Bruins Live Blog: Senators Hold Off B’s 1-0 Behind Shutout From Robin Lehner

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Feb 28, 2012

Bruins Live Blog: Senators Hold Off B's 1-0 Behind Shutout From Robin LehnerFinal, Senators 1-0: The Bruins were forced to pull Thomas late, but the Senators hold on for the win. The B's weren't able to muster up much in the closing seconds as Ottawa played solid stay-at-home D.

Robin Lehner is the first star of this one, pitching a shutout for the Senators. He stopped all 32 shots Boston through at him, outdueling Tim Thomas, who was sensational this evening as well.

For more postgame analysis, keep it here with NESN.com

Third period, 17:51, Senators 1-0: Things are about to get really interesting here in the closing minutes. The Bruins are going on the power play after Sergei Gonchar gets two minutes for hooking Zdeno Chara, which sent the Bruins defenseman down to the ice.

The B's probably should have had a chance earlier, as Pouliot was caught up high with a stick, but there there was no call. It should be an exciting finish here.

Third period, 16:30, Senators 1-0: Tough break for the B's nearly results in a Senators goal.

Zdeno Chara broke his stick one a one-timer bid, which caused the defenseman to throw his stick down in disgust. But it also led to a Zack Smith breakaway, which Thomas denied.

Third period, 15:25, Senators 1-0: Bergeron let go a drive that went off Lehner's glove then trickled behind the net. The Bruins then did a nice job of dictating the action, with Campbell and Paille each coming up with chances of their own — but it all goes for naught.

Play is stopped when a puck is rifled into the Senators' bench area.

Third period, 13:02, Senators 1-0: The Bruins tried to turn a neutral-zone turnover into something, but Chris Kelly's stuff from the right side was met by the skate of Robin Lehner.

Third period, 11:57, Senators 1-0: Alfredsson feeds Kyle Turris with a nice drop pass, but the defenseman didn't have much of an angle, and Thomas shut the door.

The Bruins are now 0-for-3 on the power play this evening, by the way.

Third period, 10:54, Senators 1-0: A lot of pressure from the Bruins on the power play, but the Senators PK has stood tall thus far.

Ference delivered a cross-ice strike to Benoit Pouliot, but Pouliot wasn't able to bury it. Chara and Krejci then both teed up slappers as the Bruins worked the puck around the point. Lehner was finally able to slow things down after gloving the biscuit out of the air.

Third period, 9:37, Senators 1-0: The B's will go back on the power play here midway through the third period, as Nick Foligno goes off for tripping.

Third period, 9:06, Senators 1-0: You really can't say enough about the game Thomas has played tonight. Erik Karlsson made a bid to add his second tally of the game, which Thomas denied. Then, after skating around the net, Karlsson dished the puck out to Chris Neil, whose drive on Thomas was also denied.

Third period, 7:24, Senators 1-0: Dennis Seidenberg got the power-play chance off to a strong start, letting go a hard slap shot that kept Lehner on his toes between the pipes. The B's failed to stay in the zone after that, though.

The latest whistle comes on the heels of a fantastic save by Lehner, his 19th stop of the evening. It hit off a stick out in front, but the Ottawa netminder gloved the redirect out of mid air.

Third period, 5:13, Senators 1-0: Joe Corvo's slap-shot bid knuckles a bit and goes behind the net. Ottawa then comes back down the other end, where Thomas covers up a low-percentage opportunity.

The Bruins will now go on the power play, as Erik Condra goes off for holding the stick.

Third period, 4:56, Senators 1-0: An excellent check by Chara on Bobby Butler leads to some nice transition work by the B's. Lucic wasn't able to bury a cross-ice feed, though.

Third period, 2:59, Senators 1-0: A nice D-to-D pass from McQuaid to Mottau eventually set up Seguin for entry into the offensive zone. The young forward made a few nifty moves en route to a backhand bit, but Lehner was again there for the denial.

Third period, 1:45, Senators 1-0: Couple of excellent scoring chances for the Bruins in the opening minute, but nothing comes of it.

Patrice Bergeron took a feed and coasted in along the left side, but he just couldn't pull the trigger. Seguin had a nice chance of his own.

Back down the other end, Thomas made two more excellent stops to keep this a one-goal game.

Third period, 20:00 Senators 1-0: Play has resumed here at TD Garden. The Bruins picked up their play a bit in the second period, but they'll need to do much more to take control here in the final frame.

The Bruins have entered the third period trailing 1-0 on five previous occasions this season, and are 1-3-1 in those games. The B's are 6-14-2 overall when trailing after two periods.

The Senators, meanwhile, are 18-2-2 when leading after 40 minutes.

Second intermission notes: Tim Thomas has been the difference in this one, keeping the Bruins within a goal at 1-0 despite Ottawa controlling play for most of the first 40 minutes.

The Senators have outshot Boston 31-15 so far, including 18-8 in the second period. That doesn't include Erik Condra's miss of a wide-open net from about eight feet. Of course, the Bruins know all about failing to get pucks on net. They have more attempts fail to get on goal (16, 10 blocked, 6 missed) than they have on net (15).

The physical play did pick up a bit in the second, though the Senators don't seem to want to wake up the Bruins by engaging. Shawn Thornton dropped his gloves trying to get Chris Neil to go, but Neil would not oblige. Zack Smith also turned down an apparent invite from Adam McQuaid. The Bruins have still dominated the hit count 20-10. Thirteen of the 18 skaters dressed for Boston have recorded hits. Joe Corvo is one of the few who hasn't, though Kyle Turris also has a goose egg in that category. He's been better behaved tonight, getting a whisper in his ear from Thornton and flattened by Milan Lucic.

Lucic has three hits so far, including one that sent Smith flying. The shot on Turris was some solid payback for Saturday's cheap shot on Corvo, but came on a delayed penalty after Lucic slashed Erik Karlsson. The Bruins need to stay physical, but have to stay more disciplined than that.

Now back to Ricky Doyle for the final frame.

End second period, Senators 1-0: Some momentary sloppiness made things a bit interesting, but the Bruins were able to recover for a nice breakout. Once in the offensive zone, Ference let go a shot that was steered aside.

Then, the Bruins continued to up the pressure following a turnover, but it didn't amount to much in the way of scoring opportunities.

Ottawa's Jim O'Brien made a nice play to take the puck off Zdeno Chara's stick and subsequently coast in the Boston zone. His backhander was denied by Thomas, though.

After the final horn, the two teams convened in the corner, but punches were kept to a minimum.

Second period, 16:40, Senators 1-0: Another clean breakout by the Senators allows clear entry into the offensive zone, which had the Bruins defense on its heels a little bit. Thomas was forced to swat away a bouncing puck to alleviate the pressure.

Second period, 14:53, Senators 1-0: Nice job of killing off the Lucic penalty by the Bruins, particularly by Krejci and Kelly. But shortly after, a hand pass brings us to a break in the action.

A couple little dust-ups over the past few minutes, but nothing major. Andrew Ference got tied up with Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson, which clearly didn't result in much.

Second period, 12:39, Senators 1-0: Nothing says, "Rumble" like Motley Crue. And right after a little "Kickstart My Heart," a little melee breaks out down the Boston end.

Milan Lucic laid out Kyle Turris, who — as you may remember — is the one who delivered a questionable hit on Joe Corvo last game.

Lucic goes to the box for two minutes for slashing.

Second period, 12:17, Senators 1-0: Shawn Thornton with a nice bid, but Lehner steers it aside with a fundamentally sound pad save.

Second period, 12:00, Senators 1-0: We've finally gotten our first "Looooch" chants of the evening after the Bruins power forward levels Zack Smith up against the boards.

Seguin had another nice opportunity, but he shot it wide stick-side.

Second period, 10:00, Senators 1-0: Nice pressure from the Seguin-Bergeron-Marchand line gets the crowd into it with a solid forecheck. Adam McQuaid let go a shot from the point, and Bergeron hit in out of Lehner's glove to continue applying pressure, but eventually the action started up the other way.

Back down the Boston zone, Erik Condra had a golden opportunity to extend Ottawa's lead, but he missed a wide open net.

Gregory Campbell, meanwhile, ripped a wrister on Lehner, which sailed just over the Ottawa goalie's left shoulder. Action has really begun to open up after a slow first period and a half.

Second period, 6:30, Senators 1-0: It's now time for that game in which they shuffle up the helmets on the Jumbotron and you have to guess which one the puck is under. Frankly, it's one of the biggest crapshoots going. Because let's be real here, no one is quick enough to follow the puck in that game.

Second period, 5:38, Senators 1-0: Things continuing to get a little more chippy, with Shawn Thornton now in the midst of it. It'll be somewhat surprising if we don't see these two teams exchange blows by the end of the night. And at this point, it might just be what the Bruins need.

For the record, the Bruins have 46 fighting majors this season, while the Senators have 42 — each among the NHL leaders.

Second period, 5:32, Senators 1-0: Relatively quiet TD Garden crowd here about six minutes into the second period. Then again, it hasn't had much to cheer about.

Second period, 4:28, Senators 1-0: Things just got a little chippy in front of the Boston net. In the midst of it, a couple of guys who know each other quite well: Zdeno Chara and Chris Neil; the two, of course, went toe to toe on Saturday night.

Colin Greening and Kyle Turris have each been able to get shots through to Thomas here in the last couple of minutes, but neither made the Bruins goalie break a sweat.

Second period, 2:17, Senators 1-0: Play has resumed in the second period at TD Garden, with no a whole lot going on offensively. The Bruins' second line continues to provide much of the team's energy tonight, though.

First intermission notes: The Bruins and Senators picked up where they left off on Saturday, when Ottawa dominated much of the third period and nearly rallied from a 4-1 deficit. The play hasn't been quite as tilted in Ottawa's favor in this one, but the Bruins definitely didn't come out with a lot of jump to start this rematch.

Ottawa has outshot Boston 13-7 and converted the second of its two power-play chances for a 1-0 lead. It took the Bruins nearly seven minutes to produce their first shot on net, a point shot by Dennis Seidenberg.

the expected fireworks haven't materialized. Joe Corvo has been out opposite Kyle Turris multiple times, but made no effort to initiate any extracurriculars. There has been some hitting though, the best a big shot along the boards by Adam McQuaid on Zenon Konopka. Zack Smith also hammered Seidenberg, who was not pleased. Brad Marchand did give Turris a bit of a shove at one point, bring Chris Phillips and Chris Neil over in a minor scrum that didn't develop any further.

Brian Rolston has been used on both the PK and the point on the power play, though he couldn't contribute to the first PK after taking a tripping penalty. He's played 4:08 overall with a hit and two blocked shots, but is just 1-3 on faceoffs. The Bruins are 9-15 (36 percent) overall on draws.

Mike Mottau played 3:55 with a hit in his first period as a Bruin. Shawn Thornton is also back after missing one game with flu-like symptoms, but played just four shifts for 1:47 in the first.

Back to Ricky Doyle for the second period.

End first period, Senators 1-0: The B's were unable to generate much offense on the power play, and Adam McQuaid's drive at the end of the period went for naught. After 20 minutes of hockey, the Senators hold a one-goal edge.

And so much for the much-anticipated fireworks, as the two teams have been relatively tame when it comes to physicality thus far.

First period, 16:56, Senators 1-0: The B's will have a chance to answer with a power-play opportunity of their own. Nick Foligno is going off for two minutes for holding.

First period, 14:44, Senators 1-0: Erik Karlsson continues his fantastic offensive season, letting go a drive that gets past Thomas for the power-play goal. There was a nice screen in front that clearly affected the Bruins netminder.

Karlsson's goal extends his point streak to eight games. Jason Spezza and Milan Michalek are credited with the assists. That extends Spezza's point streak to 10 games and Michalek's to four games.

First period, 13:41, 0-0: The Bruins did a nice job to kill off the first Ottawa power-play chance of the evening. Patrice Bergeron made a nice play to steer the puck out of the zone with his glove from the ice to finish off the kill.

Tyler Seguin has had a couple of nice scoring chances tonight, as the Seguin-Bergeron-Marchand line is playing with its usual energy.

The B's will be shorthanded again, though, as Seguin is going to the box for interference.

First period, 9:41, 0-0: Rolston now adds his first penalty since his return, as he goes off for two minutes for tripping.

First period, 6:56, 0-0: Dennis Seidenberg lets go a blast from the left point, but Robin Lehner is there to make a nifty glove save.

First period, 6:00, 0-0: Scary moment there for the B's. After a couple of drives, the puck was bouncing around the Bruins' crease as Tim Thomas tried to corral it. Defenseman Andrew Ference was forced to drop to his knees to keep it out of the net, which he did, drawing a loud ovation from the Bruins faithful.

First period, 2:24, 0-0: Rolston gets a nice hand in his first shift, and he won his first faceoff in his return to Boston.

Meanwhile, Zdeno Chara labeled Erik Condra into the boards. The hit looked a little high, but Zee wasn't penalized. We'll see if things turn physical in a few, as many expect they will.

7:05 p.m.: Not sure if "capable" is the word I would have used, but I will always do my best. Anywho, after a quick homage to America and those north of the border, we're ready for some hockey.

It's been 2,879 days since Brian Rolston last scored for the Bruins. At that point, the Curse of the Bambino was still in effect and the NHL was headed for a lockout. These are much brighter days in Boston.

7 p.m.: The Bruins newcomers will ahve to wait a few minutes for their first shifts, as Boston will start the familair Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-Tyler Seguin line up front, with Zdeno Chara and Andrew Ference on defense and Tim Thomas in goal.

Ottawa counters with Milan Lichalek, Jason Spezza and Bobby Butler up front, Erik Karlsson and Filip Kuba on the blue line and Robin Lehner in net.

With that, I'll be handing over the reins of the live blog for a bit to the capable hands of Ricky Doyle, who's on hand at the Garden to help out in the coverage of this Northeast Division showdown.

6:55 p.m.: The Bruins have officially scratched Max Sauve and Greg Zanon, who just arrived earlier today and will practice tomorrow with club. Johnny Boychuk (concussion), Rich Peverley (knee) and Nathan Horton (concussion) are out injured.

For Ottawa, Matt Carkner and Kaspars Daugavins are the scratches.

6:45 p.m.: Brian Rolston took the first pre-game skate of his second stint in Boston centering Benoit Pouliot and Jordan Caron. Max Sauve took one turn in the line rushes with that unit, but is expected to be the scratch.

Mike Mottau was paired with Adam McQuaid on the blue line in warm-ups.

Full line combinations from warm-ups:

Lucic-Kelly-Krejci

Marchand-Bergeron-Seguin

Pouliot-Rolston-Caron

Paille-Campbell-Thornton

Defense pairs:

Chara-Ference

Seidenberg-Corvo

Mottau-McQuaid

6:30 p.m.: The Bruins and Senators have taken the ice for warm-ups here at the Garden.

Tim Thomas led the Bruins out and will be in net for Boston. He's 23-8-2 with a 2.01 GAA, .935 save percentage and six shutouts all-time against Ottawa.

Robin Lehner will be in net for the Senators.

6 p.m.: The Bruins will complete a home-and-home series with the Senators after closing out a six-game road trip with a win in Ottawa on Saturday.

They'll have new additions Brian Rolston and Mike Mottau in the lineup, but Greg Zanon will not make his Bruins debut in this one after arriving in Boston after the morning skate on Tuesday.

The Bruins are also expected to have Shawn Thornton back after he missed Saturday's game and Monday's practice with an illness. Having him back could come in handy considering the physical play and nastiness that has marked the season series between the Northeast Division rivals.

8 a.m. ET: The Bruins finally return home after a six-game road trip, and they could have some new faces in the lineup Tuesday night when they host Ottawa at the Garden.

Boston acquired forward Brian Rolston and defensemen Mike Mottau and Greg Zanon in a pair of deals before Monday's trade deadline, adding much-needed depth to the Bruins' injury-depleted lineup. Rolston and Mottau, added from the Islanders for a pair of minor leaguers, are expected to be available for this game. Zanon, who is coming from Minnesota in exchange for Steven Kampfer, expects to arrive in Boston sometime on Tuesday, and could be available as well.

If both new defensemen play, then Joe Corvo's spot in the lineup could be in jeopardy. If Corvo does play, there could be some fireworks with Ottawa forward Kyle Turris, who delivered a dangerous hit to Corvo's head on Saturday but was not disciplined by the league.

The Bruins (37-20-3, 77 points) won 5-3 in that showdown with the Senators to close out the road trip 3-2-1 and extend their lead in the Northeast Division. Ottawa did bounce back with a 5-2 win over the Islanders on Sunday, but Boston still has a three-point lead in the division with four games in hand.

At least one of the new blueliners will be needed, as Johnny Boychuk suffered a mild concussion on a brutal but clean hit from Chris Neil. Shawn Thornton is questionable as well as he sat out practice Monday after missing Saturday's game with flu-like symptoms.

Ottawa (33-23-8, 74 points) also made a deal before Monday's deadline, acquiring former Boston University star defenseman Matt Gilroy from Tampa Bay for Brian Lee. The Senators also added goalie Ben Bishop on Sunday after starter Craig Anderson suffered a hand laceration in a kitchen accident last week.

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

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