As was the shootout, which saw the Bruins blanked on all three attempts.

The Bruins lost 4-3 in the shootout, clearly feeling the results of playing back-to-back games, with a flight from Boston to Philadelphia in between. There were encouraging signs, and some not-so-encouraging.

The Bs did well attacking the puck at times, but played sloppily in its own zone. Tuukka Rask, for one, does not appear comfortable fielding the puck in the trapezoid behind the net. He looks one way, then shuffles the puck along the boards in the opposite direction without looking. Often times there is an opposing forward bearing down on that corner of the ice. Scary.

Also, there were a few passes between defensemen that awarded turnovers to the Flyers, causing scoring unnecessary scoring opportunities. Of course, some of that is Philadelphia’s adept forechecking, but that’s no excuse for passing a puck into danger.

On a positive note, defenseman Derek Morris netted his first goal — the game-tying tally on a 3rd period power play. Matt Hunwick and newcomer Steve Begin also scored for the Bruins.

Boston next plays in Ottawa on Saturday night.

“Patrice Bergeron — magic hands!” — Jack Edwards

It took some getting used to, but the new lines imposed on the Boston Bruins by injuries to Marc Savard, Shawn Thornton and Milan Lucic started to click in the second period of Wednesday night’s 3-2 win over Nashville.

Just 26 seconds into the second period, Michael Ryder knotted the game at 1-1. Brad Marchand earned his first-career NHL point, assisting on the goal in his first NHL game. Marchand was called up to Boston following the weekend trade of Chuck Kobasew to Minnesota.

After trading goals again in the second, newcomer Steve Begin scored his first goal as a Bruin in the third period — the game winner.

As the Bruins move forward and face stiffer competition — like tonight in Philadelphia, where the Flyers conveniently rested last night — it is imperative that these lines further gel. With Savard and Lucic out for some time, the team cannot afford a string of losses.

Nah, it may only look like that. Seeing as Marc Savard has been added to Boston’s longterm IR with a broken foot and all.

Savard, in a contract year, is expected to miss 4-6 weeks with a broken left foot. He has paced the team in scoring during each season since signing with Boston four years ago. Forward Trent Whitfield has been recalled from Providence in his stead.

His absence piles on the loss of other key figures to Boston’s 2007-2008 season in which it led the Eastern Conference in points and took home awards for best defenseman, coach and goaltender. The Bruins are also without Phil Kessel (traded), Chuck Kobasew (traded), Aaron Ward (traded), Stephan Yelle (free agency), PJ Axelsson (unsigned) and Milan Lucic (broken index finger).

This is not exactly the start Bruins fans imagined for a team that ran through its regular season schedule last year. It’s times like these that build character, or send a team to the bottom of the standings.

With LW Milan Lucic out of action following surgery on a broken index finger, Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli jumped into action.

Chiarelli acquired LW Daniel Paille (Pie-ay) for a 2010 3rd round draft pick and 2010 conditional 4th round selection. He had his best year with the Buffalo Sabres in ‘07-’08, when he scored 19 goals and assisted on 16. He will be a restricted free agent at season’s end.

Paille, like Lucic, is a lefthanded shot. He plays aggressively, and could be a good patchwork replacement for the Bruins bruiser until her returns to the ice. Still, it will difficult for the Bruins to overcome the loss of Lucic, RW Phil Kessel and RW Chuck Kobasew since last season’s second-round playoff exit.

I consider myself an analytical sort, not prone to snap judgements one way or another. But there are occasions when I am pushed to my boundaries. This is one of those times.

The issue: the Boston Bruins. Their start has been underwhelming to say the least. So underwhelming, in fact, that B’s General Manager Peter Chiarelli felt compelled to send Chuck Kobasew packing for players and a pick. If you want to tell me that Chiarelli did it because of cap concerns, I wouldn’t be happy but could understand. The changing NHL and the possibility that the cap comes way down a year from now had to be addressed. But that doesn’t seem to be the primary reason. No, instead Kobasew has come the poster child for all that’s gone wrong in the first few weeks.

“My gut feeling tells me that [the trade] is a shot across the bow,” said goalie Tim Thomas. “Wake up or else changes will be made.”

Yeah, nothing says shape up or ship out like trading a 3rd liner. Please. If Chiarelli really wanted to put everyone on attention, he would have done something more drastic, not that I’m a proponent of that. Actually, what the B’s big boss should have done was found himself a big mirror and then read his reflection the riot act.

To me, the troubles the Bruins have faced early on go back to the decisions that were made at the tail end of last season and then in the offseason. Start with too much money paid to Tim Thomas, then follow that up by letting two of your best penalty killers go without so much as even a cursory attempt to bring them back. You think this team and their penalty kill don’t miss P.J. Axelsson and Stephane Yelle? Just take a look at the numbers: a 69 percent kill rate. That is abominable, and a sure sign of what their absence has done to the B’s. 

Now Kobasew and his grit and 20-goal hands are gone too, for a roster forward in Craig Weller and prospects. Kobasew was a nice fit in that locker room and an even nicer fit on the ice, but Chiarelli is now hoping that two kids – two cheaper kids – will be able to fill that void. Maybe they will. But if they don’t, chalk it up as another move that eroded a Stanley Cup contender into just another team. Not what anyone expected, and certainly not what anyone’s looking for. Unless you’re the G.M. of another team in the Eastern Conference.

Seven games deep into the 2009-2010 season, Boston Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli dealt winger Chuck Kobasew to the Minnesota Wild for the opportunity to re-stock his club in the future.

In return for Kobasew, Boston received AHL player Craig Weller, the rights to unsigned 2009 fourth round (116th overall) draft pick Alexander Fallstrom and a second round selection in 2011.

It would appear Fallstrom is the key to this haul from Boston’s end. He started his freshman year at Harvard University this fall after leading a Minnesota boarding school in with 40 goals and 87 points in 52 games as a senior. He is a native of Gothenburg, Sweden.

Weller played 36 games for the Wild in the 2008-2009 season, but only tallied three points — one goal and two assists. He has played five games for the Houston Aeros of the AHL this season.

Kobasew was acquired in 2007 along with defenseman Andrew Ference in a trade that sent defenseman Brad Stuart and center Wayne Primeau — two players acquired for former captain Joe Thornton — to Calgary. The 27-year-old winger contributed 42 points to the 2008-2009 incarnation of the Bruins — 21 goals and 21 points. Many thought he would be looked to as a player to step in and fill the production void left by the dealing of Phil Kessel. Clearly, that is not true.

It’d be nice if there was no ‘off’ button. But it’s a good thing they have such an effective ‘on’ button.

The Bruins were sitting ducks on Saturday night. …No, just kidding, that was Thursday that they played the ducks. But trailing the lowly Islanders 3-0 in the third period, something clicked.

A goal scoring blitz started at the 8:01 mark, kicked off by Marc Savard’s, and followed by the tallies of Byron Bitz and Matt Hunwick. All tied up at 3-3, this game went into overtime.

Failing to carry that blitz into the overtime period, the Bruins were forced into the shootout. The comeback was completed on a Savard shootout goal and Tuukka Rask stop. Celebration ensued.

This game hits home for me, because it reminds me of my senior year in high school. We had big expectations for our soccer team. In our first game — a nighttime match at Apponequet Regional High School in Lakeville, Mass. — we somehow trailed 2-0 at halftime. By the end of 90 minutes, we had a 4-2 win in our pockets. Our season went without a loss until playing Hingham in the State Tournament. This is not to say the Bruins will go undefeated, but a come-from-behind win like this can only build confidence and comfort among the ranks.

Oh yeah, and here’s a funny quote:

“We don’t give Mr. Wang deadlines on bringing the Stanley Cup back to Long Island, and we don’t respond to developers’ timetables for zoning decisions,” Murray said. — Newsday

That was Hempstead, Long Island Town Supervisor Kate Murray in response to Islanders Owner Charles Wang’s deadline for approval of a proposed new stadium/super mall for his terrible, terrible team. He wants to build a Patriot Place on anabolic steroids, essentially. …In this economy, with a team that hasn’t made the playoffs in ages. I like when politicians get funny.

Watching the Bruins tonight was about as enjoyable as cleaning your shoe soles after a walk around a duck pond.  If you’re a Bruins fan you have reason to be angry.    They did it again.  They’re not playing angry, which is part and parcel of the grit the Bruins organization prides itself on.  Where is the pride?  Where is the willingness to provide a spark and some punch when you clearly have lost momentum and the crowd.  After starting off 1-0 through one, the plucky Ducks showed some grit, skill and passion.  They ran off six unanswered goals.   Here’s what I have the biggest problem with.  Down 3-1 about midway through the second period, no one took it upon themselves to provide a spark with a crushing hit or a fight.  It was prime time to do something, anything to get themselves and the crowd back in it.  Nothing!  I was in the dressing room after the Bruins embarrassing opening night defeat to the Washington Capitals and it wasn’t a happy place.  I sense it’s the same feeling after this bad loss to Anaheim, but I can’t know for sure because I’m stuck in the studio anchoring and blogging.  But I know this much, it’s not going to be a pretty practice tomorrow with Claude and Rammer.

I think we saw by Peter Chiarelli’s easy dismissal of “that player” – Phil Kessel – that the Bruins GM has a certain vision for what his team should look like. You must be committed to all three zones, be tough and be willing to put in the time. Chiarelli didn’t see that with his team’s top goal scorer a season ago, and that’s one of many reasons why Kessel is now wearing a Maple Leaf sweater. I say that’s a mistake. I’ll guess we see here with time.

Won’t have to worry about where Milan Lucic will spend his next few seasons – barring a trade. Looch has just inked a three-year contract extension that will take him through the 2012-13 season. You knew once Kessel was out of the picture, Chiarelli’s first order of business with his current roster was taking care of his power forward, the absolute embodiment of what Chiarelli wants, and amazingly, someone who has become one of the new faces of this franchise.

Lucic is one of those self-made players, a kid who’s come a long way in a short time since entering the professional ranks. His work ethic truly is second to none. I think that’s one of the reasons why some unnamed Bruins teammates took shots at Kessel as that drama played out, because they saw what Looch was willing to do every day to make himself a better player. They didn’t always see that with Kessel. There’s definitely some validity to the players and management’s concerns, but I will once again remind you all of this one critical stat: 36 goals. That’s Kessel’s number from a season ago, 19 more than Lucic, 9 more than the B’s second-leading goal scorer (Michael Ryder). So while the Black and Gold were wise to get Lucic under agreement for seasons to come, the deal would look a lot better if Kessel was alongside.

If the Bruins play like they did Saturday night with an impressive 7-2 beat down of the team that knocked them out of last year’s playoffs for the remainder of the season, it’s going to be an unbearable experience for the rest of the league.

Not so fast.  One game a season doesn’t make.  But it makes for a good bounce back, and a learning tool for later on.

“I told you what you saw opening night wasn’t the team you’re going to see the rest of the season,” said Claude Julien at practice in Wilmington, Mass.

“We sent a message,” said Big Z.

Right on both fronts.  But it’s a long season and let’s not get carried away.  The Bruins are back.  Fair enough?  Yes, indeed.

Bruins bruiser Milan Lucic missed practice.   He bloodied a Hurricane in a fight that looked like Varsity/Jayvee.  His hands are fine, and apparently so is most of the rest of his body, even though he was seen limping while leaving the Garden after Saturday’s game. 

“It’s a personal issue that’s not hockey-related,” said Claude Julien. 

I know what it is, but I’m not telling.  It was told to me off-the-record.  You have to honor that.  But I can tell you Lucic’s situation is nothing big and he’ll be back on the ice tomorrow and in the lineup on Thursday night.