For several moments, as I watched in nauseated silence, I was convinced that Max Pacioretty was dead. One moment the 22 year-old was – and the next moment, he wasn’t.

The violence on the impact was stunning, yes, but no more stunning than the complete stillness of his crumpled body and the hushed silence of a stunned Bell Centre crowd.

I echoed the crowd’s silence as I watched the trainers and doctors look for signs of life, signs of hope.

Flickering eyelids. A quivering lip. Words.

Finally, I too took a breathe.

Interference.

Game misconduct.

A hearing before the judge.

Justice.
I hoped.

…

I have heard and read a few comments from individuals stating that Max Pacioretty should have been aware of where he was on the ice. That is one hundred percent true. As a professional athlete, he should know at all times where he is on his playing surface. He should be aware of his surroundings and in control of his body. He needs to keep his head up and his wits about him.

Just like any player.
In any sport.

And Zdeno Chara is no exception. As one of the tallest and strongest athletes in the NHL, Chara needs to know where he is on the ice at all times and what his actions will mean. Obviously, the consequences can be disastrous. He needs to understand that. And the league needs to make all players understand that.

Apparently before that can happen we must first make the NHL understand that.

…

A word buzzing around the blogosphere and the Twitterverse since the incident has been “intent”. What was Chara’s intent? Was his intent to injure Pacioretty? Was his intent to finish a check? Was his intent to rough Pacioretty up a little? Was his intent to smash his head into the stanchion and break his neck?

The NHL disciplinarians try to understand and analyze “intent” when considering what, if any, sanctions to impose. Intent, however, is unknowable. We can never really know what someone else was thinking. Colin Campbell’s assistant decision-maker presumably asked the hulking Slovak what his intentions were.

But how many accused plead innocent before the judge?

What incisive questions did Mr. Murphy pose to gain entrance to the intimate thoughts of the hockey player?

Intentions do not matter.
Actions do.

And Zdeno Chara’s actions are not correct actions. Any action that leads to a severe concussion and a fractured vertebrae cannot be deemed acceptable.

Chara did not just finish a check. It was not a hockey play gone bad. Pacioretty did not have the puck. He was not about to touch the puck. Chara did not just use his body to push him against the boards and the glass.

Chara used his arms to push Max Pacioretty’s head into a stanchion when they were at speed. It was not just a body check. It was not a face wash or a quick blow when they were both already against the boards or against the glass.

Chara is a professional athlete who is paid to be in control of his body. He is paid to be aware of where he is on the ice. He is responsible for his actions.

Again, his actions were to use his arms to push against Max Pacioretty’s head until it collided violently with the stanchion.

The NHL is not right when they say that this is an ordinary interference call. I presume then that they disagreed with the referee’s game misconduct call?

Mr. Murphy, should Zdeno Chara have been back on the ice two minutes after this incident?

…

The NHL also suggested that Chara’s lack of “supplemental discipline” history came into play. The only time history should come into effect is when an individual is a repeat offender. A “clean” history should have no bearing on a misconduct or on a crime. Someone who has committed the same or similar crime multiple times should have a harsher punishment doled out because, obviously, they have not learned their lesson.

What’s really revolting is that the National Hockey League doesn’t think that any lesson needs to be learned. Basically they are saying that accidents happen. The game is fine, keep playing.

Come on kids, play hockey so one day you might have your C4 snapped as part of the game.

How far was Max Pacioretty away from dying?
Inches? Centimeters? Millimeters?

…

Today, and for days and weeks to come, I’ll be ashamed to be a fan of a sport governed by the NHL. With concussions on the rise and more and more evidence coming out about their disastrous affect that impacts to the head can have on the brain one would assume that the NHL would make an effort to protect the individuals who play the game.

To protect the players that kids look up to.

To protect players who are, basically, themselves still kids.

It’s a sad day for hockey fans.

But a sadder day for the Pacioretty family.

…

The real tragedy will be if this horrific injury doesn’t jar everyone into thinking differently about how we play – and how we enjoy – the game. If this hit bothered you and the lack of follow up and severe lack of consideration by the NHL bothered you, make yourself heard. Write comments. Write your own blog. Call-in to radio shows. Write to the NHL.

Tell them that this incident and their inactions are unacceptable. Do it for you, for your kids who play hockey, for Max Pacioretty and his family.

Canadiens head athletic therapist Graham Rynbend rushes to the aid of Max Pacioretty after a vicious hit by Bruins’ Zdeno Chara during the second period on Tuesday night. John Kenney, The Gazette

Preview | Matchups | Tuesday’s

NHL schedule | Boone’s
Game
Blog, Quick

Hits and About last night …
| Stubbs on Twitter | Hickey’s game story | Hickey on Chara’s hit | Stubbs on Chara’s hit

AUDIO: Brian Gionta | Mike Cammalleri | Lars Eller | Carey Price | Jacques Martin

Update: Bruins’ Marchand rips Habs

• At a Glance: At the end of the day, the result of Tuesday night’s game between the Bruins and Canadiens was secondary. Yes, the Canadiens won 4-1, but all the attention, rightly so, was turned to the health of Max Pacioretty, who was carted off the ice on a stretcher after a vicious hit by Bruins captain Zdeno Chara. Lars Eller scored two goals in the first period to lift his team into a 2-0 lead. Both goals were the result of Eller going to net, and his second one was particularly nice. The Canadiens went to work on the power play in the second period, scoring twice to double their lead. Brian Gionta scored his 24th goal of the season 7:15 into the period when his shot eluded Tuukka Rask and dribbled over the goal line. At the 15:09 mark, James Wiesniewki was given plenty of room to wind up and fired a laser through Rask, who had no chance on it. Milan Lucic ended Carey Price’s shutout bid 13:21 into the third period with his 29th goal of the season. Price still made 30 saves for his league-leading 32nd win of the season. Pacioretty was selected as the game’s third star and received a warm ovation from the fans.

• Key Moments: With 16 seconds to play in the second period, Chara crushed Pacioretty into the glass partition between the two benches. Pacioretty lay motionless on the ice for several minutes, and was take off by stretcher. Chara was thrown out of the game and will likely have a meeting with the NHL over the hit. The Gazette’s Dave Stubbs reported via Twiiter during the third period that Pacioretty was conscious, and all limbs moving. He was sent to hospital for observation. RDS is reprting that Pacioretty will remain in hospital overnight for observation.

• What It Means: The Canadiens have won five straight and improve to 37-24-7 for 81 points, securing their hold on sixth place in the Eastern Conference and bringing them to withing three points of the Bruins for first place in the Northeast Division.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens hit the road for games in St. Louis on Thursday and a Saturday afternoon matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Canadiens’ Max Pacioretty celebrates his winning goal with teammate
P.K. Subban Saturday night at the Bell Centre. Marie-France
Coallier, The Gazette 

Preview | Matchups | Saturday’s
NHL schedule | Boone’s Game
Blog, Quick Hits and About last night …
| Stubbs on Twitter | Hickey’s game story

• AUDIO: Max Pacioretty | Brian Gionta | Hal Gill | Mathieu Darche | Scott Gomez | James Wisniewski | Jacques Martin

• At a Glance: For more than 57 minutes on Saturday night, the Canadiens looked like they were headed to a shutout loss to the Boston Bruins. Then, lady luck shined her light on the Canadiens, who got a few lucky bounces to tie the game before Max Pacioretty fired a bullet past Tim Thomas 3:43 into overtime for a 3-2 win, Montreal’s third straight win over the Bruins this season. It was also the first time the Canadiens have managed to win a game in which they were trailing after 40 minutes after going 0-15-1 in previous situations. After a scoreless first period, Patrice Bergeron made the Canadiens pay for some defensive miscues in the second period. With just over four minutes played, he took a pass from Blake Wheeler and fired a one-timer past Carey Price, who was caught moving his right to block a Wheeler shot when the forward passed the puck to Bergeron. About eight minutes later, Bergeron slid the puck past Price after a Zdeno Chara rebound wasn’t cleared from the front of the net. The Canadiens thought they had a goal in the third period, but it was ruled that Mathieu Darche batted the puck behind Tim Thomas with a high stick. They eventually did beat Thomas when Scott Gomez took an innocent looking shot on the power play from the side boards that went off Chara’s skate and between Thomas’s legs, who looked stunned when he spotted the puck behind him. That sparked the Canadiens, who tied the game with 48 seconds to play when a shot by James Wisnieski was stopped by Thomas, but deflected directly off Brian Gionta’s skate and into the net. This one was also reviewed, but there was no doubt the goal was good.
 
• Key Moments: Not only did the Canadiens allow two goals in the second period, they lost forward Michael Cammalleri, who left the game with an injury and did not return. After the game, however, head coach Jacques Martin said Cammalleri was sick and is battling a virus.

• What It Means: Montreal improves to 23-16-3 for 49 points, tied with the Bruins, but they remain in second place in the Northeast Division – and eighth in the Eastern Conference – because the Bruins have two games in hand.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens are in New York on Tuesday to take on the Rangers and then travel back to Montreal to face the Penguins the next nigh. The Rangers are in Montreal next Saturday.

Canadiens’ Michael Cammalleri scores against Bruins goalie Tim Thomas on a penalty shot during the first period Thursday night at the Bell Centre. Dave Sidaway, The Gazette

Preview | Matchups | Thursday’s NHL schedule | Boone’s Game
Blog, Quick

hits
and About
last night …
| Stubbs on Twitter | Hickey’s game story

AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Brian Gionta | Mike Cammalleri | P.K. Subban | Carey Price | Max Pacioretty

• At a Glance: The Canadiens enjoyed two-goal leads on three separate occassion over the Bruins on Thursday night, but Boston never quit and fought valiently until the end, but the Canadiens held on for a 4-3 win.
Michael Cammalleri scored the game’s first goal 1:04 in on a penalty shot awarded after Bruins’ Zdeno Chara hooked Cammalleri while on a breakaway. Cammalleri deked Bruins goalie Tim Thomas and lifted the puck over his outstretched leg for a 1-0 lead.
Maxim Lapierre made it 2-0 five minutes later when he popped a rebound beyond Thomas moments after a faceoff win in the Bruins zone.
Blake Wheeler narrowed the gap to 2-1 with about four minutes to play in the period when he fired a shot from a sharp angle that Carey Price got a piece of, but the puck rolled over his pad and trickled over the goal line.
Max Pacioretty, playing in his second game of the season for the Canadiens, made it 3-1 with 30 seconds to play when his backhand shot from behind the goal line went off Bruins defenceman Andre Ference and slid beyond Thomas.
In the second period, Marc Savard pulled the Bruins to within a goal when he scored 6:54 into the period. It was his first goal of the season after missing time because of post-concussion symptoms.
Canadiens captain Brian Gionta re-established the two-goal lead with about three minutes to play when he appeared to redirect a shot by Pacioretty, although replays showed the puck went in off a Bruins defenceman.
Milan Lucic brought the Bruins back to within a goal during a power play when he deflected a Patrice Bergeron shot from the point over Price’s shoulder with about five minutes to play.
 
• Key Moments: In the second period, Michael Cammalleri got into the first fight of his NHL career with Bruins’ David Krejci.

• What It Means: Montreal snaps a three-game losing streak, its longest of the season and improves to 19-11-2, opening a four-point lead over the Bruins for top spot in the Northeast Division.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens embark on a seven-game road trip that starts Sunday night in Colorado and then has stops in Dallas and Carolina before Christmas, then the team hits the road again for games against the New York Islanders, Washington Capitals, the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers on New Year’s Eve.

Canadiens defenceman Josh Gorges and goaltender Carey
Price stop Bruins’ Patrice Bergeron on Thursday night. Brian Snyder, Reuters

Preview | Matchups | Thursday’s

NHL schedule | Boone’s
Game Blog, Quick hits and About
last night … | Stubbs on Twitter | Hickey’s game story

• At a Glance: After struggling for most of the season, the Canadiens power play came to life on Thursday night in a 3-1 win over the Boston Bruins. P.K. Subban opened the scoring 5:19 into the game for his first career regular-season goal with fellow rookie Tyler Seguin sitting in the penalty box. Zdeno Chara tied the game 1-1 before the period when he beat Carey Price with a wicked wrist shot. After a scoreless second period, captain Brian Gionta made it 2-1 Montreal with Chara sitting in the sin bin. Gionta accepted a floating pass from Michael Cammalleri and batted it past Tuukka Rask. Scott Gomez, who hadn’t scored since the second game of the season, made it 3-1 for the Canadiens when he gathered a rebound and watched his backhand go off Rask, off the post, off Rask again before finally crossing the goal line. Thursday’s game was the 800th of Gomez’s career. Rask finished with 38 saves as the Canadiens dominated the shot clock with 41, while Price made 34 saves two days after a 35-save performance in a 2-0 shutout of the Vancouver Canucks.

• Key Moments:  The Canadiens finished 2-for-5 with the man advantage while keeping the Bruins off the scoresheet on four shorthanded chances.

• What It Means: Montreal’s record improves to 10-5-1 for 21 points with their second straight win. They improve to 6-2-0 on the road and sit four points ahead of the Bruins, who still enjoy three games in hand, however.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens kick off a four-game homestand on Saturday with a visit from the Carolina Hurricanes. The Philadelphia Flyers, Nashville Predators and Toronto Maple Leafs are in Montreal next week.

AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Michael Cammalleri | Brian Gionta | Hal Gill | P.K. Subban

From Pat Hickey, as dictated to Stubbs

The Canadiens are hoping to build on last night’s 2-0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks when they head to Boston tomorrow for their first of six meetings this season against the Bruins.

There was no change in the lineup at today’s practice and the Canadiens should be well rested tomorrow while the Bruins are facing a short night’s sleep because they play tonight in Pittsburgh.

“It always helps when you have a team coming off a back-to-back and you’ve had some rest. We have to capitalize on that by getting a quick start,” said Michael Cammalleri.

Dustin Boyd cleared waivers yesterday and remains with the team but will be a healthy scratch in Boston along with Alexandre Picard and Ryan O’Byrne.

The Bruins’ bench reels back after Canadiens’ Travis Moen checked Boston defenceman Johnny Boychuk during the first period Saturday night. Dave Sidaway, The Gazette

Preview | Matchups | Saturday’s NHL schedule | Boone’s Game Blog and About last night … | Stubbs on Twitter | Hickey’s game story

AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Jaro Halak | Sergei Kostitsyn | Dominic Moore (talking at first about his alma mater, Harvard)

• At a Glance: For the first time this season, the Canadiens have won five straight games after defeating the Boston Bruins 3-2 Saturday night at the Bell Centre. Jaroslav Halak got the win, his 22nd of the season, making 21 saves on the night. The Canadiens got a pair of goals from Sergei Kostitsyn after Andrei Markov opened the scoring 6:02 into the first period with a power-play goal. Blake Wheeler scored early in the second period for the Bruins and Milan Lucic made it 3-2 with about eight minutes to play, making for a nail-biting finish.

• Key Moments: With a few minutes to play, Halak made an excellent save on Marco Sturm, robbing the Bruins forward of what look liked a sure goal and preserving the Montreal win.

• What It Means: Montreal improves to 35-29-6 for 76 points, still tied with the Philadelphia Flyers for sixth spot in the Eastern Conference. The win also opens up a four-point gap between the Canadiens and Bruins, who hold down the eighth spot.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens have a relatively light week coming up with a game Tuesday in New York against the Rangers and then to Toronto to take on the the Maple Leafs next Saturday.

The Boston Bruins, meanwhile, will hold a practice of their own at 1 p.m. at the downtown Bell Centre; that’s not open to the public.

Locked in a playoff-berth battle, the Canadiens play host to the Bruins tomorrow night.

Questions surely to be asked of head coach Jacques Martin today: Who gets the start in goal (he surely won’t answer that until tomorrow), and where does centreman Maxim Lapierre, returning tomorrow following a four-game suspension, fit into a lineup that has now won four straight games and seeks a season-high five against the Bruins?

As our spiritual leader Red Fisher might say: Stay tuned.

Canadiens goaltender Carey Price makes a save against Bruins’ Blake Wheeler in the first period Tuesday night. Brian Snyder, Reuters

Gazette Preview | Matchups | Tuesday’s NHL schedule | Boone’s Game Blog and About last night … | Stubbs on Twitter | Pat Hickey’s game story

AUDIO: Carey Price | Glen Metropolit I and II | Mathieu Darche | Jacques Martin

• At a Glance: The Canadiens got back to the business of earning a playoff berth on Tuesday night and downed the Boston Bruins 4-1 with Carey Price in nets. Montreal trailed for most of this game after Marco Sturm scored on the power play 12:11 into the opening period. After a mediocre first period, the Candiens played a better second period before turning it on in the third period. Glen Metropolit tied the game 1-1 2:40 into the third period, beating Tuukka Rask with a slap shot. Maxim Lapierre made it 2-1 five minutes later. Mathieu Darche, who assisted on the Metropolit goal, but the game away with a goal on a rebound from Metropolit with 2:30 to play. Benoit Pouliot capped off the scoring into an empty net at the 18:33 mark. Carey Price made 23 saves in what was a solid game after that first period goal. Rask faced 32 Montreal shots and fell apart in the third.

• Key Moments: The Canadiens killed off three Boston power plays after allowing that opening goal, allowing them the chance to get back into the game for the win.

• What It Means: The Canadiens improve to 30-28-6 and now have 66 points, one more than the Bruins. The Canadiens now hold seventh spot in the Eastern Conference, but the Bruins have three games in hand.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens fly to San Jose on Wednesday as the NHL trade deadline approaches at 3 p.m. Eastern. After that, the Canadiens play the Sharks on Thursday (10:30 p.m.), the Kings on Satirday (10 p.m.) and the Anaheim Ducks and Saku Koivu on Sunday (8 p.m.)

Bruins’ Blake Wheeler and Canadiens’ Ryan O’Byrne exchange pleasantries during Sunday’s first period.
Christinne Muschi, Reuters

Preview | Matchups | Sunday’s NHL schedule | Boone’s Game Blog and About last night … | Stubbs on Twitter | Pat Hickey’s game story

• AUDIO: Tomas Plekanec | Brian Gionta | Jaroslav Spacek

• At a Glance: A super Sunday but, alas, only for the Bruins, with a goaltender other than the Canadiens’ Jaroslav Halak stealing the show. Riding a 10-game winless streak, one more loss from tying a franchise record for futility, Boston scored twice in the first period then held on for a 3-0 victory over the Habs at the Bell Centre. Adam McQuaid scored the first goal of his career to open the scoring at 17:32, that coming on a heavy-traffic slapper, then Marco Sturm beat Halak with less than four seconds on the clock, a deflected puck landing on Sturm’s stick with Halak moving the other way. The second period was all Montreal’s, the Habs outshooting their visitors 15-3, but Boston goalie Tuukka Rask, who made 36 saves to Halak’s 24, was equal to them all. Sturm salted the game away midway through the third, his snap shot deflecting off defenceman Josh Gorges’s stick past Halak.

• Key Moments: Sturm’s goal in the last gasp of the first period. And Rask, who was dominant throughout, twice robbing Tomas Plekanec in the second, first with a glove grab, then later on a breakaway with a terrific right-pad stop.

• What It Means: With a win, Montreal could have pulled three points ahead of Tampa Bay in the Eastern Conference standings. Even with the loss, however, the Habs remain in sixth place, their 62 points one ahead of the Lightning but with Tampa holding three games in hand.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens return to action at home on Wednesday vs. the Washington Capitals of Alexander Ovechkin, who scored a hat trick and assisted Sunday in the Caps’ 5-4 overtime win over Pittsburgh – Washington’s 14th (!) straight win. Montreal then plays back-to-back Friday and Saturday against the Flyers, opening in Philadelphia then at the Bell Centre to send themselves into the Olympic break.

Canadiens’ Brian Gionta scores the winning goal in the shootout Thursday night on Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask. Adam Hunger, Reuters

Preview | Matchups | Thursday’s NHL schedule | Boone’s Game Blog and About last night … | Stubbs on Twitter | Pat Hickey’s game story

AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Brian Gionta | Jaro Halak | Josh Gorges | Glen Metropolit | Roman Hamrlik

• At a Glance: For the second straight game, Jaroslav Halak faced more than 40 shots on goal and once again, he was the difference for the Canadiens as they stole two points in Boston with a 3-2 shootout win over the Bruins on Thursday night. Two nights after making 45 saves against the Vancouver Canucks, Halak stopped 45 Boston shots while his teammates could muster only 25 shots on Tuukka Rask. Mark Recchi scored his 11th of the season on the power play in the first period, during which the Bruins outshot Montreal 15-5. Blake Wheeler made it 2-0 early in the second period and it looked like they were on their way to an easy win. But the Canadiens scored two goals within 39 seconds near the end of the second period to tie things up. Glen Metropolit scored his 11th of the season on a power play, his first goal since December. Roman Hamrlik tied it 2-2 with a shot that Rask couldn’t see thanks to Mathieu Darche being parked in the goaltender’s crease. Brian Gionta scored the winning goal in the shootout with a great move and a backhand shot under the crossbar.

• Key Moments: The Canadiens were able to kill off a Boston power play in overtime, and limited the Bruins to only one goal in six man advantages. Montreal was 1-for-2 on the power play.

• What It Means: Montreal improves to 27-25-6 for 60 points, moving the Canadiens into sixth spot in the Eastern Conference. Montreal also puts some distance between themselves and the Bruins, who are at 56 points but have three games in hand. The Bruins have now lost nine straight games.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens are back home for afternoon games this weekend with the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Bell Centre on Saturday and the Bruins in Montreal on Super Bowl Sunday.

The Canadiens are in Boston to take on the Bruins tonight. A few words, then, from the dressing rooms after morning skate, culled by The Gazette’s Pat Hickey.

(Retracting earlier claim… that wasn’t Hick’s lucky sweater, so I’ve unlinked the photo.)

Canadiens goalie Carey Price makes a great save on Bruins’ Marco Sturm during the first period on Friday night. Allen McInnis, The Gazette

NHL Preview | Matchups | Friday’s NHL schedule | Boone’s Game Blog and About last night … | Stubbs on Twitter | Hickey’s game story

• POSTGAME AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Mike Cammalleri | Carey Price | Hal Gill | Josh Gorges | Ryan O’Byrne | Max Pacioretty

• PREGAME AUDIO (special thanks to Andie Bennett of Team 990, who supplies this): Jacques Martin | Max Pacioretty | Hal Gill | Josh Gorges | Ryan White | Bruins coach Claude Julien | Michael Ryder | Steve Bégin

• At a Glance: After a ceremony that onty the Canadiens could pull off, one that brought together the greats of the past for one last skate around the rink, the 2009-10 edition of the Canadiens got down to work against the Boston Bruins. And after two straight poor efforts, they could ill afford another one and, thankfully, they came out flying in a 5-1 win over the Bruins. Jaroslav Spacek opened the scoring in the first period with a blast that beat Tim Thomas. The Canadiens exploded for four goals in the second period, with Michael Cammalleri scoring a hat trick and Glen Metropolit tapping in a Hal Gill pass for his sixth goal of the year. Vladimir Sobotka scored the only Boston goal against Carey Price, who was excellent in the Montreal net with 37 saves. Cammalleri has 15 goals on the season, including two hat tricks, and is among the NHL goal-scoring leaders.

• Key Moments: The Canadiens killed off a two-man disadvantage that lasted a full two minutes early in the second period and Cammalleri potted the first of his goals less than a minute later, opening the floodgates for Montreal.

• What It Means: The Canadiens snapped a four-game losing streak and improved their record to 13-14-2 on the season. Montreal is 2-0 against the Bruins this season.

• What’s Next: A rare Saturday off for the Canadiens before they welcome the Philadelphia Flyers to the Bell Centre on Monday. Next week, the Habs also play the Senators in Ottawa, face the Pittsburgh Penguins in Montreal and travel to Atlanta to play the Thrashers on Saturday.

The Canadiens practised today in Brossard then headed to Buffalo, where they’ll meet the Sabres Thursday. It’s immediately back to Montreal after that, for the much-trumpeted 100th anniversary game vs. the Boston Bruins on Friday at the Bell Centre.

Andrei Kostitsyn expects to be back in the lineup, his foot injury healed, while Hal Gill, recovering from a hairline foot fracture, should be ready to go vs. Buffalo or Boston, coach’s choice.

Canadiens’ Glen Metropolit scores on
Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas Thursday night. Brian Snyde, Reuters

Gazette Preview | Thursday’s NHL Schedule | Matchups | Mike Boone’s Game Blog and About last night … | Pat Hickey’s game story

• At a Glance: The Canadiens defeated the Bruins for the first time in 10 games Thursday night, and Carey Price won for the first time since Oct. 3 against the Buffalo Sabres, but it took longer than they would have liked. The Canadiens grabbed a 1-0 lead on a Glen Metropolit goal near the end of the first period and held on until the games final minute. That is when Patrice Bergeron beat Price, the only time he would be beaten in the 2-1 shootout win. Price stopped 42 of 43 shots and all three shooters in the shootout, while Mike Cammalleri beat Tim Thomas to give Montreal the win. It was a 50th career win for Price.

• Key Moments: The Bruins had a goal disallowed near the end of the second period when the puck crossed the goal line after slidding under the side of the net, which had been lifted off the ice by players battling in front of the net.

• What It Means: The Habs won for the first time on the road since Oct. 3 in Buffalo.

• What’s Next: The Canadiens return home to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.

Of course, Mike Boone will still be doing his game blog, and this is not meant to replace that, nor could it.

Keep in mind that the comments on the coveritlve chat will be monitored and approved by me, so keep it clean.

The chat will go live at 7 p.m.

Bruins goalie Gilles Gilbert can still see Guy Lafleur winding up.
Steve Babineau, NHLI vis Getty Images

Today’s fan recalls the Habs’ 6-5 comeback victory over the New York Rangers on Feb. 19, 2008 as the greatest in team history. Purely from a deficit point of view, it was that.

But our friend Robert Lefebvre offers his usually exhaustive look back to a comeback that truly was meaningful, the Canadiens’ victory over the Boston Bruins on April 8, 1971, during the first round of the playoffs.

Different time, different team. But with the Habs in Boston tonight, the timing is ideal to remember this.

And here’s a walk down memory lane with former Bruins goalie Gilles Gilbert, who was in goal on May 10, 1979, the night of the famous/infamous too-many-men game in which the Habs stormed back late to stave off elimination, then went on to win their 22nd Stanley Cup.

Guy Lafleur at the Montreal Forum as a Quebec Nordique (photo chosen in honour of Habs visit tonight to the provincial capital).
Denis Brodeur, NHLI via Getty Images

So, tonight you can tune in to the Canadiens vs. the Boston Bruins at 7 pm ET on RDS for the cost of your cable subscription.

Or a half-hour later, if you can tune in Indigo, you can check out a French-language pay-per-view celebration of the 58th birthday of Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur.

The hockey game you know about, the Canadiens hoping to end their one-game preseason losing streak.

Here’s a little more about the Lafleur thing, which will set you back 10 bucks in standard definition, $12 in HD:

Lafleur’s 58 years will be feted live by 800 guests from Mel’s Studio in Montreal, people the press release says are from all walks of life.

Four teams will test their knowledge of Lafleur in this love-in – Jean Béliveau will captain the Canadiens squad, with Gilbert Dionne, Raymond Bourque and Marcel Dionne respectively leading the Buffalo Sabres, Boston Bruins and Los Angeles Kings.

Comes word from the Boston Globe, news of this spotted on the always excellent kuklaskorner.com, that the Bruins have a new advertising agency for the coming season, and we’ll be seeing more of its aggressive marketing bear. Where Youppi! will kill you with kindness, the big bruin will hurt you with a slap upside the head.

You’ll never get tired of this commercial, which aired last season:

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Bruins goalie Gerry Cheevers clears the puck during a 1970s Forum game, his nemesis, John Ferguson, in hot pursuit in the background.
Denis Brodeur, NHLI via Getty Images

Bruins Hall of Famer Gerry Cheevers is pulling for Boston netminder Tim Thomas as the B’s head into Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinal tomorrow night against the Carolina Hurricanes at TD Banknorth Garden.

And why wouldn’t he be? The two goalies share jersey numbers, a goaltending style that wouldn’t win a beauty contest and physiques that would scare the judges of the swimsuit competition.

Cheevers earned two of his eight career playoff shutouts against the Canadiens, enjoying good success against Yvan Cournoyer but loathing John Ferguson.

He’s not even displeased that he yielded the only overtime goal scored by Jean Béliveau.

A visit with Cheesie, one of the Bruins greats who has many memorable links to the Canadiens.