right now and that’s the most important thing at this time of the year,” said Marty St. Louis on the Lightning’s 7-1-1 record despite scoring just 22 goals during this span.

Away Team: Boston Bruins (25-22-11, 61 points, 4th Northeast Division, 9th Eastern Conference, 12-10-5 away, 2-5-3 last 10)

• 30th in the NHL with 2.31 goals-for per game
• 2.40 goal-against per game ranks the B’s 4th overall – seven regulation-time goals in their last three games
• 15th in the league with an 18% rate on the power play – six for their last 27
• 86.4% success rate on the penalty kill, 2nd in the league – up from 70% at the end of October.

Daniel Paille – Marc Savard – Miroslav Satan
Marco Sturm – Patrice Bergeron – Mark Recchi
Blake Wheeler – David Krejci – Michael Ryder
Milan Lucic – Steve Begin – Shawn Thornton

Zdeno Chara – Dennis Wideman
Matt Hunwick – Derek Morris
Andrew Ference – Adam McQuaid

Tuukka Rask
Tim Thomas

PP1: Marco Sturm, Marc Savard,  Michael Ryder, Patrice Bergeron, Zdeno Chara
PP2: Blake Wheeler, David Krejci, Mark Recchi, Dennis Wideman, Derek Morris

IR: Mark Stuart [finger]
DTD: Johnny Boychuk [head]
Healthy scratches: Byron Bitz, Vladimir Sobotka

Tuukka Rask should be starting his fifth consecutive game between the pipes for the Bruins tomorrow night; and sixth of the Bruins’ last nine games. Rask is 2-0-2 in his four previous consecutive games, with one shutout, a .956 save-percentage, and a goals-against average just south of 1.50. On the season, “Tuukka Time” has compiled a 12-7-4 record, 3 SO, .931 save-percentage [1st in the NHL], and a 2.01 goals-against average [2nd overall]

“”He’s very confident in his ability. He’s got a good confidence to him. Not a cocky attitute, but he’s very confident in the way he can play. He’s starting to show that.” head coach Claude Julien said after Tuesday night’s 3-2 shootout victory over the Buffalo Sabres. “He’s getting an opportunity to play in some consecutive games and he’s really taken advantage of it.”

Daniel Paille: snapped a seven-game point-less drought on Tuesday night by lighting the lamp twice against his former club; now giving  the 25-year-old 9-8-17 on the season.

“The last time we were in this building [HSBC Arena in Buffalo] he really had a tough night. I don’t know if he was nervous.” Julien said of Paille’’s previous game against his former team. “[tonight] With  Savvy and Satan on his line he had some skill and guys to get him the puck. He was a big player for us tonight.

“We like the way he skates. We like the way he forechecks and he creates a lot of turnovers.” Julien added. “He’s been good for us; penalty-killing-wise, he scored some goals, but I think he’s playing with a bit more confidence so it’s been a good change for him I think ”

Marc Savard: has been seven games removed from his MCL injury, and has 0-7-7 totals in six of those seven.
Marco Sturm: 2-1-3 in two of his last three contests and 15 shots on goal during that span.
Zdeno Chara: 1-2-3 totals throughout his current three-game point streak.
Miroslav Satan: notched an assist on Tuesday night, snapping a seven-game point-less drought.
Milan Lucic: has just 1-2-3 totals in 16 games since returning for that high-ankle sprain – along with a disappointing minus-12 rating

See more work like this from Mark Marino at The Hub of Hockey.