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 "We're finding a way to win games. I don't think we're playing
the best hockey yet," Chara said after the Bruins earned a 2-1
victory over the Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday night and vaulted back
into first place in the Eastern Conference. "We can always improve,
and for sure there are areas where we need to improve.
"We're just finding a way to win hockey games right now, and that's
the big difference."
Chara scored his 16th goal of the season, and Boston right winger
Jarome Iginla connected on his 21st, both in the first period. The
Bruins have outscored their opposition 27-11 during their winning
streak.
"We're playing really well right now," said Boston left winger Brad
Marchand, who didn't register a point but hit two posts while
playing a strong game. "I think everyone seems to be buying into the
system and playing their role and not trying to do too much."
Said Chara: "There's always ways to improve. For sure, we can't get
complacent or satisfied."
The Bruins moved one point ahead of the idle Pittsburgh Penguins,
who have a game in hand.
Coyotes winger Lauri Korpikoski scored a deflection goal with 11:46
remaining in the game, his ninth of the season, to break up Boston
goaltender Tuukka Rask's shutout bid and cut Boston's lead in half.
Rask, outstanding in a 4-1 win over the Canadiens in Montreal on
Wednesday night, stopped 21 shots Thursday for his fifth consecutive
win. He got help from center Carl Soderberg, who kept center Antoine
Vermette's rebound attempt from resulting in a late tying goal.
The Bruins (44-17-5) were a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill,
including a first-period double minor. They have killed all 16
penalties they incurred the last six games.
With the loss, the Coyotes finished 2-2 on a four-game eastern
swing. Phoenix (31-25-11) won four of its last six, and it trails
the Dallas Stars by one point for the final playoff position in the
Western Conference.
"You've put yourself where you are having to get more than that,"
right winger Shane Doan, Phoenix's captain, said of the road trip.
"Got to get the next game, and that's all we're worried about now,
nothing you can do about that. The road trip's over. It wasn't a
total disaster, it wasn't a huge success. We've just got to find
ways to win at home." Goaltender Mike Smith made 18 saves in the
Phoenix goal.
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"Not enough push," Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said of his team's
early play. "We turned over some pucks, and for a team that played
last night (the Bruins), we wanted to come out and push a little
bit. We didn't have enough push. Made a couple mistakes that cost us
in the first period, and then third period I thought we pushed a
little harder but couldn't find the one we needed to even it up."
Bruins winger Loui Eriksson caused defenseman Keith Yandle to cough
up the puck, leading to the Chara goal 5:54 into the game. Chara
walked in from the point and beat Smith with a well-placed wrist
shot.
The Bruins killed a four-minute power play and took a 2-0 lead later
in the period. Soon after Rask, with a little help from defenseman
Dougie Hamilton, kept a rebound from bouncing over the goal line,
defenseman Johnny Boychuk took a shot from the right point that was
tipped in by Iginla for his fourth goal in seven games.
The win was the Bruins' first at home against the Coyotes since
2002. It also gave them a sweep of their latest back-to-back set — they are 9-2-1 on the front end, 10-2 on the back end.
The victory was the 300th for coach Claude Julien behind the Bruins'
bench.
NOTES: The Bruins drew their 200th straight sellout, counting
playoffs. ... Bruins LW Daniel Paille missed his second consecutive
game with his second concussion of the season. ... The Coyotes were
missing new acquisition RW Martin Erat, also out after a hit to the
head. ... Boston D Andrej Meszaros played his first home game with
his new team, with rookie D Torey Krug a healthy scratch. ...
Phoenix RW Shane Doan played in his 1,300 NHL game, fourth-most
among active players. He was stopped on a second-period breakaway,
but his hard work set up the Phoenix goal. ... The Coyotes return
home to face the Calgary Flames on Saturday, while the Winnipeg Jets
visit the Bruins the same day. ... This was Phoenix's first visit to
Boston in five years. The Coyotes were 3-0-0-1 since their previous
Boston loss in 2002. ... Both the Coyotes and Bruins swept a Florida
trip with two wins in the last week. ... Phoenix D Keith Yandle, a
Boston native, played for only the second time as a pro in his
hometown. ... The teams meet again March 22 in Glendale, Ariz.
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