TORONTO -- Perhaps the Boston Bruins are set up to finally turn things around against the Montreal Canadiens.
You'd better believe the Bruins are a motivated bunch going into Thursday night's tilt at the Bell Centre, after being embarrassed 6-1 by the Maple Leafs on Wednesday night at Air Canada Centre.
"That's what you want when you play a bad hockey game, you want to get right back at it, so it's good that we play tomorrow night," Bruins veteran forward Chris Kelly told reporters after Wednesday night's affair. "We get an opportunity to go out and redeem ourselves.''
In more ways than one.
Having already dropped the first encounter with the rival Habs 6-4 on Oct. 16 in Montreal, the Bruins enter Thursday night's game having lost seven of the past eight regular-season meetings versus the Canadiens going back to the lockout year. Of course, they also lost last spring's emotional second-round playoff series in seven games.
But maybe Wednesday's lopsided loss in Toronto against a Maple Leafs team the Bruins usually own will serve the as focus-setting medicine they need versus the Canadiens.
"I think we need to look in the mirror and realize we can't play like that, and bounce back and have a way better effort tomorrow," Kelly said.
The Bruins had in fact gone 6-1-0 without injured captain Zdeno Chara before Wednesday's disappointing effort, so let's cut them some slack. Especially since they're also playing without top center David Krejci right now, as well.
But here's the reality when it comes to Boston playing Montreal the past few years: full lineup, injured lineup, it doesn't seem to matter.
""I think if we stick to our game plan and play for 60 minutes, we should be fine. But in the past we haven't really been able to do that, there have been breakdowns on the ice and mental setbacks and that's been costing us.''"Dennis Seidenberg
The script usually involves goalie Tuukka Rask getting lit up (his worst career numbers are versus the Habs: 3-11-3, 2.80 GAA, .902 save pct.), Brad Marchand and Milan Lucic losing their cool and, generally speaking, the B's becoming unnerved and unhinged against the Canadiens.
"I mean, I think you could say sometimes we get caught up in all that stuff that goes on around the game," said veteran Bruins blueliner Dennis Seidenberg.
"We have to focus on the game. We let them get under our skin and we don't play our game. I think if we stick to our game plan and play for 60 minutes, we should be fine.
"But in the past we haven't really been able to do that, there have been breakdowns on the ice and mental setbacks and that's been costing us.''
Pretty honest answer there. The latest example would be Lucic taking a late-game penalty in that Oct. 16 loss, arguing the call and then giving it to the fans en route to the penalty box with a lewd gesture that would lead to a fine by the NHL the next day.
To Lucic's credit, he took full responsibility and said he just can't ever do that again, he has to keep his cool. And he knows what might await him Thursday night from the Canadiens' faithful at the Bell Centre.
"I'm sure there'll be some kind of reaction from the fans," Lucic said Wednesday. "But you try not to focus on it too much. You just try to worry about the things that are important. And I think the important thing heading into tomorrow is getting a win. Obviously, it's been a tough building for us to play in. You get two points and that's the most important thing for all of us.
"It's not about me against Montreal or anything like that, it's about playing the right way and trying to keep moving our way up the standings.''
Rask got pulled in that Oct. 16 game at Montreal, continuing his House of Horrors act versus the Habs. What nobody saw coming was that he was yanked Wednesday night in Toronto after giving up four goals in 23:32 to the Leafs, a team he usually owns. The question is whether head coach Claude Julien was pulling Rask to keep him fresh for Thursday night's game or whether he was giving the backup Niklas Svedberg some work ahead of Thursday's start.
Julien rarely divulges his goalie plans before a game and certainly was in no mood after Wednesday's game to go there. "I'm not even thinking about that right now,'' he told reporters at Air Canada Centre after the Leafs game.
(As an aside, how about the fact all four of the Bruins' meetings with the rival Canadiens this season will come on the second night of back-to-back games. Thank you, Mr. NHL Schedule-Maker.)
You can tell the Bruins have talked about their Montreal issues. It shows in their answers. They have identified what to do to rectify them.
"I think we have to just not worry about the things that don't matter, just focus on just playing our game and doing what it takes to win," Lucic said. "If we do that, that'll give us the best chance to win in that building.''
Added Seidenberg: "We all know the history, we don't need to talk about it too much. We try to look forward. Let's just stick to our game plan.''