ANAHEIM, Calif. — After the Bruins [team stats] lost in a disappointing manner in San Jose in the opener of their three-game California trip Thursday, things weren't looking so great, again, for this all-too-erratic team.
But what a difference one weekend in Southern Cal made.
The Bruins fly home this morning feeling mighty good about themselves, after earning their second tough and challenging victory in less than 24 hours by beating the Anaheim Ducks, 3-2, last night.
With Friday's comparable victory in Los Angeles, the B's finished 2-1-0 on this trip — and have now registered four solid wins in their last five games to open a five-point margin over Ottawa for the Northeast Division lead, and four points over Florida in the race for the No. 2 seed in the East.
"We still feel we've got some work to do, just because we've been struggling the last couple of months," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "We're slowly turning the corner here. But we don't get comfortable, that's a strength of our team. When we don't get comfortable, we go out and work every night and try to prove ourselves. That approach seems to be coming back.
"I guess we'll find out when we get home, because that'll be another big test for us after flying all day (today)."
With Marty Turco in goal for just his second start as a Bruin — his first appearance since his disastrous game in Tampa two weeks ago — the Bruins clamped down and played a strong defensive game against a dangerous team that had beaten St. Louis and San Jose in its previous two games.
"When I first got here, this team wasn't firing on all cylinders," Turco, who stopped 25 shots, said. "(Now) they're playing like they can, imposing their will. Team defense makes this team tick, and this team defense comes with attitude. It's a real treat to have these guys out there."
The B's backed Turco with goals from Zdeno Chara (No. 12), Benoit Pouliot (13) and Brian Rolston (seven), with Chris Kelly picking up two assists. The reborn Rolston has 3-8-11 totals during his current six-game scoring streak.
The B's quite rightly caught a break when an apparent game-tying goal on a shot from the slot by Duck Matt Beleskey early in the third was disallowed because Andrew Cogliano was in the crease, crowding Turco.
"He's right in the middle of the crease and he's impeding our goaltender's ability to move up on that shot," Julien said. "It was the right call. It doesn't matter what they say about it; that's the rules."
Rich Peverley returned to the lineup after missing 19 games with a sprained knee. He skated at right wing on a line with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand.
The Bruins took command of the game with the Chara and Pouliot goals just 1:22 apart early in the second. At 4:37, Chara simply flicked the puck from the left point toward the Anaheim net. The puck was deflected twice en route by Ducks — Ryan Getzlaf high and Francois Beauchemin closer to the net — and slipped through the legs of Hiller.
Then at 5:59, Pouliot took Kelly's feed in the left circle and ripped a shot past Hiller to the far side, making it 2-0.
The Ducks got a power-play score on a deft deflection by ageless star Teemu Selanne to make it 2-1.
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