"Yeah, there's a smile on everyone's faces these days," said Marc Savard, who ripped home the third goal when he walked into a Phil Kessel rebound and fired a net-seeking one-timer into a wide-open left side. "But at the same time, we're trying to stay on an even keel."
The Bruins scored five times the previous Saturday with Dallas in town, in the season's most rough-and-tumble 60 minutes. They piled another five spot Thursday when the Maple Leafs came to Causeway. Dennis Wideman, Chuck Kobasew, and Savard provided the pop against the Sabres, and the goal haul could have been higher if not for the sharp work of Ryan Miller (37 saves, 16 of them in the final period) in the Sabres' net.
In his season-plus here in the Hub of Hockey, coach Claude Julien acknowledged that in the past three games the Bruins have executed their best since his arrival.
"I think so, and I hope so," he said, after watching his squad click for 13 goals in three games. "When you try to do something with a team, you hope it progresses. I think the guys are understanding it more and more. Last year was about establishing an identity and setting a goal of getting into the playoffs. And to get better this year, you have to be more consistent and dominant in all areas."
The Sabres connected for the night's first goal at 10:16 of the first period, center Tim Connolly popping in a short-range wrister. He had traded passes with linemate Jason Pominville, who hurriedly joined the rush after being pasted into the end boards by one of Milan Lucic's many heavy hits. Connolly sniped one high into the net from the right circle, with Manny Fernandez too far back in the net to be able to cut down the shot.
"I thought it was a sluggish start," said Julien. "Our passes weren't crisp. It seemed like we struggled in our own end . . . our defensemen weren't crisp with their passes."
