Projo Bruins Blog

October 2006 Archives

Nate Thompson was sent back to Providence after tonight's game. He played his second NHL game against the Canadiens tonight and had a solid game. Coach Dave Lewis told him he was happy with his performance. Overall Thompson played 6:03 in the Bruins' 3-2 loss. It's possible, however, if Mark Mowers (shoulder) is not ready to play on Saturday, Thompson will be recalled once again. He will be in the lineup for the P-Bruins on Friday.

Former Bruin forward Sergei Samsonov is back at The Garden today as a member of the Habs. Montreal just completed its game-day skate and Samsonov drew a lot of media attention. He said it's strange being back here, especially as a Canadien.

It's a bittersweet return to Boston for Sammy, where he was once a first-round pick (eighth overall) in 1997. That year he and top pick Joe Thornton were pegged as the future of hockey here, but now both are gone.

Samsonov was demoted to Montreal's fourth line yesterday and wasn't too happy about it.

"I'm not shocked," he told the Canadian Press. "If you keep track of my ice time, that's what I'm getting right now, I'm a fourth-line player. . . When I came here, I thought I was going to be the go-to guy and obviously that's not the case right now. What is it going to take? I don't know. We'll see."

Samsonov stood by those words this morning.

Marco Sturm (thigh), Andrew Alberts (shoulder), Brad Stuart (finger) and Mark Mowers (shoulder) are still out of the lineup. Besides Stuart, the rest did participate in today's game-day skate.

Rookie defenseman Mark Stuart (offseason knee injury) skated with the team this morning, and even though he said he's feeling much better, he's still a long way off from returning.

Defenseman Matt Lashoff will make his NHL debut tonight against the Montreal Canadiens at The Garden. The 20-year-old was all smiles this morning after the Bruins' game-day skate, so much so he was almost out of breath.

"This is surreal," he said.

Boston's first pick (22nd overall) in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, began his pro career late last season for the P-Bruins and had a solid training camp this year. He was assigned to Providence where he had one goal and one assist with a minus-1 rating in five games.

Tim Thomas will start against the Montreal Canadiens tonight. He enters the game 0-1-1 with a 4.40 GAA and a .866 save percentage. Hannu Toivonen has played six games (five starts) and is 2-3-0 with a 3.72 GAA and a .884.

"He's ready to go again," said Bruins coach Dave Lewis about Thomas. "Nobody has jumped out and been the go-to guy, so it's going to be a process. We're just hoping he comes out and plays the way he can play, nothing more than that. We're not looking for a super-human performance, just a solid performance would be satisfactory."

The Boston Bruins have called up defenseman Matt Lashoff from Providence. The rookie was a first-round selection (22nd overall) by Boston in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft.

In five games for the P-Bruins, he has one goal and one assist, while posting a minus-1 rating.

The Bruins host the Calgary Flames in their home-opener tonight, carrying a 1-3-1 record. Boston will play its next six games at The Garden, so getting off to a solid start tonight will be key.

"It's very important," said Bruins coach Dave Lewis. "It's the old cliche 'you can only play one game at a time.' But, we have to give ourselves a chance to win hockey games."

After playing the first five games on the road, the trip home is a welcome sign.

"Anytime you get to play in a NHL home-opener it's fabulous," said Lewis. "Our guys are ready. They want to play at home and show the fans what we have. It's an exciting day, it doesn't matter how many years you've been in the league."

Bruins forward Marco Sturm will likely miss tonight's home-opener with a thigh injury he suffered at practice on Wednesday.

Coach Dave Lewis said Sturm has some significant swelling and probably won't play against the Flames tonight. The coach did say, however, that you never know. If Sturm can not play, Wade Brookbank will be inserted into the lineup.

Hannu Toivonen will make his fourth start (fifth game) of the season tonight, and he was nice and relaxed this morning after the game-day skate. During the 15-minute skate he was also quite focused. Expect a big game from him tonight.

Boston Bruins defenseman _ and newcomer _ Zdeno Chara has been named captain for 2006-2007. Glen Murray and Patrice Bergeron will serve as assistants.

More to come. . .