Todd Bertuzzi is tied for league lead in penalty minutes, as well as having the most fights of any player at this point in the season. Willie Mitchell leads all defencemen in penalty minutes; Keith Tkachuk is also in the top 10. But it doesn't stop there, The team currently has 11 players on pace for near 100 plus pm’s each.
Things went a bit farther tonight in the Bruins 4-1 victory over conference rivals Atlanta. At 17.17 of the 3rd period Keith Tkachuk caught Robert Lang with his head down and levelled him with a thunderous hit, the sound of the crunch reverberated throughout the arena. Unfortunatly the ref, Don Donuts Koharski also heard the hit, 2 full zones away from the walrus like official. All Don saw was Lang writhing on the ice in pain, grasping his elbow. He gave Tkachuk a 2-minute boarding penalty and a 10-minute misconduct for making to much noise. Robert Lang was injured on the play, his elbow breaking his fall to the ice. It is expected he will miss a week to 10 days.
After the game it was announced that Tkachuk has been suspended for 3 games. That left the Bruins in a troublesome spot with only 3 regular left wingers on the roster. It was soon announced that last seasons unsung hero Michal Handzus had volunteered to move over to left wing to fill in. Coach Dave King was ecstatic. “Handzus is the type of player who you win with. He could have been down in the dumps after we acquired Vinnie, but he simply kept playing his strong game. It time to reward him, I am going to slot him onto the 1st line, he can play with 2 of the most dynamic players in the league, Vinnie Lecavilier and Martin St Louis.” King explained.