Hitting the Links: Beast of the East Weekend Edition

With a dominating 6-0 win over the Flyers in what was supposed to a showdown of the two best teams in the East, the Bruins clearly showed that they're a cut above the rest. The Bruins jumped out to a 4-0 lead on a Flyers team that looked shellshocked from hearing that their captain and top defenseman Chris Pronger is out for the year with a concussion.

The Bruins, on the other hand, got their top d-man and captain back. Zdeno Chara returned to the lineup and made his presence felt immediately by fighting Philly goon Jody Shelley, and coming up with a win (and not getting hurt). It was obvious that Chara's presence energized the team, and that fight set the tone for a statement game from the Bs. With Pronger gone for the year and Claude Giroux out until who knows when, considering he also has a concussion, Flyer fans should start worrying. I think Bruins fans will be fine, though.

After the jump, Tyler Seguin fights sophomore slumping, the Rangers pull one out at the buzzer, and a headshot from Montreal.

Bruins News

• Joe McDonald's reactions to yesterday's game. [ESPN]
• A good point here from WEEI's D.J. Bean: Tim Thomas and Tuukka Rask have been ridiculously good at different times, but they're both on their games right now for the first time. [WEEI]
• Mike Milbury will not be on TV until his legal troubles are cleared up. [WEEI]
• After a great start, Tyler Seguin has cooled off considerably, and of course there's the breakfast incident. Hopefully getting one by Sergei Bobrovsky yesterday will help him. [CSNNE]
• Milan Lucic doesn't expect any punishment for his hit on Zac Rinaldo yesterday that got him the gate. I think Looch is being a little naive on this one. [CSNNE]
• Fair warning: This is a positive article about Zach Hamill. [Projo]

NHL News

• The Rangers beat the Coyotes 3-2 last night on a goal that crossed the line with less than 0.1 seconds left. The Rangers' broadcast is pretty funny to listen to. [Puck Daddy]
• I'm sure most of you know this, but I figured I'd toss it in anyway: The Habs fired Jacques Martin and Randy Cunneyworth will lead the team into the Garden tomorrow night. [PD]
• Phoenix traded Kyle Turris to the Senators for young defenseman David Runblad and second-round pick. [Pro Hockey Talk]
• Erik Cole with a headshot on Adam Larsson of New Jersey last night. Cole might not be in Montreal's lineup tomorrow night after this hit if the Shanahammer comes down. [Pro Hockey Talk]
• The entire first episode of HBO's "24/7" program on the Rangers and Flyers heading into the Winter Classic. Who else is excited to see yesterday's game make it on there? [NHL]
• Vancouver defeated Toronto 5-3 last night, which means the Bruins got even further ahead of the Leafs after yesterday's games. [TSN]
Anyone else have the feeling that the Montreal game is going to be either a huge blowout win for the Bruins or a really disappointing loss? Feels like that kind of game to me.