If there's one team the Montreal Canadiens continually love to see on their schedule in recent years it's the Boston Bruins.
The Canadiens (21-13-8) look for their eighth consecutive victory over the Bruins when the two teams square off at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston Thursday night (7:30 p.m., ET)
Canadiens forward Guillaume Latendresse, left, is congratulated by teammate Tom Kostopoulos after he netted the game-winning goal in overtime against the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday night.
(Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press)
Not only has Montreal defeated Boston four times this season, it has outscored the Bruins by a sizeable 19-8 advantage.
The Canadiens, who also beat the Bruins three times last season, are 19-4-0 against Boston, which extends back to the 2004 Stanley Cup playoffs.
In that series, Boston held a seemingly comfortable 3-1 series lead, but the Canadiens charged back to win three straight games and eliminate their foes.
Montreal won the series coached by Claude Julien, who just happens to be Boston's first-year bench boss.
Aside from the dominance of their Original Six rival, the Canadiens head into Thursday night contest with a 4-0-2 record in the last six games, including a 4-3 overtime win against the injury-depleted Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday.
Montreal forward Guillaume Latendresse sent Montreal on its way to victory after he scored in overtime with less than two minutes left.
"I think it was important for us to get the two points and get a goal like that," Latendresse said. "It was a great feeling. We had a lot of chances in the third period so it was fun to bury it at the end."
The Canadiens also boast one of the better offences in the league during their last six games, averaging 4.5 goals per contest. Tomas Plekanec has been Montreal's best offensive weapon, posting two goals and seven assists, while Andrei Kostisyn has scored five goals.
The Bruins (21-17-4) have won three of their last four games but are coming off a tough 1-0 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday. Goaltender Tim Thomas, who's dropped the last four games to Montreal, has a terrific 1.51 goals-against average during Boston's surge.
He made 27 saves against the Hurricanes, yet received no support from his teammates.
"Timmy did his part, we just didn't get that tying goal," Boston forward Peter Schaefer said.
The Bruins are 11-7-2 at home this season, but face a Canadiens side (13-6-3) that sports one of the best road records.
"[They're] one of those teams that we haven't beaten yet this year," Julien said. "Knowing that they are in our division, that they are four points ahead of us — it is a big game."
Boston is expected to see the return of defenceman Aaron Ward, who missed eight games after breaking his foot.
With files from the Associated Press
