By: Joe Ballway, YawkeyTalkies Correspondent
While one game certainly doesn’t determine a season, the Bruins have their work cut out for them after a shockingly one-sided 4-1 loss to the Capitals on opening night at the Garden.
After ten minutes of close, up-tempo hockey, the remainder of the contest was all Alexander Ovechkin & co. The Russian superstar finished the night with a goal and two assists, out-skating and out-muscling the Bruins in their own zone to create ample scoring opportunities. The Capitals cashed in twice on the man-advantage, outshooting the Bruins 34-20 overall.
Patrice Bergeron accounted for the Bruins’ lone tally, scoring on a breakaway midway through the third period. Other than that, Boston’s supposedly well-balanced offensive attack didn’t put much of a scare into Washington netminder Jose Theodore. The Bruins managed just three shots in the third period, and the power play was abysmal, registering just one shot over the course of five attempts.
This offensive ineptitude is certainly unfamiliar to the Bruins, who led the Eastern Conference in scoring last season. Timing is partly to blame; key offensive cogs Marco Sturm and David Krejci are returning from injuries after minimal preseason participation. However, it’s still disconcerting that Boston’s top three lines [...]

By: Joe Ballway, YawkeyTalkies Correspondent
Article idea courtesy of Dan Massar, YawkeyTalkies Correspondent.
Hockey Season starts tonight for the Bruins. Here are some key games to mark on your calendars, because they’re guaranteed to be good ones. Lets see if they can grab the Eastern Conference again, and then some.
1) Thu, Oct 1 vs Washington
Tonight’s season opener in Boston features two hungry, powerful Eastern Conference teams left unsatisfied by shortened playoff runs. Initially viewed as legitimate contenders, neither team made it out of the second round last spring; both lost in crushing Game 7’s at home. The Bruins and Capitals face heightened pressure and expectations heading into the new campaign, and the atmosphere in the Garden tonight will be booming. What better way to kick off the new season than a clash between Ovechkin, the league’s most potent sniper, and Chara, its most prominent shutdown defender?
2.) Sat, Oct 3 vs Carolina
While the Canadiens have cemented their role as the Bruins’ arch-rivals, the Hurricanes held the post of Public Enemy #1 in the wake of Boston’s second-round exit. The series created plenty of dislike between the teams, most notably as a result of Scott Walker’s sucker punch on Aaron Ward. Ironically, Ward [...]