March 17, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Boston Bruins center David Krejci (46) is attended to by a trainer after being injured against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the third period at the CONSOL Energy Center. The Pittsburgh Penguins won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

It’s something we’ve seen in hockey before, a player goes down with an injury courtesy of “friendly-fire”, which just means they got hurt after getting hit with a shot that was fired by their own teammate. Well, it happened again on Sunday and this time the victim was Boston Bruins #1 center, David Krejci.

Krejci was parked out front of the Pittsburgh Penguins net with about 5 minutes left in the 3rd period of what would eventually become a 2-1 Penguins win, when Bruins defenseman Johnny Boychuk got the puck at the blueline before taking a few steps towards the net and getting off a bullet of a slapshot.

The shot caught a leaping Krejci somewhere unprotected and around his knee, he laid on the ice for quite some time before being helped off the ice and into the locker room, while putting very little pressure on his injured leg. Krejci did not return to the game after the injury.

“I just tried to rip one there,’’  said a somewhat depressed looking Boychuk. “It hit him. I hope he’s OK. I got a good pass there from Z (Zdeno Chara) and I had a whole lane and lots of time, so I put everything on it. I just hope he’s OK.’’

You got to feel for Boychuk as I’m sure he’s not too happy with himself after injuring the Bruins top pivot and with a slapshot no less. But he’d be smart to listen to head coach Claude Julien who when asked about Krejci’s injury, only offered this, “That’s hockey”.

Getting back to Krejci, the news on his injury after the game was few and far between as it usually is when it comes to an injured Bruins’ player these days, but Krejci was seen after the game walking gingerly to the team bus. He will also join the team on their trip to Winnipeg, which normally would be good news, but if you remember when Chris Kelly was hurt, he also traveled with the team to their next game before finding out he had a broken left-tibia and would be out indefinitely. Sorry to be a bit negative, but just trying to give you as many facts as I can.

With Kelly already out, the Bruins are suddenly starting to run out of centers. If Krejci is forced to miss an extended period of time look for Lane MacDermid to get the call on the wing with someone like Tyler Seguin moving to center on the first line or if the Bruins don’t want to beak up their lines they could always call-up center Ryan Spooner from Providence.

Krejci is 2nd on the Bruins in points with 7 goals and 17 assists for 24 points in 27 games.

Jan 19, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; New York Rangers right wing Ryan Callahan (24) and Boston Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference (21) fight for a rebound in front of Boston Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask (40) during the second period at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Michael Ivins-USA TODAY Sports

Hi guys, we here at Causeway Crowd believe we have just as much right as the rest of you to put up who we believe were the three stars of every game. Sometimes they will be lock and step in line with the official verdicts, and sometimes they won’t even be close. Let’s take a look at the Bruins first game of the season and see if we match up with the officials.

January 19th, 2013 - New York Rangers vs Boston Bruins: (Boston @ Home)

Final Score: Boston Bruins 3, New York Rangers 1

Three Stars of the Game: 3rd: Patrice Bergeron 2nd: Tuukka Rask 1st: Zdeno Chara.

Causeway Crowd All Stars:

 3rd: Zdeno Chara. No offense guys, but I don’t think Big Z deserved first star on opening night. Yes, the big guy let the Rangers know that no one was safe on the ice. He was aggressive and made good defensive plays for the Bruins.  Granted, everyone and their brother was getting called for interference last night, but his two-minuted hooking call set the Rangers up for a 5-on-3 power play. If it wasn’t for some outstanding defensive work by Rask and the Bruins on the ice, the game could have easily gone south for the B’s. We were further helped out by Rick Nash‘s hooking penalty ninety seconds later.

2nd: Johnny Boychuk. Again, no offense meant to the Bruins faithful. Bergeron took a puck on the chin early in the game and was back out on the ice in three minutes. Boychuk took a tumble and went from limping to playing in the same amount of time. Boychuck was hitting and winning battles on both sides of the line.  Boychuk was also able to get one of those signature ‘Johnny Rocket’ goals to put the game out of reach for the Rangers. He put up three shots, and got one goal. He put up thirty shifts, spent twenty plus minutes on the ice, and walked away with a +2 for the night.

1st: Tuukka Rask. Yes, Bruins Nation it is officially Tuukka Time, make sure your watches are set to Boston and Helsinki time! Tuukka went 20 for 21 last night (.952 save % is an outstanding way to start the season.) He made some excellent saves, and shook off the rust that plagued him in the scrimmage against Providence. His defensive work on the 5-on-3 kept the Rangers away and guarenteed the Bruins their first win of the season, and their first home opening win since they beat the Colorado Avalanche in the opening game of the 2008-2009 season.

We at Causeway Crowd want to hear your opinion. Agree with us. disagree with us, use inventive metaphors to describe our opinions, whatever works for you. I personally can be reached on Twitter at @Godwentwhoops and I am always willing to hear what an idiot I am.

November 7, 2011; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron (left), center Tyler Seguin (19), center Brad Marchand (63) and defenseman Johnny Boychuk (55) celebrate a goal scored by Seguin during the second period against the New York Islanders at TD Banknorth Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Today seems a fitting day to do Boychuk’s bio. It is after all his twenty-ninth birthday. Happy Birthday to one of the nicest people I would never ever want to meet on an ice rink.

Johnny Boychuk was drafted in the third round (61st overall) of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by the Colorado Avalanche. At the time of his drafting, Boychuk was in his third year playing for the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League(WHL).  In his 177 games with the Hitmen, Boychuk put up some decent numbers. He recorded twenty goals, earned fifty eight assists, and acquired two hundred and for minutes in penalties. He also earned four points in the playoffs in the two seasons Calgary got into the post season.

He was traded near the end of the 2002-03 season to another WHL team,  the Moose Jaw Warriors (no, I’m serious.) In a little over a season with his new club, he put up another set of respectable numbers. His fifty five points(eighteen goals, thirty five assists) were impressive for a defenseman.  The one hundred and three minutes in the sin bin showed he was afraid to drop the gloves or fight hard to help his team win.

Boychuk made his professional debut with the American Hockey League(AHL) Hershey Bears at the start of the 2004-05 season. He then proceeded to spend the next four years bouncing around the AHL.  In his AHL career he spent a season with the following hockey clubs: The Lowell Lock Monsters (again I’m not joking), the Albany River Rats, and the Lake Erie Monsters. His four years were productive ones. His one hundred and one points(twenty seven goals) showed to the hockey gods he was a team minded player. He soon got his chance to play at the NHL level.  On January 5th, 2008, Boychuk made his NHL debut. He was playing for the Avalanche in a game against the New York Islanders.

Boychuk, a defenseman by trade was asked to move up to the forward position and play a wing. That he did so spoke volumes on his ‘team first’ playing style.

The next chapter of Johnny Boychuk started before the start of the 2008-09 season. On June 24, 2008, Boychuk was traded to the Boston Bruins in exchange for Matt Hendricks. He started out in the AHL’s Providence Bruins. Boychuk wasted no time in his new job. In the first week of the regular season, Boychuk was named AHL Player of the Week. His playing style impressed Claude Julien, and on December 1st, 2008 the soon to be minted #55  got to wear the ‘B’ for the first time. His first Boston Bruins game was a 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning. He spent the rest of that year in Providence, amassing sixty five points(twenty goals) and won the Eddie Shore Award for being the most outstanding AHL defenseman.

The next season saw the numbers reversed. Boychuk played only two games in Providence and the rest in Boston. He earned his first NHL point with a goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs on December 5th, 2009. The first Johnny Rocket had been launched. #55 was a man who put the team first, and he always let the fans know that he cared about them. Most players after a fight usually skate to the box or off the ice. Not Mr. Boychuk. One of his first NHL fights had him fighting Colin Fraser of the Chicago Blackhawks. After the fight, (which he won after hitting Fraser twice and watching him crumple.) Boychuk raised his hands to the fans, and the fans roared their approval. He put up a respectable fifteen points(five goals) and quickly became a fan favorite.

Boychuk spent the entirety of the next season in Boston. For those of you living under a rock. That was the year the Bruins brought the first Stanley Cup home to Boston in a generation. Boychuk was once again a team player. He put up sixteen points for the club(three goals, one of them a game winner.) He had a +/- of +15 for a defenseman, putting him among the better d-men that year. He was averaging over twenty minutes of play a game, and the “Johnny Rocket” was something to be respected and feared. Last season had #55 meeting and exceeding last years’ numbers. He scored one less point, but had increased his goal output to five and two of them were game winners. His shots on goal had increased by twenty and his shot percentage went up by an entire percentage point. His +/- exceeded his previous two years combined, and he was still averaging over twenty minutes a night.

Johnny Boychuk has become one of the faces of the franchise. He is not as fast as Brad Marchand, score happy as Tyler Seguin, or as a dominating force like Zdeno Chara. He is simply a player that puts himself above the team. His honest and solid work ethic will make him one of the people to watch this year for the Bruins. Simply put, he loves the game as much as we do, and is one of the most thankful of the Bruins to the Nation. Happy Birthday Johnny, now rocket us to the Stanley Cup.