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BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins exploded for a season-high six goals in a 6-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday, and the defense was stepping up and creating chances. Defenseman Dennis Seidenberg had three assists, Andrew Ference had a goal and an assist, and Dougie Hamilton had an assist. While the defense as a whole could've been much tighter in their own end, they were making better outlet passes, taking more shots and creating more chances overall.

"For us it's always been about supporting the attack and we want some good offense," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "The guys that seem to be doing it pretty good have been Hamilton and even [Matt] Bartkowski's come up and Ference is there a lot of times. But tonight we had everybody, which was good. Whenever the opportunity was there, Z [Zdeno Chara] jumped in and had an opportunity in the slot area. So it was nice to see everybody contributing in regards to that, because if you are going to score and get better offensively you need some support on the attack and the D's are the guys that can give you that."

Seidenberg believes that the defense corps should be more active in the offensive zone.

"We would love to get involved offensively. I mean, it's nice for [defensemen] to get points here and there, but again, you try in the game," Seidenberg said. "Sometimes it works better than others, and it was just a matter of us putting the pucks in the right places and getting pucks to the net."

The knock on Julien and his system is that he is a defense-first coach who would rather use a trap-like system every game than give his defensemen the green light to jump into plays and create offense. But Seidenberg disputed that notion.

"Are we a defense-first type team? Yes, we are. But, as we all know, a good defense leads to a good offense and we try to show that on the ice every night," Seidenberg said. "All you have to do is look at the stats the last few years and they speak for themselves. We've been right up there in goals scored, and that's because we are allowed to jump into the play when the time is right and if we see an opening. That is part of our game, and some nights we do it better than others but it's there."

Seidenberg also realizes the consequences of such an attack if the defensemen and forwards aren't on the same page. That has been the problem the past few weeks.

"We need to trust each other out there and if the play isn't there or we don't have the support we need it's going to end up an odd-man rush the other way," he said. "That's been happening too much lately and we need to correct that. But we try to contribute offensively whenever we can."

BOSTON -- After sitting out for 14 games with a broken tibia suffered on March 11, Chris Kelly was back in the lineup for the Boston Bruins' 6-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday. Kelly skated on a line with Daniel Paille and Tyler Seguin, finished with no points and was minus-1 in 13:23 on ice. He finished with 12 faceoff wins and overall felt better than expected after missing so much time.

"Surprisingly, my wind was pretty good, and I thought throughout the course of the game I felt pretty good the entire night," said Kelly, who has two goals and four assists in 24 games. "I think just reacting. I would have liked to have been a little better on faceoffs and timing and things like that, but it's to be expected when you've been off a month, and guys are more than midseason form. There's only 10 games left. I was just trying to go out there and, I don't want to say blend in, but just be part of it."

This was the longest stretch of games that Kelly has missed in his career, and while he didn't enjoy it at all, he still remains grateful it wasn't season-ending or worse.

"It's not fun, but the way I looked at it was it could have been much worse," Kelly said. "It could have been a lot longer, so I just tried to work hard, and get back as quick as possible and be ready to feel good when I did come back."

But while Kelly was satisfied with his first game back, he and his teammates realize they still have plenty of room for improvement. The Bruins continue to allow too many scoring chances. They were outshot 18-9 in the first period and 42-36 overall.

"I think we've got to do a better job at taking the opposing team's time and space away," Kelly said. "I think we're maybe overthinking sometimes out there instead of reacting and jumping on them and closing that gap as quick as possible.

"I think we can manage the puck a little better than what we did. I don't want to be doom and gloom. We scored six goals, and we've got to take some positives out of what we did tonight, but I still think there can be times where we can manage the puck better and closing that gap, especially in the D-zone, and taking time and space away."

BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins bounced back from their 2-1 loss at Montreal on Saturday by erupting for a season-high six goals to beat the Carolina Hurricanes 6-2. Brad Marchand scored two goals, Andrew Ference and Rich Peverley had a goal and an assist each, and Jordan Caron and Nathan Horton also scored for Boston. In another brilliant performance, Tuukka Rask made 40 saves for the second time in three games.

Patrick Dwyer and Drayson Bowman scored for Carolina. In net, Justin Peters was chased after allowing two goals on four shots. Dan Ellis replaced him and allowed four goals on 32 shots.

While the Bruins erupted for six goals, by no means was this an easy night for Rask. He had to turn away 18 shots in the first period, with many of them quality scoring chances. Rask's game has really picked up again over the past three games as he seems to be in command of the shots and positionally sound again. For those who may have thought there could've been a goalie controversy brewing between him and Anton Khudobin, think again! Rask is the man here, and he's showing why right now.

Bruins finally execute in first period: The Bruins converted their chances in the opening period to give themselves an early cushion. The Hurricanes outshot the Bruins 18-9 in the first period but couldn't score. The Bruins made the best of their chances by scoring three goals with a solid net-front presence and tenacity driving to the net. It had to be a welcome sight for head coach Claude Julien as well as Rask, whose great performance didn't come in vain.

Jagr, Campbell and Marchand click: Julien has been taking some heat for his most recent line changes and decision to put Jaromir Jagr on a line centered by Gregory Campbell. But Campbell made his coach look pretty smart Monday as he assisted on Marchand's first goal and was a strong physical presence in front and in the corners, freeing up space for Jagr and Marchand. He also assisted on Ference's goal. Meanwhile, Marchand and Jagr seem to have a solid chemistry already and are finding each other for scoring chances. Jagr assisted on both of Marchand's goals.

Defense chipping in on offense: One of the main reasons the Bruins were able to put up six goals was because the defense was chipping in offensively. Besides scoring, Ference also assisted on Peverley's goal and was creating offense with much better passes out of the Bruins' zone as well as pinching at the right time. Seidenberg's three helpers were a result of the same things as well as letting his blast from the point go at the right times. Dougie Hamilton also assisted on Horton's third period goal with a nice fake shot pass in front to Horton, who redirected it home.

Peverley's effort and speed pay off: It has been a tough season for Peverley, but on Monday he was doing all the things that helped him to 41 points last season. Peverley was utilizing his speed and had a great forechecking game going. His goal came on a wrap-around rebound of his own shot. He also assisted on Caron's first goal of the season.

Lineup changes as Kelly returns: In addition to having Campbell between Marchand and Jagr, Julien inserted Chris Kelly in between Seguin and Daniel Paille. Kelly had missed the previous 14 games after suffering a broken left tibia. Julien put Caron on the fourth line with Peverley and Shawn Thornton. That meant Kaspars Daugavins and Jay Pandolfo were healthy scratches up front. The defensive pairings remained the same, as Wade Redden was once again a healthy scratch. Here's what the lineup looked like:

Forwards:
Milan Lucic-David Krejci-Nathan Horton
Brad Marchand-Gregory Campbell-Jaromir Jagr
Daniel Paille-Chris Kelly-Tyler Seguin
Jordan Caron-Rich Peverley-Shawn Thornton

Defensemen:
Zdeno Chara-Dougie Hamilton
Andrew Ference-Dennis Seidenberg
Matt Bartkowski-Johnny Boychuk

Goaltenders:
Tuukka Rask
Anton Khudobin

BOSTON -- Boston Bruins forward Tyler Seguin is not surprised he’s back to playing the wing after the experiment of having him at center was basically a bust.

"I can’t say I was shocked it got changed,” Seguin said.

After Patrice Bergeron suffered a concussion early last week, Bruins coach Claude Julien tried Seguin at center, along with wingers Brad Marchand and Jaromir Jagr. On Sunday, however, Seguin was back on the wing and it appears he’ll play with center Chris Kelly and winger Daniel Paille against the Carolina Hurricanes tonight at TD Garden.

“We’re mixing things up and I’ve played the third line before my first year, but not so much last year. I’m just going to go out there, and obviously [Kelly] is a good player to play with as well.

“I don’t think it matters what line you are, you still want to go out there and play your game and whoever you’re playing with, I think we all know each other well enough now to click and find that chemistry right away.”

Seguin was a natural centerman during his junior hockey days, but he’s been primarily a wing since his rookie season with the Bruins in 2010-2011. He struggled at the position during the Bruins’ 1-0 win over the New Jersey Devils last Thursday, and didn’t last long against the Canadiens Saturday.

Since he hadn’t played center in a while, he knew it would be an adjustment.

“I figured it would take a little while. I wasn’t expecting to snap back into it right away. Obviously, that would have been nice, but I knew it would take a bit to adjust,” he said. “When you’re going into a game like Montreal, it’s a big game, and there shouldn’t be any time for adjustment, you just have to go out there and do it, so I wasn’t doing it.

“Obviously, I feel comfortable going back to the wing. I didn’t play center too long there, but I don’t think it was working out. In the first game, a few mistakes there and then, obviously, the first couple of shifts in Montreal it just wasn’t working.”

He’s spent the majority of his NHL career on the wing alongside Bergeron, who is one of the top two-way players in the league. The last few games not having him there, Seguin has learned to appreciate Bergeron’s game a little more than usual.

“I think I’ve given him more compliments the last few days than I did all year,” Seguin said. “Definitely you have more appreciation for him. You already know how hard he works and just the little things he does, and when you’re in his position you can really feel it.”

Seguin wasn’t making any excuses for his difficulties at center, but he’s confident with the proper time to adjust back to center, he could handle the position, but right now he’ll only concentrate on playing the wing.

BOSTON -- After missing 14 games due to a broken left tibia, Boston Bruins forward Chris Kelly has been medically cleared and will likely return to the lineup tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes at TD Garden.

“We expect him to be in the lineup tonight,” said Bruins coach Claude Julien after the team’s optional morning skate.

If the lines remain the same as they were Sunday’s practice, Kelly will center Daniel Paille and Tyler Seguin.

Prior to being injured on March 11 at Ottawa, Kelly had two goals and four assists for six points in 23 games this season.

Julien expects the centerman to just play his game.

“We don’t expect anything more out of any player when they come back,” Julien said. “He’s going to ease his way into it with probably short shifts, but he’s going to keep his game simple and that’s what anybody coming back from an injury would do. Hopefully, not gain confidence, but gain momentum as the game wears on.”

When he first suffered the injury, Kelly’s goal was to return in time for the playoffs, and he’s accomplished that.

“It’s been tough,” Kelly said of the rehab process. “It’s been a lot of good days. That was the one thing that was positive because there was no real setbacks and every day I came in I was able to do a little more and push it a little bit more. The training staff, and everyone here, give them credit because they did a great job, knowing how hard to push me and knowing exactly what to do to make this as quick as possible.”

WILMINGTON, Mass. -- Boston Bruins forward Tyler Seguin found a grey practice sweater in his locker stall when he arrived at practice Sunday morning at Ristuccia Arena.

Seguin was back on the wing with Chris Kelly in the middle and Daniel Paille on the other side. Gregory Campbell centered Brad Marchand and Jaromir Jagr. The top line of Milan Lucic, David Krejci and Nathan Horton remained intact. The fourth line consisted of Jordan Caron/Kaspars Daugavins, Rich Peverley and Shawn Thornton.

Earlier in the week, Seguin had been moved to center after linemate Patrice Bergeron suffered a concussion and is out indefinitely. Seguin centered Marchand and Jagr, but during Saturday’s 2-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens, Bruins coach Claude Julien dropped Seguin back to the wing with Campbell and Paille.

After Sunday’s practice, Julien said he’s looking for more offense out of everybody, not just Seguin.

“Right now it’s about playing your game as an individual,” Julien said. “You shouldn’t care where you are, you should care what you bring. He’s been fine like that. There’s no issue and I don’t think I have to explain myself to every player for every move I make. They understand we’re trying to win here and that’s all that should matter.”

Julien would not comment on Seguin’s overall game of late.

“I’m not going to get into that. You guys can make your own assessments,” Julien said. “I’m not into throwing players under the bus. I’m into making them better players, so if there are some issues, I’ll talk to them individually.”

When practice was over, two reporters approached Seguin and asked if he had a moment to talk. He refused, saying the team’s director of communications Matthew Chmura told him he did not have to speak Sunday with the media. Chmura later said that wasn’t true.

Since Seguin would not answer questions, his teammates were forced to speak for him.

“He’s a great player and he can play in any position. He’s a big part of our team and when he’s going, it really gives a lot of energy to play the way we need to,” Marchand said. “We want that from him every night and he’s doing a great job this year.”

Even though Seguin was a natural centerman during his junior hockey career, he’s played the wing with the Bruins since his rookie season in 2010-11. He struggled being back at center this week, so Julien thought it best to move him back to the wing.

“It’s a different position and there’s a lot of responsibility that goes with it,” Marchand said. “He played center a lot in juniors, but he’s been out of that position for a few years now and it’s tough to get back into it. Again, he’s a great pro and he’s doing a great job playing that middle position.”

WILMINGTON, Mass. -- After a disappointing 2-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night at Bell Centre in Montreal, the Boston Bruins were back on the practice ice Sunday morning at Ristuccia Arena.

Injured defenseman Adam McQuaid, who has missed the last nine games because of a shoulder strain, practiced with the team.

“He started skating and didn’t take much contact today. He’s not in tomorrow but he’s progressing and going in the right direction,” coach Claude Julien said.

Bruins forward Chris Kelly, who has missed 13 games because of a broken left tibia, has been practicing with the team and could return to the lineup as early as Monday when the Bruins host the Carolina Hurricanes at 7 p.m.

“He’s doing well, and we’ll see how things go from the medical staff, we still need clearance from them,” Julien said. “He practiced a little harder today and he’s inching closer and closer every day.”

Also, there’s no update on the status of Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron, who is out indefinitely with a concussion.

“There’s no update on him,” Julien said. “Peter [Chiarelli] said we’ll give you some updates on him when it’s warranted, so we certainly don’t want to be answering the same question every day with a situation like that, that’s very unknown. It could be good one day and bad the next, so we’ll update you guys when the news starts to get positive and he’s heading in the right direction.”

MONTREAL -- The Bruins have been reminded before how much Patrice Bergeron means to the success of their team.

While they have delivered in the past and collectively filled Bergeron's skates to survive, they showed in their 2-1 loss to the Canadiens on Saturday at the Bell Centre that it might take some time for them to find that group effort to do so once again. Bergeron now has missed the past two games due to a concussion.

"We need guys to step up more," coach Claude Julien said following his team's third straight loss to the Northeast Division-leading Canadiens, who are three points up on the Bruins. "It's as simple as that."

One guy who didn't step up in Julien's eyes was Tyler Seguin. After Bergeron suffered the fourth concussion of his career Tuesday, the Bruins moved Seguin into Bergeron's spot as the second-line center with Jaromir Jagr and Brad Marchand on the wings. Seguin was in this situation before as a rookie when Bergeron suffered his third concussion and missed the first two games of the Eastern Conference finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Seguin stepped up and delivered then with six points in two games, including two goals and two assists in Game 2 to help the Bruins tie the series at 1-1. Bergeron would return and help the Bruins go on to win the series in seven games and then eventually the Stanley Cup in seven games as well.

Although Seguin's defensive game has improved, he hasn't been able to catch fire in a bottle again the past two games. In a pivotal division game with his team trailing 1-0 early, Julien switched Seguin back to wing. So Jagr ended up paired with two very defensive-minded forwards in Gregory Campbell and Daniel Paille. Yes, Paille scored his seventh goal of the season, but when Jagr was acquired Tuesday, no one envisioned one of the game's most prolific scorers would play on an energy line. However, such is the case when your best all-around player is not in your lineup.

"This is a big game and they're a really good team that is really good in the offensive zone and I don't think Tyler was ready for that," Julien said. "I had to put a centerman with experience there and put [Seguin] back on the wing. I thought Jags had a good night with Paille and Campbell, and it kind of stabilized the lines a bit, but one line tonight didn't give us much and the other two were good. To win these kinds of games -- especially with the injuries we have -- we need everybody to step up, and we didn't have that tonight."

Center David Krejci, along with linemates Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton, was invisible. They most likely were the one line Julien was referring to that didn't give much. Krejci blamed the "bad" Bell Centre ice as a reason for the Bruins' failure to score on a power play in the final minute of regulation. Lucic appeared to realize that through two games without Bergeron, the Bruins have failed to step up.

"He's a big part of this lineup and he brings a lot to this team," Lucic said. "But in saying that, I think the biggest issue we've had in the past 10-15 games is consistency throughout this lineup and getting all 20 guys going at the same time. I think as much as -- and I'm not taking anything away from Bergy -- as much as he brings that extra element to our team, I think it's our system and everyone buying into it is what makes us successful. I think we need to get back to that."

Lucic referenced the 2011 Eastern Conference finals but made it clear that he and his teammates have to fill the void.

"[Bergeron] was hurt the first two games against Tampa back in the Eastern Conference finals, and we had guys step up, especially in that Game 2 where we were able to get that win," Lucic said. "So we're going to need the same thing with guys stepping up and everybody carrying the load."

MONTREAL -- At least it wasn't another third-period collapse for the Bruins against their hated rivals, but it wasn't pretty. The Bruins couldn't overcome a flat start and 2-0 deficit, falling three points behind the Montreal Canadiens in the Northeast Division with a 2-1 loss to Montreal on Saturday night at the Bell Centre.

Michael Ryder's second-period, power-play goal proved to be the difference. The Bruins just couldn't get going early, and they failed to score late on their sole power play of the game, which came with 57 seconds left in regulation. Alex Galchenyuk netted the first Montreal goal. Daniel Paille was credited with the Bruins' lone goal, tipping in a blast from Johnny Boychuk, who got the assist. Tuukka Rask made 27 saves for the Bruins, and Carey Price made 26 for Montreal.

Bad start again for Bruins: If the Bruins are to ever play to their full potential -- and there isn't much left of this regular season -- they need to find a way to have better starts and set the tone. It sounds like a broken record, but the Bruins' system is broken right now. Patrice Bergeron was out for the second straight game and there is no denying he is missed, but sluggish starts are nothing new. After being outshot 17-6 in the first period of Thursday's win, the Bruins were outshot 10-5 in the first Saturday. They trailed only 1-0 at that point, before the Habs made it 2-0 on a power-play goal by Ryder 57 ticks into the second period. None of those first-period shots by the Bruins came from a forward. It's time for the Bruins to set the tone and dictate a game from the opening faceoff.

Defense not helping Rask: The Bruins cost themselves on both goals. Galchenyuk's first-period goal went off Bruins defenseman Matt Bartkowski, and Ryder's goal deflected off Dennis Seidenberg. One could argue that Rask was a bit out of position on the Galchenyuk goal and that Bartkowski was trying to compensate for it, but other than that, Rask's game was flawless as he kept the Bruins in the contest. Meanwhile the defense continued to scramble around and lack cohesiveness in the Bruins' own end. They also can't seem to make clean breakouts from their zone, and hence the offense struggles.

Bergeron's absence forces Julien to move Seguin back to wing: No NHL player can replace two-way standout Patrice Bergeron, but Tyler Seguin does not look ready for the role, despite making strides in his defensive game this season. Coach Claude Julien switched him back to wing, altering the rest of the lines as a result. At the game-day skate, Julien had the same forward lines skating that he had in the 1-0 win over the Devils on Thursday: David Krejci centering Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton, Seguin centering Brad Marchand and Jaromir Jagr, Rich Peverley centering Jay Pandolfo and Kaspars Daugavins, and Gregory Campbell centering Daniel Paille and Shawn Thornton. But apparently Julien grew tired of the Seguin-at-center experiment. Halfway through the first period and for most of the game, Julien put Seguin back on the wing and had Peverley centering him and Marchand. That meant Jagr was skating on the wing with Campbell at center and Paille on the left wing. It also meant Thornton, Daugavins and Pandolfo saw limited ice time. The line of Lucic, Krejci and Horton remained intact.

Redden watches from above; Kelly day to day: Newly acquired Wade Redden watched from above at the Bell Centre as a healthy scratch despite practicing Friday and skating Saturday with his new team. The other healthy scratches were Jordan Caron and Aaron Johnson. Chris Kelly traveled with the Bruins after suffering a broken left tibia March 11 but missed his 14th straight game.

WILMINGTON, Mass. -- After providing the game-winning goal in the Bruins' debut Thursday night, Jaromir Jagr seemed a bit more comfortable during his first full practice Friday morning at Ristuccia Arena.

Jagr’s goal at 1:20 of the second period helped the Bruins to a 1-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils. With Bruins assistant captain Patrice Bergeron out of the lineup indefinitely with a concussion, coach Claude Julien decided to insert Jagr on the team’s second line and switch Tyler Seguin to the middle, with Brad Marchand on the other wing.

Both Marchand and Seguin admitted after the game that it was a bit surreal playing alongside the future Hall of Famer, but during Friday’s practice the trio were connecting more.

“It’s going to take time, there’s no question about it,” Jagr said. “I have to learn the kids’ game and they have to learn mine. We have to feed off each other. I have some strengths and they have some strengths, but it’s going to take time. It’s not easy to come to a new team. If you come before the season, you’ve got three to four weeks of training camp. This is different.”

Jagr arrived in Boston after the Bruins lost out on Jarome Iginla, who was initially traded to Boston but used his no-movement clause and instead decided to play in Pittsburgh. That opened the door for Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli to acquire Jagr from the Dallas Stars.

“I was probably reading it, like everybody else, on the Internet and I saw the first highlight of Iginla going to Boston, so I didn’t follow it after that, but the next day I found out he didn’t,” Jagr said. “Sometimes that’s what happens. You can’t trust anybody in this business. You never know, I’ve learned that.”

WILMINGTON, Mass. -- Boston Bruins forward Chris Kelly participated in the team’s full practice Friday at Ristuccia Arena, and then he traveled with the team to Montreal and there’s a chance he could return to the lineup against the Canadiens Saturday night at Bell Centre.

Since suffering a broken left tibia on March 11 at Ottawa, Kelly’s missed 13 games.

“It felt good today,” Kelly said after practice. “It was nice to practice with the guys, and get out there not just for a morning skate but an actual practice and throw my weight around.”

He’s unsure whether or not he’ll be cleared to play Saturday night, but he’s hoping he can return.

“I don’t know,” he said. “We’ll see what the best thing is and go from there. I don’t want to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ but I’m pushing it pretty good and it feels good, which is a good thing.”

Bruins coach Claude Julien said he’ll let the medical staff make their decision.

“He’s moving in the right direction, so it’s a good sign and it’s good to see him back on the ice with us,” Julien said. “I’m going to leave it as a day-to-day right now. He’s progressing and I don’t know what his status is going to be moving forward, if that’s tomorrow or the beginning of next week. He’s progressing well and I’ve got to let the medical staff do their job properly. I’m not one to push those guys. They know what they’re doing, so I’ll let them evaluate him as we move forward.”

WILMINGTON, Mass. -- Wade Redden, the newest member of the Boston Bruins’ defensive core, practiced Friday with his new team at Ristuccia Arena in preparation to face the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night at Bell Center in Montreal.

Wearing No. 6, the veteran defenseman -- whom the Bruins acquired from St. Louis prior to Wednesday’s NHL trade deadline -- seemed to fit in nicely. The 35-year-old blueliner spent the majority of his career with the Ottawa Senators, where current Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli worked prior to coming to Boston.

“I was excited,” Redden said. “I know Peter real well, too, and he’s a great guy, a great hockey man. Obviously, he’s done a lot of great things here and he’s led this team to the ultimate, so I’m excited to be a part of it.”

Redden was also a longtime Senators teammate of Bruins captain Zdeno Chara and forward Chris Kelly in Ottawa.

“It felt comfortable coming in here and knowing a few guys,” admitted Redden. “I know Z, and Kells, obviously played a long time with those guys and I was real close with them. It’s great to be back with them.”

Redden joins a blue line stacked with defensemen, including Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Johnny Boychuk, Andrew Ference, Dougie Hamilton, Matt Bartkowski, Aaron Johnson and Adam McQuaid (currently out with a shoulder injury).

“I’ll fit in where they need me,” Redden said. “They’ve got a pretty good defense already, so I’m just going to fill in where things open up, or they feel where they want to use me. The guys they’ve got have been doing a great job and I’m going to try to support that.

“It felt good to get on the ice and practice with them. I’m excited about being here.”

His presence will add some depth for the stretch run and into the playoffs, where he’s had plenty of experience during his career.

BOSTON -- After watching goaltending partner Anton Khudobin make 26 saves in a 2-0 shutout at Buffalo on Sunday and then stymie the Senators with a 45-save performance in a 3-2 win over Ottawa on Tuesday, Tuukka Rask was back between the pipes Thursday against the New Jersey Devils trying to make up for what he admitted were not his best performances in his previous two starts. Rask gave up seven goals in two games and said he knew he had to do better.

Well, with the Boston Bruins allowing 40 shots on net to the Devils on Thursday, Rask needed to be more than good. If not for a brilliant 40-save performance by Rask, Jaromir Jagr’s first goal with the Bruins in his debut with the team would have gone to waste. But Rask held the fort and backstopped Boston to its third straight win with a 1-0 shutout -- Rask’s third of the season -- that kept Boston one point behind the Northeast Division-leading Canadiens, whom they will face in Montreal on Saturday.

“He was good tonight; he was one of the reasons we won obviously,” said coach Claude Julien, who hasn’t been shy in calling out Rask recently. “He made the big saves when he had to and kept us in the lead at times when they could have gotten themselves back into the game. He was good for us tonight, and sometimes a little bit of rest and a little bit of work with the goalie coach is what goaltenders need.”

After losing his previous two starts and having a five-day layoff, there was the chance of rust in Rask's first game back. But Rask said he was fine and fed off some posts hit by the Devils.

“I felt comfortable. I think a couple of extra days of work with the goalie coach [Bob Essensa] helped,” said Rask, who is now 16-5-4 with a 1.94 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage. “I felt like my angles were pretty good and just one of those nights you get a couple of good bounces too. I’ll take it.”

There was no shortage of rubber flying Rask's way, which often can help a goalie trying to find his groove. New Jersey outshot the Bruins 17-6 in the first period and then 12-7 in the third for a total of 40-26. The Devils peppered Rask and had their way with the Bruins' defense, which failed to close lanes and get the puck out of their zone properly.

“I was saying to [Khudobin] in the first intermission that I would rather take 17 shots than three or four shots to just kind of get going,” Rask said. “Even though they had 17 shots, there were a lot of shots from the outsides so it was good to get that feeling, feel for the puck and stuff like that.”

Rask said that while he wanted to be playing, as he always does following a bad start, he also didn’t mind seeing his friend Khudobin find success in his past two starts.

“I’d just rather go out there and just get my mind right during the game,” Rask said. “Dobby played great in Buffalo, played great against Ottawa so I wasn’t feeling sorry for myself sitting out there. I was feeling good for him. He’s kind of in that groove and he’s playing really good, so it was good to watch him for a couple of outings there and I felt good out there today.”

Now it’s on to another tilt with the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday at what promises to be a raucous Bell Centre. For the fourth consecutive time, first place in the Northeast Division will be at stake when these longtime rivals meet in what is the final matchup of the regular season.

Rask has started all three meetings with the Habs. After making 20 saves in a 2-1 win at the Bell Centre on Feb. 6, Rask has struggled against the Canadiens, losing his past two starts and allowing nine goals on 54 shots. After Thursday's shutout, Rask said that maybe he has let himself get too amped up for these rivalry games.

“I’m not going to get excited at all because I’ve tried that and it didn’t work too well last time,” Rask said. “They’re always exciting games and they’re always high emotion games so for a goalie it’s a tough job to just keep yourself calm and try to just focus on stopping the puck and not getting all hyped up. So I’m just trying my best not to get carried away. I won the game there the last time we played so I’m just going to look at that and try to trick my brain that I was awesome last game and keep it going that way.”

Following the past meeting, a 6-5 shootout loss to the Habs, Rask lost his cool, slammed and broke his stick over the net and then fell to the ice in a rage. Rask knows the Bell Centre crowd will be all over him and his teammates from the second they hop on the ice Saturday, but he says he will embrace the atmosphere.

“They’re always all over everybody, so whatever,” Rask answered when asked if he expected some ribbing from Habs fans over his outburst on March 27. “It’s a great atmosphere there, you know that, so it’ll be a fun Saturday night. A lot of drunk people out there I bet.”

BOSTON -- Jaromir Jagr scored the game's only goal, but the bigger story was the 40 saves made by Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask, who earned his third shutout of the season to lead the Bruins to a 1-0 win over the New Jersey Devils. The Bruins have won three straight and will head to Montreal on Saturday for another battle for first place in the Northeast Division with the Canadiens, whom they trail by one point.

Rask snaps out of funk -- Tuukka Rask admittedly has not been his best as of late, losing his last two games and allowing eight goals in the process. But on Thursday, Rask looked more like the goalie who was a candidate for the Vezina Trophy for the first half of the season. The Bruins were outshot 17-6 in the first period, but thanks to Rask they were still tied 0-0 headed to the second period. Rask made two point-blank pad saves midway through the opening frame and held the Devils off the scoreboard. The Bruins appeared to gain momentum off their goalie's performance as they came out with more intensity in the second period and gained a 1-0 lead on Jagr's goal. Once again Rask gave his team a chance to win and helped snap them out of an early haze. He also erased any ideas that there was a goalie controversy brewing after Anton Khudobin made 45 stops Tuesday.

Jagr gives his best Pele impression -- Bruins fans can argue all they want, but that was a beautiful soccer -- ahem -- hockey goal that Jagr scored to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead 1:20 into the second period. While an argument that Jagr redirected the puck into the net with his foot could be made, he had some Pele and magician-like moments in his Boston debut. On the Bruins' first power-play later in the period, Jagr got a little too fancy on some passes but then showed how hard he is to take off the puck and almost scored on a backhander down low. Like Pele in soccer, Jagr -- who was on the ice for 19:12 and had five shots on net - can be graceful and gritty with the puck and that is why he can only help the Bruins going forward.

Defense still not there -- Following the Bruins' 3-2 win over the Senators on Tuesday in which they allowed 47 Ottawa shots, coach Claude Julien labeled his defense "soft" and was not happy with the amount of scoring chances the Senators were given. That soft play on defense continued Thursday as the Bruins were completely outplayed in the opening period, played a little better in the second, but then appeared to drop back into prevent defense and let New Jersey pour the shots on again as the Devils outshot the Bruins 12-7 in the third period. As they often have this season, the Bruins defense struggled to come out of its own zone, making numerous turnovers that led to plenty of scoring chances.

With Bergeron out, Julien shuffles lines again -- With Patrice Bergeron missing his first game after suffering a moderate concussion and some new players in the lineup in Jagr and Kaspars Daugavins, Julien again had some new forward lines. Jagr was on the left wing with Tyler Seguin centering him and Brad Marchand, who assisted on Jagr's goal. Daugavins skated on a line with Rich Peverley in the middle and Jay Pandolfo on the right. Julien decided not to break up the Milan Lucic-David Krejci-Nathan Horton line that has been gaining momentum lately. He also left his energy line together. Here's what the lineup looked like:

FORWARDS
Milan Lucic-David Krejci-Nathan Horton
Brad Marchand-Tyler Seguin-Jaromir Jagr
Jay Pandolfo-Rich Peverley-Kaspars Daugavins
Daniel Paille-Gregory Campbell-Shawn Thornton

DEFENSEMEN
Zdeno Chara-Dougie Hamilton
Andrew Ference-Dennis Seidenberg
Matt Bartkowski-Johnny Boychuk

GOALIES
Tuukka Rask
Anton Khudobin

BOSTON -- He’s known as ‘Dogman’ or ‘Doggie,’ but on Thursday following his first skate with the Bruins, Kaspars Daugavins -- who was picked up by the Bruins on waivers from the Senators last week -- made it clear he is not here to be a dog on the ice. He is here to work hard and fit in with what he views as one of the hardest-working teams in the NHL.

“It’s a good group and hard-working guys so I think it’s going to be fine,” Daugavins said after the Bruins’ game-day skate in advance of their tilt with the Devils at TD garden tonight. “I’m going to try and help this team as much as I can.”

The Bruins have pretty much owned the Senators for the last four seasons, and while he was around for only the six games against Boston last season and three this season, he acknowledged that the Bruins are one of the most frustrating teams to play against.

“Definitely was really hard to play against these guys,” Daugavins said. “Big size; all the D-men are big and all the forwards work hard. So it was always a 60-minute game. They never get tired and they never stop playing. It’s like a good team effort. They never quit and no matter what the score is they all keep going and going.”

It was hard and we knew it was going to be 60-minute game," he added. "It was like two minutes where we kind of fell apart and then they scored and punished us. Every game seemed like it was a shootout or they score in the last few minutes and it was frustrating. But that’s why these guys are so good, because they never quit.”

On Thursday, Bruins head coach Claude Julien had Daugavins on a line with Rich Peverley and Jay Pandolfo. Daugavins likes to play both ends of the ice and can be successful in the offensive zone, as witnessed when the Bruins beat the Senators 2-1 in a shootout on March 21. Daugavins had a goal and four shots on net in that game, which turned out to be his last as a Senator. But the winger knows that on his new team and on his new line, he will be depended on mainly for defense.

“I’m going to play with Rich and ‘Pando’ [Pandolfo], so obviously we’ll try to get some energy going and try to score some goals too,” said Daugavins, who has one goal and two assists in 19 games this season. “Mainly a defensive role probably.”

But in his morning press briefing, Julien also pointed toward Daugavin’s grit and penalty-killing skills that will help the Bruins.

“I think he’s a big, solid individual. He’s strong on his skates, he’s an above-average skater, one of those guys that will give us some grit,” Julien said. “You know, I don’t know if we’re going to see him penalty killing tonight, but he’s a guy that can penalty kill. Right now, our penalty kill is going well, I think we need to allow him an opportunity to look at it and see what guys do. But you may see him there down the road. He can shoot the puck, certainly, like I said, he’s a solid individual, so he’s going to give us the grit that we need.”

Fans might recall that Daugavins made league-wide headlines in that March 21 game when he tried to send the shootout to another round with a unique and fancy shootout attempt but was denied by Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask. Daugavins joked on Thursday that he is still going to try and beat Rask in practice.

“Maybe. Maybe I have some other crazy moves,” he said.