These two teams have headed in opposite directions since their meeting just one week ago. It was then when the B’s woke up from a 1-3-1 slump to pummel the Thrashers, winning the game 4-1 and winning several physical bouts throughout the contest. The loss began Atlanta’s current four-game losing streak, while it served as the catalyst for Boston’s current three-game win streak, a streak that has propelled the B’s past Montreal for the Northeast Division lead. Atlanta, meanwhile, has dropped to third place in the Southeast Division, five points behind Washington, and seventh overall in the Eastern Conference, just two points ahead of Montreal for the final playoff seed.

While these two teams did just meet up last week, there’s still plenty to talk about heading into what should be a hotly contested battle tonight in Hotlanta. Let’s roll out some pre-game notes…

- The B’s and Thrashers have split their two meetings so far this season, each winning a 4-1 game on their own home ice.

- Boston is coming off an exciting, back-and-forth, 4-3 win in Tampa on Tuesday night, in a game that saw the Bruins squander three separate one-goal advantages. It was the veteran Mark Recchi who bailed the team out though, scoring his 570th career goal with just 19.7 seconds left in regulation, to give the B’s a one-goal lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

- Meanwhile, as I mentioned earlier, Atlanta is looking to snap out of its current slump, a losing streak that was extended to four games Tuesday night when they dropped a 6-3 game to the Penguins. The Thrashers will now play two games in just about 24 hours, as after tonight’s game with Boston, they’ll fly north for a 5pm start tomorrow in New Jersey against the Devils.

- In Tuesday’s game with Pittsburgh, Atlanta winger Evander Kane sustained a right arm injury that knocked him out of action. He’ll be a game-time decision tonight. Also today, the Thrashers put forward Nik Antropov on injured reserve with a hip injury.

- For Boston, the team could be without center Gregory Campbell tonight, who missed the team’s morning skate with an illness. If he can’t go this evening, look for Daniel Paille to join the action tonight on the fourth line.

- Tuesday’s win over the Lightning had a few interesting nuggets come out of it, most notably the third period benching of slumping forwards Nathan Horton, Marc Savard, and Tyler Seguin. Savard and Horton were on the ice when Martin St. Louis tied the game at three early in the third. That’s when Claude Julien decided to run with three forward lines for an eight-minute stretch, leaving Savard, Seguin, and Horton as the odd men out. Horton, who has probably slumped the most lately, has just one assist and no goals in his last seven games.

- Marc Savard did reach a career milestone while he was on the ice Tuesday, assisting on Steve Kampfer’s first career NHL goal in the first period. For Savard, it was his 700th career NHL point, while for Kampfer, he became the fourth Bruin this season to notch his first career NHL goal, joining fellow rookies Tyler Seguin, Brad Marchand, and Jordan Caron.

- Judging by the team’s morning skate today, it looks as if Tim Thomas will get his seventh straight start tonight in goal. That’s the longest start streak Thomas has had so far this season.

- Goaltending for Atlanta is handled by Ondrej Pavelec (12-8-4, 2.13GAA) and backup Chris Mason (7-6-2, 3.69GAA).

- Leading the way on the stat sheet for the Thrashers is the NHL’s leading scoring defenseman, Dustin Byfuglien (12G, 24A). Winger Andrew Ladd, who came to Atlanta in the offseason with Byfuglien in a trade from Chicago, is right behind Byfuglien with 12 goals and 19 assists. Third is defenseman Tobias Enstrom (5G, 24A).

© Brian Kintz for Sports of Boston, 2010. | Permalink | No comment
Filed under: Bruins.

The Bruins are coming off a 2-0 shutout win over division rival Ottawa on Monday night in a game that has been regarded as goalie Tim Thomas’s best of the year thus far. Early indications from this morning’s pregame skate point to Thomas returning to the crease for tonight’s matchup.

Atlanta will look to rebound from a crushing defeat Monday night to the Canadiens. The Thrashers gave up two late goals to Montreal, then eventually lost in overtime, 4-3. The loss wasn’t due to a lack of offensive effort though, as Atlanta set a franchise record in the game, peppering Montreal goalie Carey Price with 50 shots on goal.

Here now we dive a little deeper into some pregame appetizers, before tonight’s main course…

• In their only previous meeting on the season, Boston escaped Atlanta with a 4-3 shootout win back in mid-November. Patrice Bergeron scored the lone shootout goal while Michael Ryder added two goals in regulation.
• Atlanta has now lost seven straight games to the Bruins.
• Tonight will mark the 200th game of head coach Claude Julien’s Bruins career.
• Boston will remain shorthanded on the blue line, with Derek Morris missing his third straight game tonight with an undisclosed injury, while Mark Stuart continues to recover from a broken sternum. Winger Milan Lucic is nearing a return, aiming to come back from his high ankle sprain before the team’s uber-hyped Winter Classic game at Fenway January 1st. (Still plenty of great seats available…if you don’t mind selling off your first-born kid.)
• Atlanta’s scoring is led by all-world winger Ilya Kovalchuk. Kovalchuk, who could be sent packing by the Thrashers come trade deadline time later this season, leads the team with 20 goals and 17 assists. He has 10 points in his last 7 games. Behind Kovalchuk on the stat sheet is center Rich Peverley (12G, 21A), and wingers Maxim Afinogenov (12G, 19A) and Nik Antropov (9G, 22A). Antropov, the former Maple Leaf and Ranger, has 7 goals in his last 7 games.
• In net, it has yet to be settled whether Atlanta will start Ondrej Pavelec (9-9-5, 3.28GAA) or Johan Hedberg (9-4-2, 2.44GAA).
• Boston will have to beware of the shorthanded strike tonight. Atlanta currently ranks 2nd in the league with five shorthanded goals already this year. Chicago leads the NHL with six.

© Brian Kintz for Sports of Boston, 2009. | Permalink | No comment
Filed under: Bruins.