Bruins 4, Senators 3

There was some speculation that Thomas wouldn't start last night. This speculation came from the same "experts" who concocted the Thomas trade rumors. They thought that the Bruins were so perturbed at Thomas' snub of Barack Obama that the B's would trade the reigning Vezina and Conny Smythe winner. It's amazing how much power a media fabricated story can think it has.

It would be ludicrous for the Bruins to trade Thomas, and silly of them to not put him in net last night, especially considering his 16-3 record against the Senators. Ottawa haven't beaten the Bruins since November 2010 and Thomas has been a key reason.

Thomas wasn't stellar, but his teammates were in the 3rd period. Once again, the B's stole victory from the jaws of a shootout or defeat, thanks to their unwavering effort in the 3rd period.

The Bruins won battles in the 3rd. They didn't turn the puck over. They once again conquered the final period, and that's been the key difference between them and all the other top Eastern Conference teams.

Bruins host the Hurricanes Thursday night. They're 0-3 against Carolina, so this could be a good test.

-The Commodore

Senators @ Bruins Preview

First game back for the Bruins tonight as they take on the Senators. They have beat this team both times they have played them this season, and the fact the Bruins are 14-2-2 at TD Garden since Nov. 1 makes me pretty damn confident they will come out with a win tonight.

The Bruins need to get back on track. They seems to slip a bit going into the All-Star break (3-3-1). Before the season started I worried about the middle of the season, because of how many games they played last year. Some people think that this is fall out from Tim Thomas not going to the White House. I don't think it is at all, I think it's that these legs are getting tired. Another people weren't looking at is that 3-3-1 record game during just 11 game span. That's a lot of games to be playing in a short time.

Look for the Bruins to crush this team tonight, since they will have fresher legs, and are just a better team.

Bruins win 5-2
Player of the Game: Bergeron (should've been an All-Star)
Game starts at 7pm

Team Chara 12, Team Alfredsson 9

When Zdeno Chara retires as a player, maybe he should consider being a GM. His top 6 forwards in this game were Corey Perry, Jarome Iginla, Evgeni Malkin, Marian Gaborik, Marian Hossa, and Pavel Datsyuk. That's pretty impressive, even for an All-Star team.

There was also a line that featured Tyler Seguin alongside Phil Kessel. They both had an assist on Team Chara's 12th goal, scored by Maple Leaf Joffrey Lupul.

The star of the show was Ottawa's Daniel Alfredsson, who scored twice in a losing effort.

The show was slightly stolen by the Trencin Express. That's what I'm calling the combination of Hossa, Gaborik, and Chara. All three of whom are from Trencin, Slovakia. Gaborik won the MVP with 3 goals and an assist. And Chara was +7. Chara also won the hardest shot contest, once again breaking his own record with a 108.8 mph blast.

The All-Star Game is usually a torturous snuff film for goalies, but Tim Thomas held his own. He's now 4-0 in All-Star Games, getting the 'W' in all 4 he's played in. He allowed 3 goals on 21 shots, which doesn't sound great, but his 18 saves were the most among all six goalies. His .857 save percentage was also the highest. Only he and Carey Price broke the .800 barrier. And some of his saves were simply brilliant. You could tell he wanted to show off his talent as much as the forwards.

As unpolished and even awkward as he seems when answering questions from the press, he is comfortable to the utmost when between the pipes.

Bruins host the Senators Tuesday night.

-The Commodore

NHL All-Star Teams Selected

There's really only two interesting parts of the NHL's All-Star weekend: the draft, and seeing whether or not Chara can break his own fastest shot record. Last night was the draft, with Ottawa captain Daniel Alfredsson and former Senator Zdeno Chara picking teams.

Not surprisingly, all the Slovaks and Bruins wound up on Chara's team. All the Swedes and Senators found their way to Alfredsson's team. Carey Price will also be on Team Chara. So will Dennis Wideman. No Canucks wound up with Chara.

But Phil Kessel did. I'm so glad Kessel is not on the Bruins. He puts up impressive numbers (except against the B's), but he's such an awkward creep. Chara's assistant captain for the draft was Toronto's Joffrey Lupul, so the Maple Leaf connection saved PK81 from more shame.

So Tim Thomas, Tyler Seguin, and Zdeno Chara will be on the same team. I'm going to predict that Thomas will allow 4 or 5 goals (no defense in the All-Star Game), Chara will win Fastest Shot, and Seguin will get a hat-trick.

-The Commodore

Bruins 5, Senators 2

This was a sleepy game. Both teams played the night before, both had to travel. Neither team played very well, nor with intensity. Both teams made mental errors. The decisive difference was that Tim Thomas is a much better goalie than Craig Anderson.

Timmy looked much more comfortable and poised than his last start in Columbus. He made some big saves, he moved across the crease with speed and grace. He faced 49 shots and stopped all but 2 of them. And the second one probably should have been blocked by Joe Corvo.

The Bruins scored some breakaway goals, taking advantage of Ottawa's mistakes. But they made plenty of their own. Thankfully the Bruins have Tim Thomas, and the Senators only have one Daniel Alfredsson and one Jason Spezza. If time of possession were kept as a stat, the Senators would have dominated the category. I don't mind short possessions that end in breakaway goals, but the B's didn't take care of the puck in their own zone or in the neutral zone, and often didn't even get the puck into the offensive zone.

But, we are in the middle of December, 30 games into a long regular season. It was a back-to-back game against an opponent that can be beaten with less than 100% effort. And ultimately, it was a win. The Bruins' 20th win. Which ties them with Minnesota for the most in the NHL. The B's are 9-2-0 in the Northeast Division. They're one of 3 teams with 100+ goals scored. And they've only allowed 61.

They face one of the other 100+ goal teams on Saturday, in a matinee against the Flyers.

-The Commodore

Bruins @ Senators Preview

Chara was able to skate this morning, but it doesn't sound like he will be in the lineup tonight. I expect him back this weekend when the Bruins play the Flyers though. Who I do think will be on the ice tonight is Tim Thomas, and that's always a good thing.

The Bruins have won 17 of the last 21 meetings overall, and are 9-1-0 in the past 10 visits to Ottawa, winning 6 straight there by a combined 19-6 score. Ottawa was actually the team that started the whole Bruins hot streak. In that game Tim Thomas had 23 saves, and is 10-1-0 with a 1.79 goals-against average and three shutouts in 12 starts since. He's 15-3-0 with a 1.53 GAA and five shutouts in his past 18 meetings with Ottawa, winning all seven on the road with a 1.26 GAA, and his six career shutouts versus the Senators doubles his total against any other opponent. So, to say that Thomas can't wait to get on the ice tonight is an understatement.

It is always tough to play on back-to-back night, especially when you captain isn't likely to play, but with Thomas on the ice I just can't see the Bruins losing.

Bruins win 4-0
Player of the Game: Tim Thomas
Game starts at 7:30pm