Bruins Live Blog: Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand Stomp Out Oilers’ Comeback Attempt With Quick Goals in 6-3 B’s Win

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Nov 10, 2011

Bruins Live Blog: Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand Stomp Out Oilers' Comeback Attempt With Quick Goals in 6-3 B's Win

End of game: That does it from the Garden, where the Bruins started hot and then crushed an Edmonton comeback attempt to register a 6-3 win, their fourth straight.

Third period, 17:57, Bruins 6-3: Quickly, the Bruins put any hopes of an Edmonton comeback on ice.

Following an interference penalty on Cam Barker, Lucic cashes in with a power play goal to stretch the Bruins' lead to 5-3. Corvo adds to his memorable night with a third assist, with Horton also assisting on the goal.

Lucic is on a five-game goal streak.

A mere 42 seconds later, Marchand beats Dubnyk unassisted and the Bruins' advantage is up to 6-3.

Third period, 15:18, Bruins 4-3: Smyth notches his second goal of the night, this time a power play goal assisted by Eric Belanger and Ales Hemsky, to cut the Bruins' advantage to 4-3.

Just over four minutes remaining, and the Bruins are now pushing the puck in the other direction. This should be heade for a crazy ending.

That's Smyth's ninth goal of the season.

Third period, 13:25, Bruins 4-2: Patrice Bergeron is the one who gives the Oilers another extra man opportunity this time, drawing a high stick penalty. Rask and the Bruins' special teams will be called upon to do their jobs again.

Third period, 9:09, Bruins 4-2: Great opportunity for a goal as Marchand gets the puck ahead of the defense and finds Campbell, fresh out of the box. Campbell flips a shot right into Dubnyk's blocker, but the good news for the Bruins is that they are back at full strength.

Third period, 6:15, Bruins 4-2: The Oilers will go back on the power play as Campbell gets two minutes for hooking. It's in situtations like this where the young Edmonton team has made its mark this season.

Third period, 4:19, Bruins 4-2: Back at full strength and the Garden crowd is getting amped up. The Bruins are 5-0-0 this season when leading after the second period, but the Oilers have won twice in the three games they have trailed heading into the final period.

Third period, 2:08, Bruins 4-2: We'll have 4-on-4 hockey here for the next minute.

Seidenberg is whistled for hooking, creating an interesting situation for two squads that have shown a willingness to be aggressive no matter the situation.

Third period, 1:05, Bruins 4-2: Hamill gets sandwiched between Corey Potter and Dubnyk, and is slow to get off the ice. It takes him a few minutes to skate off on his own accord.

Potter receives two minutes for high sticking.

Third period, :14, Bruins 4-2: Just got word Ference will not return to the game. Not sure of the details of his injury yet.

Second Intermission Notes: The Bruins put together another strong period in the second, and come away with a 4-2 lead for their efforts.

The Bruins are again spreading the offense around, with four different goal-scorers and eight players with points so far. Tyler Seguin took center stage in the second, factoring in both goals in that frame with a goal and an assist. He also showed he really is becoming a star, as he drew a penalty that led to a Brad Marchand power-play goal. Seguin showed his speed with a nice burst down the wing, but the fact he got the call despite there appearing to be no contact from Jeff Petry shows Seguin's is definitely starting to get some star treatment.

Marchand's goal was his first in 10 games. Claude Julien said this morning that he wasn't worried about Marchand's scoring slump and that when he scored, the goals will likely come in bunches. Well, there's one, let's see if Marchand can build off that and get on a roll.

On the negative side, Shawn Thornton was caled for hooking. That was his first minor penalty of teh season. He came into the game with 20 PIMs, but those all came on four fighting majors and he had not put Boston shorthanded until this call.

Defenseman Andrew Ference played just two shifts in the second and went to the locker room. Not sure what happened to him, but that will obviously bear watching to see if he returns in the third. some solid work from the rest of the defense in his absence. Joe Corvo collected a pair of assists and Adam McQuaid is looking more and more comfortable after his early struggles and injuries this season. Those two will need to take on bigger roles if Ference is sidelined.

— Douglas Flynn

Second period, 19:14, Bruins 4-2: The Oilers penalty kill unit does its job. We'll head into the second intermission with the Bruins holding a two-goal lead.

Second period, 16:48, Bruins 4-2: Jordan Eberle is sent to the box for interference, giving the Bruins a chance to add to their lead with the man advantage.

Second period, 13:19, Bruins 4-2: Caron, Hamill, Seidenberg, Kelly and Corvo together on the ice put a lot of pressure on Dubnyk. No goals, but as in the first period, all this activity is sure to wear down the goaltender.

Second period: 11:49, Bruins 4-2: The Bruins kill the penalty despite Gregory Campbell losing his stick. Rask is getting some fine defensive play in front of him after that area was lacking in his starts earlier this season.

Second period, 9:29, Bruins 4-2: Shawn Thornton is called for hooking, giving the Oilers their first power play opportunity of the game.

Second period, 6:24, Bruins 4-2: As it turns out, the Bruins needed a bit more than 30 seconds. It took them a whole 1:34 to score again this time. They must be getting slow in their old age.

Seguin beats Dubnyk off an assist from Corvo, with both putting together strong second periods — and there's still almost 12 minutes left.

Seguin now has a goal and an assist in the period, and Corvo has two assists.

Second period, 3:50, Bruins 3-2: So in about 30 seconds we should expect another goal, right?

Brad Marchand redirects a shot by Seguin, giving the Bruins a 3-2 lead with one their second power play of the game.

Corvo gets the second assist.

Seguin has points in five consecutive games.

Second period, 2:09, 2-2: Seguin gets free on a breakaway, but Jeff Petry ruins the scoring opportunity by hooking Seguin. The Bruins go back on the power play. 

First Intermission Notes: It was an entertaining opening 20 minutes of hockey here at the Garden. No stalling tactics in this one as there was plenty of back-and-forth action and a plethora of scoring chances.

If anything, it may be a little too wide-open for Claude Julien and the Bruins' liking. Boston started strong and cashed in with two quick goals (where have we heard that before?), though it did take the bruins a full 1:44 between goals by Johnny Boychuk and Jordan Caron. But the Oilers stole a page out of Boston's playbook by tying it with two goals in 29 seconds.

Other than that quick stretch, Tuukka Rask has looked solid. He didn't have a chance on Edmonton's first goal, which was tipped in front by Ryan Smyth. Edmonton's young talent was on full display for the second strike, which 2011 first overall pick Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored off a feed from 2010 first overall pick Taylor Hall. Hall played just 5:04 in the first, but was a plus-1 with that assist and has the early edge on 2010 No. 2 pick Tyler Seguin, who was a minus-1 with no shots in 6:49.

Zach Hamill looked more comfortable at wing in his third stint with the big club over the last three seasons. He made a steal in the Edmonton zone and found Caron for Boston's second goal, and also drew the only penalty of the period late in the frame. He's a plus-1 with one shot on another good scoring chance from the right slot in 4:09.

Ben Watanabe will have your updates during the second epriod, and I'll check in again with some observations at the next intermission.

— Douglas Flynn

First period, 18:17, 2-2: Theo Peckham picks up a roughing penalty, but the Oilers' aggressive penalty kill unit is forcing the Bruins to scramble. Krejci puts a wrister in Dubnyk's chest, but not a great look on the power play.

That ends the first period with things even at 2-2.

First period, 12:31, 2-2: The problem with a young team is, just when you start to think they're down, they can quickly turn things around.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins goes five-hole on Rask 29 seconds after Smyth beat him for Edmonton's first goal, and in a heartbeat the game is tied 2-2.

Taylor Hall contributes his first point of the night, assisting on Nugent-Hopkins' goal.

Theo Peckham and Ales Hemsky were credited with assists on the goal by Smyth, who now has a six-game point streak.

First period, 10:58, Bruins 2-0: The Oilers have been red-hot, but one potential chink in their armor is that they give up way more shots than they manage themselves.

The Bruins, who have a tendency to score in bunches, might be exactly the type of team that could prove troublesome for the Oilers' previously successful style of play.

First period, 8:55, Bruins 2-0: Opponents may want to beware whenever the Bruins score a goal, because another one is surely coming soon.

Jordan Caron puts in his first goal of the season and yet another multiple-goal flurry for the Bruins. It's becoming a habit.

That's Caron's first goal of the season and was assisted by Hamill, making his presence felt.

First period, 7:11, Bruins 1-0: Dubnyk wasn't going to be able to stop everything. Boychuk lets go a slapper that beats Dubnyk to his stick side, giving the Bruins a 1-0 lead.

Horton and Krejci assisted on the play. For Krejci, it's his seventh point in the last three games.

First period, 6:21, 0-0: A pretty display of passing by the Bruins doesn't result in a goal. Marchand leads the rush to the left side, leaves the puck for Seguin, who feeds McQuaid for a nice shot from the right that finds Dubnyk's pad. The Bruins will be in good shape with more of that.

First period, 4:47, 0-0: Rask faces a scrum as the defense struggles to clear the puck. Seidenberg finally is able to push it out of the zone and the lines change.

First period, 3:27, 0-0: The Bruins are trying to take advantage of the Oilers aggressiveness, having already had three decent shots from point-blank range against Dunyk. So far the 2004 first round pick has turned away every chance.

First period, 1:15, 0-0: Oilers get a prime chance early when Ryan Smyth gobbles up a loose puck and hits the right post. Joe Corvo comes back and shoots it wide left on the doorstep agains Dubnyk.

7 p.m.: Tyler Seguin will take center stage to start this one, but the Oilers won't cooperate as Taylor Hall's line is not starting.

They'll see each other plenty, but to start it will be Patrice Bergeron between Brad Marchand and Seguin up front, with Zdeno Chara and Johnny Boychuk on defense and Tuukka Rask in goal.

The Oilers counter with Ryan Smyth, Shawn Horcoff and Ales Hemsky up front, Ladislav Smid and Tom Gilbert on the blue line and Devan Dubnyk in net.

I'll have some help in the live blog for this one with Ben Watanabe with me at the Garden. I'll hand the reins over to him to start this one off.

6:55 p.m.: The Bruins have officially scratched Rich Peverley once again. he'll miss his second straight game with an undisclosed injury.

Daniel Paille is also out after surgery on his broken nose Wednesday, while Steven Kampfer is the healthy scratch on defense.

The Oilers have scratches Magnus Paajarvi, while Andy Sutton is suspended.

6:40 p.m.: Rich Peverley was not on the ice for warm-ups for the Bruins. Zach Hamill skated in his place on the third line alongside Jordan Caron and Chris Kelly. Hamill is a natural center but has played on the wing this year in Providence.

Benoit Pouliot was on the fourth line with Gregory Campbell and Shawn Thornton.

Here are the full line combinations from the warm-up:

Lucic-Krejci-Horton

Marchand-Bergeron-Seguin

Caron-Kelly-Hamill

Pouliot-Campbell-Thornton

Defense pairs:

Chara-Boychuk

Seidenberg-Corvo

Ference-McQuaid

6:30 p.m.: Tuukka Rask and Devan Dubnyk did lead the teams out onto the ice for warm-ups. That will be the goalie matchup in this one as the backups get their chance to shine.

5:45 p.m.: It could be a battle of backups as the Bruins look to extend their win streak to four games against the Oilers.

Tuukka Rask was the first goalie off the ice at the morning skate, usually the indication of that night's starter.

While Claude Julien didn't confirm whether Rask would get the nod over Tim Thomas, Edmonton is definitely going with Devan Dubnyk in goal. Nikolai Khabibulin, who is 7-0-2 with a 0.98 GAA, will get the night off.

Rich Peverley, who missed Monday's game with an undisclosed injury, skated this morning and will be a game-time decision. If he can't go, Zach Hamill will make his season debut.

8 a.m. ET: The Bruins are finally back on the right track, winning their last three games by a combined 18-5 count.

They have a chance to pull back to .500 with a win Thursday when they host Edmonton, but beating the Oilers won't be easy.

The young Oilers, who are led by 2011 first overall pick Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (6-6-12 totals in 14 games) and 2010 No. 1 pick Taylor Hall (3-6-9 in 13 games), have been one of the biggest surprises of the season, jumping out to a 9-3-2 start for 20 points through 14 games. Hall will be paying his first visit to Boston to face former OHL rival Tyler Seguin, who went second overall in 2010 and leads the Bruins with 8-7-15 totals in 13 games.

"They're a great young team and they've had a good start to the year," Bruins forward Nathan Horton said of the Oilers. "We've just got to play them smart and stick to the way we've been playing the last few games with everyone chipping in and everyone playing their role."

Edmonton leads the Northwest Division and is second in the Western Conference, and comes in fresh from a solid 3-1 win in Montreal on Tuesday.

"They were very conscientious of making sure that they didn't open up too much," Bruins coach Claude Julien said of Edmonton's effort in Montreal. "It was a road game and they were smart about it. [Nikolai] Khabibulin kept them in the game and the minute they had a chance to put another puck in the net and give themselves a bit of a cushion they did. Basically, at the end of the night they found another way to win. They've beaten some good teams, so they've earned the respect that they're getting right now."

Edmonton has won seven of its last eight games, and Khabibulin has been a major part of that. He's 7-0-2 with an 0.98 GAA and .964 save percentage this year. He's yet to allow more than two goals in a game and has a pair of shutouts. But Khabibulin has struggled in the past against the Bruins, posting a 6-10-2-1 record with a 3.00 GAA and an .897 save percentage in 20 career games versus Boston.

The Bruins, meanwhile, will likely turn to Tim Thomas, who is 3-0-0 against the Oilers with an 0.98 GAA and a .968 save percentage. Thomas won his first career start in the NHL against Edmonton back in 2002 and has posted shutouts in his last two games against the Oilers.

The Oilers certainly aren't taking the Bruins lightly, noting that the reigning Cup champs certainly look formidable again with the way they have played during their three-game win streak.

"They certainly have found some traction," Edmonton coach Tom Renney said. "They're playing to their strengths and I would think they're probably feeling a lot better about themselves. We expect a real confident team that will come out hard and try their best to push us out of the game as quick as possible. We have to be equal to the task and use our puck speed and our attack speed and make sure that if they're coming it's 200 feet and minimize the turnover game, which in the last couple of games at least has kind of plagued us."

The puck drops at 7 p.m., so check back here for updates on all the action from the Garden.

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Joe Corvo Borrows Johnny Boychuk’s Stick for Breakout Offensive Performance in Win Over Edmonton

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