Big L in Big D for B's

The Stars came into this game with a mission. They'd been struggling, they wanted to make a statement, and they wanted to do it by being aggressive with their counter-attack and trying to get underneath the Bruins' skin. They accomplished all this.

The Bruins have been making mistakes and playing sloppy periods even when they've been winning games. Saturday night's loss saw more mistakes than usual, a bad bounce, and an opponent that did a good job of taking advantage of those mistakes.

Dallas went up 3-1 in the first. Their second goal came when Milan Lucic drifted too low in the offensive zone, instead of remaining up high while both his linemates were battling for the puck down low. The Stars scored when the puck bounced on Thomas' backside, but they had the opportunity for such good fortune because Lucic made a mistake and a breakaway ensued.

Dallas' third goal came when Chara was sitting in the box after a foolish retaliatory penalty. He did get lightly cross-checked, but there's no way the refs will miss the 6' 9" guy turning around and compressing an opponent in front of the net.

Thomas was also rusty. He hadn't played since the 19th, due mostly to the Bruins playing a very light schedule the last 3 weeks. Thomas' biggest (and perhaps only) limitation is that he's not the type of goalie that can play 75 games in net then be good to go for the playoffs. It's a tough balancing act to keep from getting worn out and also keep him from getting rusty.

One thing I loved about this game, which reminded me why I love this team, is how angrily they played at the end of the 2nd and into the 3rd period. Lucic unleashed two huge hits in the final minutes of the 2nd. Then scored at the start of the 3rd. The Bruins played a strong game in the 3rd, they just dug themselves too big a hole in the 1st and 2nd.

I think they'll be motivated to start their next game off the right way. That game will be Wednesday night in New Jersey.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo