Hello, Joe

The Bruins face the Red Wings this evening at 7:30pm at Joe Louis Arena.

• No hard feelings linger for Landon Ferraro, who understands why he is now with the Bruins. It will just be a little "weird" to be on the visiting team bench at Joe Louis Arena tonight.[MLive]


• Breathe a sigh of relief, Tuukka Rask appears to be rounding back into form. Brad Marchand is stepping up his leadership, and is on track for a 40 goal season![HockeyBuzz]


• The Bruins brass seem a little more certain of what they have in a team that has in turn surprised and frustrated them. Hey, at least they're in the playoff picture right now.[TheBostonGlobe]


• Don Sweeney expressed his commitment to the structure of the team's defence, despite shaky execution at times, and was asked about re-signing Loui Eriksson.[BostonHerald]


• The Bruins are being conservative with David Pastrnak, who is progressing well in his healing.[CBSSports]


• College admissions issues turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Frank Vatrano, who, despite sitting out nearly two seasons of game action at the collegiate level, found ways to improve his performance.[TheMinder]


• If ya can't beat 'em... the Mike Babcock Maple Leafs may look a bit familiar, and there's a good reason why. Jack Edwards explains.[Sportsnet]


• More details from that Forbes list: the Bruins are now the fifth most valuable NHL franchise.[GoLocalProv]


• Buried at the bottom of this article is the announced debut date of the "EPIX Presents: Road to the NHL Winter Classic" series along with information on how to get your own copy of the 2016 Pucks & Pups benefit calendar.[BostonHerald]


• Fluto Shinzawa has a secret hobby that he pursues as he travels on the road to cover the Bruins.[TheBostonGlobe]

Elsewhere around the rink:

• Thirty Thoughts touches on goalie equipment and moves on to the Bruins (skip to #21) where David Krejci is lauded for apologizing publicly for that late penalty in Montreal, and Don Sweeney talks about his developing relationship with Claude Julien.[Sportsnet]


• NHL COO John Collins is leaving, everyone is wishing him well, and now let the conjecture begin as to his 'new business opportunity.'[SBNation]


• The NHL is trying to increase scoring AGAIN, as they have over and over for years. Sean McIndoe investigates.[ESPN]


• Analytics are steadily improving, but what good are they if the average fan finds them indecipherable?[NHLNumbers]


• Without naming names, a number of former Bruins prove that first round draftees get cut an awfully big amount of slack.[SilverSevens]


• Numbers only have a limited ability to predict a goalie's worth, up until about 4,000 shots are analyzed. This makes it hard to sift out a goalie on a mere "hot streak" or make projections on an inexperienced goalie with a small sample size.[Hockey-Graphs]


• The long read: Mainstream media members are challenged by the increasing access granted to and surge in the numbers of bloggers.[TheCauldron]


• Are our ticket prices paying the "true cost" of hockey? Look deeper to the hidden expenses of the game.[HockeyInSociety]


• Get well soon, Brendan Gallagher, and we are devastated that you may never return to your career as a concert pianist. NO, REALLY![TheElbow]


• Gordie Howe's quality of life is very much improved following the treatments he received in Mexico, according to recent reports from his family.[NHL]


• Don't shed a tear for the Boston Blades, fans.[VictoryPress]