After a 3 day Christmas break, the B's are back at it tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes. The B's are shooting for their 7th straight victory, while the 'Canes are winners of 3 of their last 5.Just who are these Hurricanes that you speak of?
Carolina Hurricanes 17-14-5; 39 pts (2nd in Southeast, 8th in East)
Leading Goal Scorers
Eric Staal: 17 Goals (17-11-28)
Ray Whitney: 12 Goals (12-20-32)
Tuomo Ruutu: 11 Goals (11-10-21)
Goaltending
Cam Ward: 24 GP 12-8-3; 2.57 GAA .912 Sv% 1 SO
Michael Leighton: 13 GP 5-6-2; 3.04 GAA .897 Sv%
Guys Who Like to Drop the Gloves
Wade Brookbank: 6 Fighting Majors
Tim Gleason: 3 Fighting Majors
'08-'09 Season Series
Bruins' record vs. Hurricanes this season: 1-0-0
12/20 vs. CAR 4-2 W
Injury Report
Boston
LW Marco Sturm: IR (Knee)
D Aaron Ward: Out (Leg)
D Andrew Ference: IR (Broken Tibia)
C Petteri Nokelainen: Out (Arm)
C Patrice Bergeron: Out (Concussion)
Carolina
D Niclas Wallin: Out (Leg)
D Dennis Seidenberg: Questionable (Illness)
Notes:
- Tim Thomas will get the start in goal for the B's
- Shawn Thornton is a Hurricanes killer. In six career games against Carolina, Thornton has 4 goals. That is pretty impressive considering Thornton only has 10 career NHL goals in 171 games played.
- Bish is reporting that despite being activated for tonight's game, both Aaron Ward and Petteri Nokelainen will not play tonight.
- Can the B's shutdown the red hot Eric Staal? Staal recorded a hat trick last night in the Hurricanes win over the Thrashers.
- Look for some good battles in the face off circle today. The Bruins and Hurricanes own an identical 51.9% face off percentage.
Today's Obligatory Embarrassing YouTube Fan Video