[ Game summary ]

By Nancy Marrapese-Burrell, Globe Staff, 3/9/2002

TLANTA - The monkey is off their backs. The grand piano has been lifted. The Bruins can now breathe a sigh of relief.

Of paramount importance in the events of last night, they ended their winless streak at five games and losing streak at four with a 3-0 victory against the Thrashers at Philips Arena. Secondly, they regained the top spot in the Northeast Division, leapfrogging idle Toronto.

The Bruins picked up their first win since Feb. 12 in Vancouver, which led into the Olympic break, and their hard times.

Goaltender Byron Dafoe earned his 26th career shutout and fourth of the year, his first since Jan. 10 against the Los Angeles Kings.

At the morning skate, Dafoe acknowledged there was a certain level of tension in the dressing room given the team's post-Olympic break skid. It was a mood that could only change by the Bruins turning their fortunes around. It wasn't helped by the fact their No. 1 center Joe Thornton - who was coming off a three-game suspension - was sidelined by a shoulder injury suffered at practice Thursday. The Bruins were also missing Martin Lapointe because of a nagging hamstring injury.

It took a while for the Bruins to get it going but it happened.

In the scoreless first period, Boston outshot the Thrashers, 11-5, but goalie Pasi Nurminen was sharp. Among Boston's best chances: a flurry when defenseman-turned-forward Jamie Rivers was peppering the netminder. Nurminen made a stick save on one of Rivers's shots and stopped another while sitting in the crease.

Dafoe didn't have a lot of work but he was tested during an impressive rush by rookie Ilya Kovalchuk, who was racing up the left side. Kovalchuk made a nice deke over the blue line and dished a pass to fellow rookie Dany Heatley, whose point-blank shot was kicked out.

Boston had a good opportunity in the final minute when Bill Guerin blasted a shot from the slot with 45.3 seconds remaining but Nurminen was there.

The Bruins broke through in the middle period after their first goal was disallowed.

At 6:55, Brian Rolston teed up a slapper from the left point. The shot hit defenseman Yannick Tremblay's stick and popped into the air. Rob Zamuner was jockeying for position in front of the net with Daniel Tjarnqvist with their sticks high in the air. The puck struck Zamuner's blade and rolled into the net. It was ruled no goal because of the high stick and it was back to square one.

A few minutes later, though, the Bruins tallied one that stuck after a terrific effort by the newest Bruin - Marty McInnis.

McInnis and defenseman Jiri Slegr were in a race for a loose puck that was rolling into the Atlanta zone. McInnis got to it and wrestled with Slegr into the left circle. McInnis managed to retain control of the puck and from his knees, spun around and, as he was falling, managed to put a forehand shot on net that eluded Nurminen at 10:43. It was 1-0 for real this time.

Only 35 seconds later, the Bruins struck again. Sergei Samsonov skated through the right circle and made a move on Slegr that caused the defenseman to fall. Samsonov then dished a pass across the slot to Glen Murray, who swept it past Nurminen at 11:18. It was Murray's 29th goal of the season and first in five games.

The Bruins had plenty of chances to add more in third with odd-man rush after odd-man rush as the Thrashers opened it up. Nurminen held them at bay but a Thrashers' power play resulted in a shorthanded goal. P.J. Axelsson knocked in the rebound of a Rolston breakaway to seal the win.

This story ran on page G1 of the Boston Globe on 3/9/2002.
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