Injuries impeded the Bruins power forward for much of this season

It has been one of those years for Milan Lucic. Starting off the 2009-10 season with a new three-year contract extension worth $12.25 million in tow, the Bruins prototypical power forward wanted to prove his worth to teammates, management and fans in Boston. But, through his first six games he had just three assists, and then a broken finger sent him to the press box for a month.

Upon his return, he tallied twice in four games, including a game-winning goal at St. Louis, and then suffered a high-ankle sprain Nov. 25 that sidelined him until Jan. 7. He wasn't the same rough-and-tumble winger that teammates, coaches and fans learned to appreciate during his first two seasons in the NHL.

"I wasn't able to do what I usually do. I was a step behind, everything was bouncing off my stick. The first 15 games back I was a minus-11 and everything seemed to be going wrong for me," Lucic said after the Bruins 4-0 victory in Atlanta that gave the Bruins a three-point cushion over its closest rival for the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot with 10 games to go in the regular season.

"I was a foot behind, my hands weren't there, my legs weren't there and I couldn't body check the way I'm used to. I was getting knocked off the puck and getting shoved around and that's the most frustrating part to go through. Mentally, it takes a toll on you. You start second-guessing yourself," Lucic admitted.

The Thrashers are trying to write a better ending this season

With 10 games left in the National Hockey League regular season, the inexplicable is occurring right before our very eyes as it concerns the Atlanta Thrashers. Spurned by soon-to-be unrestricted free agent Ilya Kovalchuk and two seasons earlier by Marian Hossa, the Thrashers are now just one point out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference thanks to their two-game weekend sweep of the sixth-place Philadelphia Flyers.

Left for dead after losing a six-game losing streak, head coach John Anderson’s squad has pieced together four straight wins heading into Tuesday night’s game against the 8th-place Boston Bruins. The B’s, winners of a Sunday matinee over the New York Rangers, 2-1, will invade Philips Arena with a one-point advantage over Atlanta and a game–in-hand.

While the Bruins have won just two home games since the Jan. 1 Winter Classic at Fenway Park, their road record is actually better than their record at TD Banknorth Garden. The Bruins are 7-3-1 in their last 11 road contests, while the streaky Thrashers reeled off three straight home wins over Buffalo, Ottawa and Philadelphia this past week after going 0-3-1 at home in the four previous tilts. The Bruins have won this season’s three previous meetings and nine straight games in the series. it will be interesting to see how the Thrashers and their fans respond to the challenge Tuesday night.

The Ottawa Senators, currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, lost their second consecutive game at Philips Arena in the span of two months surrendering six goals in each loss. In fact, the Sens have allowed six goals in three straight in Atlanta. The Senators are in the midst of a four-game skid and are just 1-6-1 since the resumption of the NHL schedule after the Olympic break.

I spoke briefly with Andy Sutton, a former Thrashers defenseman who was acquired at the trade deadline by Ottawa from the New York Islanders, who said he almost feels like "a jinx" for his new team. In his last 20 games with the Isles and the Sens, Sutton's teams are 4-15-1.

Of course, the presence of one 6-foot-6 defenseman doesn't alone cause a four-game skid, although Sutton was whistled for elbowing Eric Boulton early in the third period, which seemed to energize the Thrashers. Atlanta's Nik Antropov scored a power-play goal as Sutton sat in the box, which gave the Thrashers the lead 4-3.

Sutton has played in just four playoff games in his NHL career and endured a 432-game stretch before stepping onto the ice for his first playoff game with the Thrashers in 2007 against the Rangers. While that might seem like an eternity, there are others with little or no postseason experience whose streaks could come to an end this playoff season.

It was impossible not to notice the tallest player on the ice and it wasn't just because of his height. Unlike some young, gangly NHL defensemen, who look more like a newborn thoroughbred trying to stand for the first time than a hockey player, the tall drink of water wearing No. 57 skated fluidly and handled the puck like a 5-foot-8 center. A mere 45 days ago he turned 20 years of age.

Tyler Myers, the Buffalo Sabres 6-foot-8 rookie defenseman, has drawn rave reviews from nearly all who have watched him play, even before the regular season began.

Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff said Myers was turning heads early on.

"You talk to other coaches, and the first player they ask about is, 'Is that Myers kid going to make the team?"' Ruff said prior to the season. "That is something special when a player isn't on your team and you've got other teams or coaches asking about him. He has been noticed."

Myers, the 12th overall pick in the first round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, is a novelty in Buffalo, and it's not because of his size.

Atlanta

Atlanta picked up just one point in five games since Sun. March 7, and four of those games were at home. The Thrashers have three more home games this week against Buffalo, Ottawa and Philadelphia.

Carolina

Carolina added five points to their total since Sun. March 7 and host Boston, Washington and Buffalo this week, and travel to Pittsburgh Sat. night. The Canes are just two points behind Florida, three points behind Atlanta and four points behind Tampa Bay.

Florida

The resilient Panthers won two of three during their recent road trip, one in a SO at Minnesota and an OT win at San Jose, and return home for four straight home games against Washington, Phoenix, Buffalo and Tampa Bay.

Nashville

One bad period at San Jose cost the Predators a four-game sweep of their road trip, but Nashville picked up six out of a possible eight points during their four-game road trip. The seventh-place Preds, who lead Detroit by three points and Calgary by four points, host Philadelphia, Minnesota and Columbus before traveling to St. Louis next Sunday. Rookies Colin Wilson and Patric Hornqvist had three goals apiece on the trip.

Tampa Bay

Tampa Bay picked up three points out a possible eight in their past four games. The Lightning host Phoenix, Buffalo and Washington before a cross-state meeting with Florida Sunday.

Washington

The Caps scored four goals after falling behind 3-0 to Chicago yesterday and now lead the President's Trophy race by five points over San Jose. The Caps added five points to their league leading point total last week. Washington travels to Florida, Carolina and Tampa Bay this week.

For a look at the conference standings, click here.

Blueshirts hope recent experiences lead to another playoff appearance

"If I had ever been here before, I would probably know just what to do" Deja Vu, written by David Crosby

The New York Rangers are on the outside looking in - again. For the fourth straight season, the Blueshirts are battling for a playoff spot, no easy task considering that since general manager Glen Sather took over a decade ago, his team has never finished higher than third in the ruggedly competitive Atlantic Division. The Rangers, however, seem to play their best hockey when their collective backs are against the wall.

After Friday's 4-2 victory at Philips Arena over the fading Atlanta Thrashers, the Rangers ran their collective March-April record during the past four seasons to 34-14-13, and crept to within three points of the Eastern Conference's 8th-place Boston Bruins. Despite four straight losses coming into the game, the Rangers have now earned six points in six contests since the resumption of the NHL's post-Olympic schedule. While it's hardly time to prepare the "Canyon of Heroes" for a ticker-tape parade for John Tortorella's club, the Rangers' recent experiences could pay dividends over the final 14 games of the regular season.

"It was as close to a must win as you can get," said Rangers forward Ryan Callahan after the win. "You could feel that a little bit before the game and the guys went out there and did their best."