Bruins vs. Montreal, Dec. 19, 2011

December 19, 2011: Boston vs. Montreal

Pregame comments:

Santa is there!! And so is the Misses!
Boston needs a new singer for the national anthem, but they can keep his wardrobe. Nice bowtie.
Throwback jersey, very nice.
No Lucic 

Period 1:
18:53 – Bergeron had a nice shot, just wide.
18:28 – First face-off, in Montreal zone. Bruins win it.
17:52 – Lamest attempt at shot on goal by Montreal. The puck probably went about a mile and a half an hour.
16:59 – Eller with a good steal in Montreal zone to kill Bruins strike.
15:58 – Pretty bitchin’ pass down the left side to give the Bruins a nice chance at a goal… that they missed.
14:24 – They waved off the icing… I hate this rule. It makes no sense.
First commercial break: There was a 2 on 2 going for the Bruins but a really nice breakup by the Montreal defense. It happened way too fast for me to be getting numbers and taking names.
Fun fact, tonight is the Bruins’ 103rd straight sellout. Boston sports fans are pretty awesome.
13:17 – Corvo with a good shot on goal, still no score yet though.
12:27 – Kaberle breaks up Seguin’s strong attempt. Welcome back to Boston, kiddo.
11:12 – Horton misses a pass in the Montreal zone... I hope it was because he was busy hearing a Who…
10:19 – Thomas makes the first save of the night. Good stick block and quick cover-up.
7:59 – Corner struggle for control of the puck in the Montreal zone. I wonder if they say no homo while they practically hump each other trying to get it…
7:47 – Bruins score!! Right off the face-off, Pouliot gets his 6th goal of the season to put the Bruins on top for the first goal of the night!
7:24 – Kelly has a great break away, looking at back to back goals, but gets hooked just before taking the shot. Too bad the penalty wasn’t actually called…
6:34 – Plekanec scored for Montreal. Right through the legs of Chara and Thomas. How unfortunate.
~6 – Boston is looking a little shaken up and out of sorts after the quick Montreal goal. Hopefully they can hold it together for another few minutes before they talk themselves back up during first intermission.
4:54 – Campbell with a good steal but it gets away from him as he enters the Montreal zone.
According to the announcers the Bruins have a lot of layers, and they keep getting in their own way with said layers…. They are just like onions and ogres.
3:11 – Marchand and Bergeron both in front of the net, so close to another goal, but tipped just outside.
1:58 – The puck is flying all over the place, neither team can really hold on to control for more than a few seconds.
1:16 – Bruins offside. My least favorite penalty. It can be so easily avoided, just pay attention! I mean you are professionals… it is kind of like your job…
And that’s the end of the first, all tied at 1. And according to one of the fans, real Canadians love The Bruins. I like it.

Period 2:
19:23 – Puck seems a little bouncier this period. A jumpy shot in the Montreal zone followed by a bouncer on the Bruins net.
18:14 – Bruins attempt at a pass gets knocked back down the ice to Thomas.
17:18 – Incredible tip into the goal for Krejci, with a beautiful set up by Seguin! And it’s under review for a potential kicking motion… And it counts! Bruins up 2-1 
16:43 – Thomas made a nice save and then Ference made a great kick to get the puck out of a dangerous spot when Thomas got tangled up.
16:10 – First PowerPlay of the night goes to Montreal as Horton is called for hooking.
15:42 – Bruins have gotten two really strong shorthanded shots during this penalty kill.
14:09 – Bruins allowed zero shots on goal and killed the first PP of the night.
13:33 – Nice shot by Chara with a scrambled in front of the net, but Price manages to hold on.
12:22 – Nokelainen pings off the sidebar.
11:22 – Price makes a nice grab off Peverley’s shot.
10:51 – Horton potentially hit where there was no pad, but he is skating on like a champ.
8:36 – Boston gets their first stab at the PP as Seguin draws the penalty.
~7:30 – One of the Bruins pinged off the sidebar, but the computer froze so I forget the player or the actual time…. deal with it.
6:34 – Montreal killed the PP allowing just the one shot on goal.
5:23 – McQuaid overshot pass to Campbell and Price gathers the puck up for Montreal.
4:39 – Great save by Thomas! Apparently it allowed the Bruins to change up, which is why they are attacking the Montreal net right now.
3:37 – Boston gets their second PP. The announcer thinks the signal is high-sticking, but I don’t know enough to corroborate that. Oh and apparently it’s a double minor... goes to show you shouldn’t high stick. 4 minutes of Boston fun.
1:57 – Bruins ruled off-sides and haven’t done too much in the first couple of minutes of the PP
2-1 at the end of the second with just a few seconds left in the PP for the Bruins. They had a decent chance in the last minute, but Campbell didn’t get quite enough power behind his shot.

Period 3
~ 19:37 – PP is over, but the timer isn’t showing so I can’t help you too much. Probably about 23 seconds in though, if I can still do basic math that is… Bruins only getting 3 shots on goal.
~ 17:30 – Lots of fancy stick work in the Montreal zone as Bruins chance up man by man, close wrap around and then an icing call…. Still no clock but the announcer says 2.5 minutes gone as Montreal calls a timeout.
16:47 – Kaberle misses a pass across the ice in the Boston zone. and the timer is back, but the score is not 0-0, so here is hoping the clock part is close to accurate even if the score isn’t…
15:09 – Timer and score restored! I know… it’s that important.
14:16 – Cross-checking penalty against the Bruins, let’s see if Montreal can do something with the PP this time.
14:11 – Subban takes a hard shot upstairs on Thomas, just a little wide, but lots of power.
14:00 – Another hard shot that Thomas covers.
12:41 – Campbell lays out on the ice and swipes the puck into the neutral zone… And apparently has a broken foot. There is no athlete like a hockey player.
12:16 – Boston manages to kill the penalty, but Montreal put up a strong fight for the full 2 minutes.
11:40 – Lucic looks pissed. I feel bad for whoever the Bruins play next…
10:30 – Bruins had a 3 on 1 put cross ice pass was intercepted.
9:22 – Seguin just missed a nice 1 timer! So many close shots on goal by both teams in the last minute. This is going to be a rough period.
8:20 – Price robs the Bruins! I want to say it was Peverley with the setup to Campbell, but I could be totally wrong… Either way, a beautiful pass in front of the goal with a nice shot, Price was just a little bit too quick.
5:45 – Marchand scores!! and Seguin with a damnedie dangle? Whatever, the Bruins were so close to getting some great shots for the past couple of minutes and it finally pays off! Bruins lead 3-1
5:07 – Thomas with a nice slap away as Montreal tries to answer back.
3:59 – Thomas makes another great save! He is keeping this game alive for Boston as they cling to a 2 goal lead with only a few minutes left to fight.
2:04 – Faceoff in the Bruins end after Thomas makes another strong save. Montreal hasn’t given up yet.
1:14 – Montreal pulls their goalie, just in time for a puck to deflect into the Bruins net. 3-2 with just over a minute to go. Unnecessarily under review…
0:57 – Montreal has an empty net for the second time tonight.
0:13 – A lot of close shots for Montreal, but Boston manages to clear it for an icing.
0:09 – Bergeron clears it again, basically sealing the win for Boston.
0:01 – Seidenberg shoots at the empty net, clinging off the sidebar.
0:00 – Bruins win 3-2! A huge rivalry poses a strong game, but the Bruins manage to out maneuver Montreal to continue the strong climb back from an iffy opening season.