Nathan Horton Has Major Setback

We wrote earlier that Horton was getting closer to making a comeback. He was able to ride a bike, and had even gotten a little time of the ice...

"He's been pulled back," Julien said. "He's got some symptoms, so we pulled him back. That's why I said as far as for me to come out every and [say there's a] step forward, a step backward. He's back to square one and we're giving him some time here. Those symptoms, once he got back on the ice, came back."

Terrible news, but that's what happens with these concussion, which we know all to well with what happened to Savard. There is obviously no timetable now, and to be honest I would be shocked if we saw him again this season. Once again, this is something the NHL has to figure out how to control. You'll never stop it, but this is happening too much, to too many good players.

Nathan Horton Finally Getting Better

We have been waiting to hear when Horton will be able to return the Bruins from his most recent concussion. The latest report says that he is back on the ice skating, but there isn't an exact timetable.

"He's starting to skate," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "The next time you see him with full equipment practicing on ice is when you'll know he's made the next step after that. That's basically it. He's starting to skate, which is another step in the right direction. It's all the protocol of the league. He needs to be symptom-free of the headaches, and then you go from the bike, to the ice, and to contact."

I wouldn't expect him back with the team for another month, but that's really nothing more then a guess. You just never know if the symptoms around going to come back. I worry about Horton. He wasn't the same player when he came back this year, and I just worry about he will be after his 2nd. We saw Savard retire over this, and Bergeron it took a good 2 years for him to get back to being the player he was. I hope that it doesn't take that long for Horton.

Bruins' Horton Not Getting Better

"Bruins coach Claude Julien said after the team's morning skate Thursday that forward Nathan Horton has not progressed this week in his recovery from his latest concussion, and still is not riding the stationary bike.

"He's still where he was a few days ago," Julien said. "Feeling better, but not well enough right now to get to that stage of working out."

Horton suffered the injury on Jan. 22, when he was hit by Flyers forward Tom Sestito (WEEI)."

The NHL really has to find a way to limit these concussions. We have already seen it with Savard, now we are seeing it with Horton, and arguably the best player in the league Crosby. Better helmets, new rules, I don't know what it will take, but they have to find a way because they are getting out of control.

Horton wasn't the same player he was last year, and even if he does make it back I don't see him having a major impact, which is really just too bad. Thank God the Bruins have built a deep team.

Bruins 5, Jets 3

With Marchand out, other Bruins were going to have to step up. Pouliot was going to play with Bergeron and Seguin, and guys like Krejci, Horton, Lucic, and Seguin were going to have to step up. And they did.

Krejci is hotter than hot right now. He won 11 of 13 faceoffs, and his 2 assists were highlight reel passes. We really saw a good display of the top line's strengths last night. Krejci's vision and passing, Lucic's skating and drive, and Horton's point blank finishing touch. Krejci has 5 goals and 9 assists in his last 9 games. Horton's scored 5 goals in his last 4 games.

One thing that cost the Bruins on Saturday was lack of a power play goal. They got a timely one from Pouliot last night that sealed the victory. Shawn Thornton also scored on a penalty shot. Yes, that sentence was just written.

Rask was brilliant again. He allowed 3 goals, but all 3 were deflected. And he made some huge, very timely stops in the first 40 minutes of the game.

Speaking of which, the Bruins had their share of sloppiness in this one. Giveaways, not taking care of the puck, and it cost them a few goals. Corvo's intercepted pass was the most blatant. But Rask prevented Winnipeg from flying away (pun intended) with a big lead. And in the 3rd period, the Bruins played like a team determined to win.

Back to Corvo, I'm still waiting to find a reason to like this guy. I don't hate him. There just isn't much to like about him yet. He hasn't contributed much to the offense, which was something he was expected to do. And in my opinion, he's the 6th best defenseman. He's 4th in time on ice, but I'd much rather have Ference's stability or Mcquaid's physicality out on the ice.

Anyway, Corvo isn't costing the team much. And he's not struggling. He just hasn't impressed me yet. He's not Dennis Widemen. And he's certainly not Tomas Kaberle.

The Bruins are back on track, and they end their homestand Thursday when the Canadiens come to town. Montreal are struggling. There was a fight a few days ago in practice between PK Subban and Tomas Plekanec. The team has lost 8 of 11. And their fans' biggest concern is that their interim head coach can't speak French. Nice priorities, Montreal.

-The Commodore

Bruins 6, Flyers 0

Zdeno Chara returned to the Bruins lineup and his impact was felt early and often. He was challenged to a fight 2:13 into the game. He scored a goal about 6 minutes later. And he completed his fourth career Gordie Howe hat-trick 7 minutes into the 2nd. Horton was an assist shy of accomplishing the feat.

This was a big test for the Bruins, and they Aced it. The Flyers had won 7 straight, they were atop the Eastern Conference standings, and this was the team that beat the Bruins on Opening Night, partially dampening the B's banner raising celebration. The Bruins got some revenge, and made a huge statement with this win.

The B's scored with deflections and rebound goals. Seguin's was the prettiest of the bunch, and it should have been stopped by Bobrovsky. But as ugly as the goals were, they were the products of good play and puck possession. Also, the Bruins' defensemen were excellent at getting shots at net. Those either went in, were deflected, or were juicy rebounds.

I have to give Julien tons of credit for getting this team to play this well on Saturday. They were flat in Ottawa, and instead of coming to Boston, then going to Philly, the B's stayed in Ontario. Claude gave the team a day off. I'm sure some guys relaxed, some guys went out and blew off some steam. But they all came back reinvigorated.

The Bruins had a full hour of penalties. That's bound to happen in a game against a rival like Philadelphia with a lopsided score. Horton's fighting major means that 10 different Bruins have dropped the gloves this season. That's more than half the skaters on the team.

Lucic got a boarding major, and it was a dirty hit. Thankfully everyone was okay, but I think a suspension is in order. It was a classic case of a defenseless player being checked between the numbers and into the boards.

Tim Thomas recorded his 30th career shutout and 4th of the season. He made some brilliant saves throughout the game. We all know the Tim Thomas story, but it's worth repeating. Drafted in 1994, didn't make his first start until January of 2006, didn't get his first shutout until later that month, and he now has 30. If Dominek Hasek and Martin Brodeur somehow had a son, and he was a late-bloomer, his name would be Tim Thomas.

The Bruins are now on top of the Conference, a month after being stuck in the bottom. They host the Canadiens tonight. Montreal is reeling, having lost 8 of their last 11. They also just fired their coach. This is a good chance to improve the Bruins' already impressive 9-2 divisional record.

-The Commodore

Zack Smith vs Nathan Horton

The season may have ended on a sour note this afternoon, but there was a very entertaining fight during the game from Zack Smith and Nathan Horton. This was arguably the most fun fight of the season, so in case you missed it here it is, and if you've already seen in, watch it again.

Thoughts on the tilt?