Almost had our 4th 6 goal game in a row for the Bruins.  Unfortunately, they were on the receiving end of the offensive onslaught.  Montreal got on the board early with a goal by Alexei Emelin and never looked back.  The Canadiens are excellent front-runners as they

have won 81.5% of their games when they score first.  The Canadiens would go up 2-0 before the Bruins got their only goal of the game.

After giving up his 3rd goal of the game, Tuukka Rask would get pulled early in the 2nd period.  The first shot Chad Johnson would face after he entered the game would pretty much put the game away as Montreal extended their lead to 4-1.

Overall, the Bruins didn't have much going all night.  According to the game stats the Bruins outshot the Canadiens 35-33, but it really didn't seem like it.  Penalty killing favored the Canadiens as they were a perfect 3 for 3 and came close to keeping the Bruins shotless at times.  The Bruins managed to kill 2 of 3 penalties.  Whenever they made a mistake the Canadiens would make them pay. 

In net for the Canadiens tonight was Peter Budaj.  He stopped 34 of the 35 shots he faced to get the victory for his team.  Dougie Hamilton was the lone goal scorer for the Bruins. 

Although they have played one less game than the Canadiens, the Bruins have amassed ten more points and currently stand alone atop the Atlantic Division.  After starting out the month at 3-3,

the Bruins have gained a lot of momentum heading into February. In their last 6 games they are 5-0-1 and have scored 27 goals.  During that same stretch the defense has only given up a total of 12 goals.  Tuukka Rask and Chad Johnson have split time in net during this stretch and have given up 7 goals and 5 goals respectively.  Rask is expected to be in goal tonight.

Although this will be the Bruins' 53rd game of the season, it will only be the second time they've faced Montreal this season.  In early December the Bruins traveled to Canada and lost by a score of 2-1.  At that point in the season, the Canadiens'  were in first place in the division. 

After playing each other 723 times, the Bruins record stands at 270-341-103-8.  With the way both teams are playing lately, the Bruins should get win number 271 and their 21st home win of the season.  Montreal is 1-4 in their last 5 games and have a road record of 13-11-2.

On the season, the Canadiens have had the third best penalty kill in the NHL with an 85.7% success rate.  While killing penalties may be their strength this season, coming from behind is not.  When trailing first they have won only 23.1 percent of the time.  The Bruins, on the other hand, have won 42.9 percent of the time when they've trailed first. 

Both teams are neck and neck when it comes to time in the penalty box.  The Bruins average 11.5 minutes in the box while the Canadiens' average 11.9.  Chances are those number might go up slightly after tonight's game since the teams have a long history with each other.  In the last meeting Boychuck had to be taken to the hospital after getting boarded by Max Pacioretty early in the first period.  Ideally the Bruins will score first and then worry about any extracurricular activities.         

So, this year's Super Bowl is being played at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.  The current weather forecast

After having a west coast swing where they had trouble finding the net, the Bruins have been on a scoring spree.  In their past 6 games they have scored 24 goals.  Brad Marchand and Reilly Smith have both gotten points in all 6 of these games.   

BRUINS-
12 goals in 2 games,
First place in the Atlantic,
Marchand is on fire.