Boston Bruins First In the Atlantic Division

Mar 10, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) celebrates after scoring a goal on Carolina Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward (not pictured) during the third period at TD Garden. The Carolina Hurricanes won 3-2 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 10, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) celebrates after scoring a goal on Carolina Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward (not pictured) during the third period at TD Garden. The Carolina Hurricanes won 3-2 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /
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It only took 69 games this season, but the Boston Bruins are finally standing atop the Atlantic Division. Even though the Bruins fell in overtime to the Carolina Hurricanes, that single point was enough to edge them past the Tampa Bay Lightning for first place in the division. Granted, the B’s time at the top may be very limited, but at least the Bruins can say they proved a lot of people wrong this season.

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Coach Claude Julien focused more on how the Bruins were disappointed with their loss over their place in the standings last night. He knows that the B’s will find their focus when Johnny Boychuk and the Islanders come into town on Saturday.

“It’s not what they did to us,” offered Claude Julien. “It’s what we didn’t do ourselves…so let’s chalk it up as a tough loss, but a good point, and let’s move on here and prepare for Saturday [against the New York Islanders].

“If I was a betting man, I think our team’s going to be much better on Saturday.”

The Bruins have had to climb their way out of mediocrity this season. They had a rough three games to start the season, but were able to finish the month of October with a 6-3-1 record. During the season, the B’s have had a lot of ups and downs, mainly by having to train a lot of young defensemen on the fly. Still, the Bruins persevered and began their climb out of the basement in the standings. So far this season, the Bruins have been a lot like their rivals, the Montreal Canadiens, but in reverse.

“Honestly, after the tough start we had this year…that’s pretty impressive,” said Bruins forward David Krejci. “We’ll appreciate that more tomorrow.”

Still, the Bruins know better than to rest on their laurels. The team was disappointed in letting a desperate Carolina team get past them. They know they’ll need to continue to improve even though the Black and Gold have yet to see a regulation loss since the trade deadline.

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“I don’t think we’re going to make that big of a deal in being [in] first place,” said the Bruins all-time coaching win leader about their most recent milestone. “It’s nice to be there. I think right now, we’re really looking at our game and in that dressing room right now, we’re not happy. We lost a game tonight, and even if it means that point got us in first, we’re certainly not satisfied with that.”