MONTREAL – If anyone is happy there are no days off between game six and game seven it is the Boston Bruins. It gives them one less day to hear about their (lack of) character issues.
The Bruins handed game six to the Canadiens as they allowed two five-on-three situations which led to both Montreal goals.
Even if the referees had wanted to give the Bruins a break Boston made it impossible. Already a man down due to a too many man on the ice penalty, Dennis Seidenberg made it easy for the refs as he smashed a Montreal stick to smithereens.
Michael Cammalleri eventually scored on that two-man advantage when he converted a cross-ice pass from P.K. Subban.
The second five-on-three came courtesy of a Milan Lucic boarding penalty (perhaps Lucic’s first hit of the series?) Patrice Bergeron followed Lucic’s penalty with another no-brainer penalty as the Bruins center fired the puck from his defensive zone into the crowd without touching glass.
Brian Gionta would laugh last as he jammed home the puck for the game-winning goal. Earlier in the evening it appeared Gionta had given the Canadiens an early lead when he tucked a puck into the Boston goal, but a whistle had already blown the play dead.
The Bruins lone tally came on a soft goal. Seidenberg took the puck from behind the Montreal goal and placed it between Carey Price’s pad and the post. It tied the game at the time, but Price would not err again as he broke a long seven-game losing streak at home during the playoffs.
With the loss the Bruins are now 0-6 in their last half dozen elimination games. Should they lose on Wednesday night at home there might be serious implications. Because the Bruins are locked into several expensive multi-year deals it might be difficult to move players, which only leaves management.
General manager Peter Chiarelli and head coach Claude Julien were spared after their historic loss to the Philadelphia Flyers, but probably won’t survive a first round knockout by the hated Canadiens.
This would be especially true in light of the fact they would have had a pair of chances to put Montreal away.
Contact Tom.Schettino@prohockeynews.com
