Winter Classic
Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
On January 1st, the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens will look to start off the new year with an absolute bang. The two rivaled franchises are set to leave it all on the ice as they face off in the highly anticipated 2016 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic game at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The game has been highly anticipated for months, and the game will provide more than bragging rights for the victorious hockey club.
Puck Prose
The Atlantic Division standings currently have the Florida Panthers sitting in first place with 46 points, the Montreal Canadiens sitting in second place with 45 points, and the Boston Bruins sitting in third place with 44 points. The Boston Bruins hold the season-series lead over the Panthers following their 3-1 win on December 12th, meaning the winner of this contest will move into first place in the division. The game comes roughly at the half-point of the 2015-16 season, and sitting in first place around that time is obviously the goal of every single hockey team in the NHL.
The Montreal Canadiens will be without their franchise goaltender and the reigning Vezina, and Hart Trophy winner, Carey Price, as well as their first line right winger in Brendan Gallagher. With those two key injuries clearly affecting the Montreal Canadiens, it’s fortunate for them that the Bruins will also be without some very key players.
It is impossible to make a list of best offensive players currently on the Boston Bruins without mentioning David Krejci and Brad Marchand right at the top of the list. Those players also bring efficient play on the power play, penalty kill, on the back-check, and in Krejci’s case, in the face-off circle. With both players set to miss the Winter Classic — David Krejci with an upper-body injury, and Brad Marchand with a three game suspension for his hit on Senator’s forward Mark Borowiecki — there will be no excuses by either team once the puck drops.