ESPN

BOSTON -- Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference will have a conference call with the NHL on Thursday afternoon to determine whether there will be discipline for his elbow to the head of Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mikhail Grabovski on Wednesday night.

Early in the first period of the Bruins’ 4-1 conference quarterfinal series-opening win over the Maple Leafs, Ference came up high with his elbow as he skated past Grabovski and connected with Grabovski’s head. There was no penalty called on the play, but the replay clearly showed Ference raising his elbow to make contact. Grabovski did not appear to be injured on the play.

“I don’t even know what you’re talking about,” Ference said after the game. “I don’t even know which play you’re talking about.”

Bruins coach Claude Julien on Thursday said the matter was in the league’s hands and would not comment on it.

“The league looks after those things,” said Julien. “That job doesn’t belong to me, and I’ll leave it at that.”

Ference was unavailable for comment.

“To me, those are hits in the game,” Leafs coach Randy Carlyle said after the game. “Sometimes in the playoffs, you’re going to see physicality. It’ll be front and center. It’s a game that’s made to be physical. You’re allowed to hit people. To judge if it was offside, a bad hit or a belligerent hit, that’s not for me to judge. That’s for people in the league to make those determinations.”

BOSTON -- Early in the first period of the Bruins’ 4-1 series-opening win over the Maple Leafs, Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference came up high with his elbow as he skated past Toronto forward Mikhail Grabovski and connected with Grabovski’s head. There was no penalty called on the play, but the replay clearly showed Ference raising his elbow to make contact.

Ference was asked after the game if he was concerned he may get a call from NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan on Thursday and told the media he didn’t recall the play.

“I don’t even know what you’re talking about,” Ference said. “I don’t even know which play you’re talking about.”

Bruins coach Claude Julien said he wouldn’t comment on the play until he reviewed it, but Toronto coach Randy Carlyle didn’t seem to have a problem with it.

“To me, those are hits in the game,” Carlyle said. “Sometimes in the playoffs, you’re going to see physicality. It’ll be front and center. It’s a game that’s made to be physical. You’re allowed to hit people. To judge if it was offside, a bad hit or a belligerent hit, that’s not for me to judge. That’s for people in the league to make those determinations.”

This isn’t the first time Ference has been involved in a questionable play during the playoffs. During a first-round series with Montreal in 2011, Ference made an obscene gesture to Canadiens fans after scoring a goal at the Bell Centre. At the time, Ference termed it a “glove malfunction” but later admitted in a team-written book on the Bruins’ Cup-winning season that he did indeed make an obscene gesture. Ference was fined $2,500.

Will Ference call this an “elbow pad malfunction”?

BOSTON -- For the past two days, the Boston Bruins insisted their late-season funk was in the rearview mirror. There would be no more blown leads in the third period and no more lackluster starts. The skilled and physical Bruins would return.

Well, the Bruins kept their promises as they overcame an early Toronto Maple Leafs power-play goal and scored the next four goals, dominating the Leafs 4-1 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series.

David Krejci had a goal and two assists, Wade Redden had a goal and an assist and Nathan Horton and Johnny Boychuk both lit the lamp for the Bruins. Tuukka Rask looked solid between the pipes, making 19 saves, with James van Riemsdyk’s power-play goal in the opening period the only shot that beat him.

For the Leafs, James Reimer was under siege all night as the Bruins poured 40 shots on him.

Lucic-Krejci-Horton line clicks again: One of the big question marks heading into this series was whether Milan Lucic, Krejci and Horton could find their magic again. If Game 1 is any indication, the band is back together and the magic is there. In addition to Krejci’s three-point performance and Horton lighting the lamp, Lucic had two helpers and continued to look more like the Lucic who used a combination of grit, size and skating to earn two straight seasons of 20-plus goals. The chemistry was back as Horton and Lucic got to open spaces to benefit from Krejci’s playmaking skills, and Krejci looked a lot like the player who was a candidate for the 2011 Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.

Bruins defense provides offensive boost: Prior to Game 1, coach Claude Julien lauded Redden for his recent play and puck-moving skills. Redden continued to impress with his goal and an assist, but the Bruins' entire defense did a great job of moving the puck and creating offense in Game 1. In addition to Boychuk's goal, Bruins defensemen helped in peppering Reimer and controlling neutral zone play.

Power play looks better: While the Bruins’ power play (1-for-5) can certainly still be better, it did convert once and moved the puck a lot better. The passes were crisp, and there was less hesitation. If that continues, the scoring production will increase.

Suspension coming for Ference? Andrew Ference could very well be sitting out a game or more after elbowing Leafs forward Mikhail Grabovski in the head in the first period. No penalty was called, but the replay clearly shows an elbow to the head.

Bruins have two goals called back: Things could have been even worse for the Leafs if not for two Bruins goals being called back. The referees and replay officials got it right in calling back a Tyler Seguin shot that clearly rang off the post 1:10 into the second period. But Patrice Bergeron’s no-goal was a bit questionable as the referees claimed the whistle was blown before Bergeron pushed it into the net. But even if the refs were wrong, the rule states if they intended to blow it and didn’t do it in time, then it’s still not a goal.

Bad blood boils at end: In addition to Ference’s questionable hit to the head of Grabovski, there was plenty of hard hitting throughout the game. As time wound down in the third period and it was clear the Bruins would win, the Leafs decided to let the Bruins know they were still there, taking plenty of extra hits after the whistle and then stirring things up at the final buzzer. The result was a Chris Kelly-Leo Komarov fight. It should be a physical Game 2.

Hamilton and Peverley sit: Not surprisingly, Julien kept Dougie Hamilton in the press box as a healthy scratch. The defenseman struggled in his last few games of the regular season, and Julien seems to have opted to take the learning-from-up-top route he took with Seguin as a rookie to start the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs. While Rich Peverley might have had an off season, one would think Julien would prefer playoff and Cup experience in the lineup instead of an inexperienced Kaspars Daugavins. But it was Daugavins playing with Kelly and Jaromir Jagr for Game 1.

Here’s what the rest of the lineup looked like:

Forwards
Milan Lucic-David Krejci-Nathan Horton
Brad Marchand-Bergeron-Tyler Seguin
Daugavins-Kelly-Jagr
Daniel Paille-Gregory Campbell-Shawn Thornton

Defensemen
Zdeno Chara-Dennis Seidenberg
Ference-Boychuk
Redden-Adam McQuaid

Goalies
Rask
Anton Khudobin

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 Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference was among the first to break the news of the tentative deal reached between the players and union to end the NHL lockout, tweeting a simple thumbs-up emoticon at 5:02 a.m.

Shortly afterward, he sent a series of tweets aimed at fans of the Bruins and NHL:

“As players we can now do what we do best. Proudly pull on our jerseys and play with complete passion for our cities and fans.

“I hope that we can replace the intense negativity brought on our sport with a reminder of how great it can be when the action is on the ice.

“From my grandparents to our B’s fans, I am deeply sorry that we had to miss so much hockey. All we can do now is play our hearts out for you.”

Word of the agreement came after the two sides hashed out their remaining differences for more than 16 hours at a hotel in midtown Manhattan, a process Ference was a part of. It was the lengthiest negotiating session and latest night of a lockout that has lasted 113 days -- almost four months.

The tentative agreement is a 10-year deal with a mutual opt-out clause after eight years and includes contract term limits at seven years (eight years for a team to re-sign its own players), a source confirmed to ESPNNewYork.com.

It is believed the sides are aiming for either a 48- or 50-game season depending on how quickly things get done. ESPN.com's Pierre LeBrun reported that a 50-game season would start Jan. 15, while a 48-game season would start Jan. 19.

With the NHL lockout nearly a week old and with no end in sight, a few Boston Bruins players have made commitments to play hockey overseas to keep their skills sharp.

Forward Tyler Seguin, the ink barely dry on a 6-year extension with the Bruins, signed with EHC Biel of the Swiss League, his agent Ian Pulver confirmed to ESPN.com on Thursday.

Seguin will become the fourth Bruins player who has reportedly committed (or is close to committing) to play overseas.

Defenseman Andrew Ference announced Wednesday night that he will play for HC Ceske Budejovice in the Czech Republic, indicating on his Twitter account he will report Oct. 7 barring the new collective bargaining agreement being worked out before then. Bruins center David Krejci is close to a deal with Pardubice of the Czech league, according to a report in the Boston Herald, and backup goalie Anton Khudobin signed with HC Atlant Moscow Oblast of the KHL in Russia, according to the New England Hockey Journal.

The NHL announced Wednesday that all preseason games through Sept. 30 have been canceled.

It's the clearest indication to date that the lockout could jeopardize the start of the regular season, which is scheduled to begin Oct. 11. What is for certain is that the Bruins will miss four preseason games: Tuesday's Sept. 25 opener at the Washington Capitals; Sept. 26 at the Buffalo Sabres; Sept. 29 vs. the Winnipeg Jets; Sept. 30 vs. the Jets.

The Bruins have three games scheduled for the following week, but they too could be eliminated if the lockout drags on.

Boston Bruins defenseman and former NHLPA player rep for the team Andrew Ference tweeted Wednesday that a lot of players traveled to New York City for NHLPA meetings.

"We have the whole team on the train down to NYC, even picked up an Oiler, Coyote, Penguin and Predator. #theplayers," Ference posted on Twitter early Wednesday afternoon.

The Bruins reportedly had the largest showing of any NHL team. Prior to heading to the Big Apple, winger Milan Lucic was excited that he and his teammates were showing their solidarity as the NHLPA and NHL tried to find a way to reach some sort of agreement or progress on a new collective bargaining agreement before Saturday's deadline.

"It's good that a lot of guys are going to find out where we're at as a union. We're going to have some long meetings tonight and tomorrow morning, and we're going to get more clarity of what to expect over the next few weeks," Lucic told CSNNE.com Wednesday. "With all of the players showing up, it shows that we're against the lockout and we want this game to grow and continue. It's no secret that the game has grown tremendously over the last few years and it's headed in a really good direction. [Union head] Don [Fehr] is very black and white with us, so we know exactly what's going on. The large attendance in New York City really shows our solidarity."

Unfortunately, early reports coming from the meetings between the NHLPA and NHL still pointed to a lockout, but both sides said they were reviewing the latest proposals made Wednesday.

(Editor's note: The seventh in our end-of-season report card series on the 2011-2012 Bruins.)

WASHINGTON -- It wouldn't be the Stanley Cup playoffs without the Boston Bruins playing a Game 7.

After a 4-3 overtime win in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series against the Washington Capitals, the Bruins will host Game 7 on Wednesday at TD Garden.

The atmosphere at the Garden should be rocking as usual. The players realize that even though this series has been tight, the Bruins have played some of their best playoff hockey on home ice.

A season ago they dismissed the Montreal Canadiens in Game 7 of the quarterfinals in Boston with a dramatic 4-3 win in overtime when Nathan Horton scored the game-winning goal.

Then in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning on May 27 in Boston, Horton did it again, scoring late in the game to give the Bruins a 1-0 win in probably the most exciting game witnessed in Boston in recent history. Both goaltenders, Boston's Tim Thomas and Tampa's Dwayne Roloson, were spectacular. Thomas made 24 saves for the shutout, while Roloson finished with 37 in a penalty-free game.

The Bruins' Game 7 dramatics did not end there.

After a crucial 5-2 win in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals against the Vancouver Canucks on Garden ice, Boston traveled to British Columbia and hoisted the Cup on hostile territory as the Bruins finished an historical season with a 4-0 victory.

Boston has a chance to advance to the semifinals this season if they can repeat that Game 7 magic at home against the Capitals on Wednesday.

"Obviously we have guys who are excited to play in those games," said Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference. "Obviously, I'm glad it's going back [to Boston] and it's been the type of series that's been so close that it deserves a Game 7. It's kind of fitting that either team has not given the other team too much in the way of leads, or being able to hold onto leads. It's been a good hockey series and a Game 7 is well deserved on both sides."

Even if many Bruins fans, and some "experts" (including this one) did not expect this series to go the distance, the players did.

"Oh, yeah," Ference said. "You always expect it and that's what you plan for. You plan for the hardest a team can play against you. It's not like anybody goes in thinking anything's going to be easy in the playoffs. There's been enough lessons around the league the last few years, especially this year. Every team has an equal chance once you get there and that's what you prepare for."

The Bruins felt a major sense of desperation on Sunday, especially with only 21 hours between the end of Game 5 on Saturday in Boston and puck drop on Game 6 here. It was simple, actually: Win and force a Game 7, or lose and officially end their title defense.

They won.

"We're a character group and we've been through this before and we know what it takes," said assistant captain Patrice Bergeron, who is playing with an undisclosed injury. "It's not over until you get that fourth win. Tonight was a huge effort. We played well and found a way to live another day. We need to be ready for Game 7."

Even Bruins coach Claude Julien said he expected this series to reach Game 7.

"It's fitting for us," said the coach. "I know that for a fact. I don't know that it was fitting for them before tonight's game. When you look at the way the series has been played, you're right; it's been a dogfight from start to finish.

"Late goals or overtime games -- I think it's three overtime games now. As they say, it is what it is, and I think both teams are heading into Game 7 with the same kind of confidence. They've beaten us twice in our building, and we've beaten them twice here [at Verizon Center]. For us, it's time to take advantage of that home ice that we've fought hard all year to get and we have to make it count."

Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas was incredible in each of the three Game 7s last spring, and in order for Boston to advance, he needs his best game of this series.

"That helped us as a group, knowing that it's not over," Thomas said of last season's heroics in the playoffs. "Maybe a less-experienced team would get down, 3-2, and think that it's too stacked against you. We know that there's the possibility of coming back, but we also know how hard it is to come back. The guys stepped up and the whole team was willing to do it tonight."

BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins held an optional skate on Thursday morning as they prepare to host the Buffalo Sabres at TD Garden.

Injured forwards Benoit Pouliot and Daniel Paille, who recently suffered undisclosed injuries, both participated in the optional skate. Defenseman Andrew Ference (lower-body injury) also skated. While Paille and Ference will not return against the Sabres, Pouliot is expected to be in the lineup.

“He looks good. He looks fine. He told us he was ready to go,” said Bruins coach Claude Julien.

Ference has missed the last three games, while Paille has missed two.

“They’re not ready and they’re not going to be in the lineup tonight,” Julien said. “We’re still monitoring them and obviously they looked pretty good out there today, so they’re still day-to-day. More positive than negative in their cases and it’s looking better every day.”

WILMINGTON, Mass. -- After spending a day doing charity work for the holidays and delivering toys to local hospitals, the Bruins were back on the ice for practice Wednesday at Ristuccia Arena in Wilmington preparing for Friday’s game against the Florida Panthers at TD Garden.

They were, however, minus two players. Andrew Ference missed the skate due to the flu and Rich Peverley received a maintenance day to nurse an undisclosed injury. Head coach Claude Julien said that Peverley will miss practice Thursday as well and the team will then reevaluate him on Friday to see if he can play against the Panthers.

“Ference is battling the famous flu bug and Peverley is maintenance and we’re having a good look here at our schedule and what it may do for him,” Julien said following practice. “We’re going to keep him off here the next couple of days and tomorrow is certainly one of those days and then we’ll decide whether he’s in or not on Friday and that will give him at least a good week. So we’re going to be making a decision on him regarding his situation.”

Julien is also hoping that the three days off this week and the Christmas break will help his entire team catch up on rest.

“Yesterday was a busy day with them going to the hospital and staying off the ice is good but today was a short 40-minute practice but intense and we just want to get through here the next 2-3 days and finish off on a high note and then they’ll get those days there at Christmas and give them the rest they need,” he said.

After the game Friday against Florida, the Bruins will not play again until December 28.

BOSTON -- The Bruins held their annual media day on Tuesday at TD Garden and one question that continued to come was how do they avoid the infamous “Stanley Cup hangover." While many players, coaches and front office employees were using the “turn the page” mantra, defenseman Andrew Ference wasn’t so sure that would be completely necessary for him and his teammates to have another successful season. As far as he sees it, there is no need to let the raising of the Stanley Cup banner Thursday night be an exclamation point and final chapter to what the team went through last season.

“No, not really,” Ference said, when asked if the banner being raised would be the final exclamation point on last season. “You don’t want to pretend last year didn’t happen because it happened. We learned a lot about ourselves and as a team. Lessons come from winning and losing. Like look at the Philly series where we weren’t afraid to talk about it. It sucked when we lost the year before but we didn’t pretend it didn’t happen. We learned a lot from it and it’s a similar thing to this where we learned a lot about ourselves. We don’t dwell on it and talk about it all the time but we definitely make the most positives out of it and how do you make yourself better from that situation. So as different as those two things are, I think you treat them in a similar way.”

If the Bruins do struggle out of the gate and the “Stanley Cup hangover” hits, Ference thinks the Bruins need to be open about it and address the issue, not shy away from it.

“Like I’ve said before, the worst thing you can do is not talk about things and not put things out there,” Ference said. “You know it is a real thing for some teams and I think issues like that are only worse if you try to pretend that they’re not a possibility. There’s obviously things that the coaches do even during camp to make sure that there’s the right amount of backing off, the right amount of pressure, the right amount of fun and all those things, there’s just a balance.

“I’m sure as we go through the year there will be winning streaks and losing streaks that will have to be dealt with. But we have a very open team where the management and the coaches feel very comfortable talking to the players. So when things do come up and there’s struggles through the year, there’s solutions. We’re always looking for solutions and not pretending problems don’t exist. So if it happens, it happens and it will be talked about and dealt with and it’s a good thing.”

For its current issue focused on Boston's sports success, ESPN The Magazine followed around some Bruins players, who take their local neighborhoods to heart. Among the players featured in the video above are Andrew Ference, who talks about living in the North End, Milan Lucic, who takes the Magazine to his barbershop, and Tim Thomas.

Also, check out this photo gallery, with shots of Ference, Lucic, Thomas, Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, Tyler Seguin and Shawn Thornton around the city.

Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference promised ESPNBoston.com earlier this summer that he was going to "one-up" everyone with his day with the Stanley Cup.

On Monday, he delivered as a flash mob broke out in the streets of the North End in Boston, concluding with Ference bringing the Cup into the crowd.

Ference also visited the Spaulding Hospital for rehabilitation, then paraded it through the North End.

Check it out below:

BOSTON -- Andrew Ference is a tattoo aficionado and doesn’t have much space left on his body to add to his collection. Every summer, Ference visits his personal tattoo artist, Scott Ford of Smiling Buddha Tattoos, and gets some more artwork done.

Ford happens to be a big Bruins fan and when Ference was traded to the Bruins, Ford told him that if he and the Bruins ever won the Stanley Cup, he would come out and tattoo every Bruin who wanted one.

That’s exactly what he was doing Sunday afternoon as the Bruins packed their bags for the summer and held their exit interviews with management and coaches.

“He’s always wanted to come here and do his thing, so he said if you guys ever win, I’ll come down and tat all you guys up. I’ve seen him every year since and he tells me the same thing every year,” Ference said. “So I sent him a quick email after we won and he got on a plane and here he is.”

Ference said his teammates were very receptive.

“I don’t know numbers-wise, but probably over half,” Ference said when asked how many players were taking Ford up on the offer. “Definitely different things, you know, some guys are just getting some writing, some guys are getting the [spoked-]B, the Cup and B combo or something like that. I think [Mark Recchi] is getting all of his done, all of his past Stanley Cups.”