page_title: Bruins–Canadiens rivalry
section_title: 2007–2010
hierarchical_section_title: Bruins–Canadiens rivalry / 21st century / 2007–2010
caption_attribution_description: English: BOSTON (March 3, 2007) - Capt. Todd A. Zecchin, commanding officer of USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67), drops the ceremonial puck at the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadians game at the TD Bank North Garden. Kennedy and her crew are in Boston for a five-day port visit to the home city of her namesake prior to decommissioning March 23rd, 2007, in Mayport, Fla. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Tommy Gilligan.
context_page_description: The Bruins–Canadiens rivalry is a National Hockey League rivalry between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens. It is considered "one of the greatest rivalries in sports." Retired Bruins forward Bob Sweeney, who played for the Bruins between 1986–87 and 1991–92, once called it among the "top three rivalries in all of sports, ... right up there with the... New York Yankees-Boston Red Sox." The two teams have played each other more times, in both regular season play and the Stanley Cup playoffs combined, than any other two teams in NHL history.
  Through the conclusion of the 2019–20 regular season, the Canadiens have won 469 games, with the Bruins winning 345 of them, with 103 games between the two teams ending in ties, and 10 other games between the two teams ending in shootouts. In the playoffs, the two teams have met in 34 series for a total of 177 games, 11 series, and 60 more games than two other Original Six teams, the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs. The two teams have faced each other nine times in Game 7 NHL playoff games, more than any other pair of opponents in NHL history.
context_section_description: On June 22, 2007, during the offseason, former Canadiens coach Claude Julien was named head coach of the Bruins. Despite the new hiring, the Canadiens, for the first time in many years, did better than the Bruins in the 2007–08 regular season, winning all match-ups between the two teams. During a regular season game between the two teams, Steve Begin, who would become a Bruin himself in the 2009–10 season, cross-checked centre Marc Savard from behind, resulting in a broken bone in Savard's back. The Canadiens met the Bruins in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, which Montreal won in seven games on a shutout by goaltender Carey Price in Game 7.
  The 2008–09 regular season, however, resulted in an almost complete reversal of the previous year's results for the two teams, as out of the six meetings of the Bruins and Canadiens the Bruins gained a total of 11 of 12 total points in those six games. The Bruins ended the regular season first in the Eastern Conference standings with 116 points, while Montreal made it into the 2009 playoffs with 93 points, the two teams meet for the 32nd time in their long history. Boston swept the series for first time since 1992 and for the first time in franchise history in the first round.
  In the 2009–10 season, the second game between the two teams was played at the Bell Centre on December 4, 2009, the very date of the Canadiens' 100th anniversary as a hockey team, which resulted in a 5–1 home victory for the Canadiens. The Canadiens won five of six games from the Bruins during the regular season.
  The Bruins finished the season seeded sixth in the Eastern Conference, while the Canadiens finished eighth. However, the two teams didn't meet in the playoffs. Although the Canadiens upset the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games, the Bruins blew a 3–0 series lead against the Philadelphia Flyers following a serious injury to key Bruin centre David Krejci in Game 3 of the series. Like in 1979, the Bruins lost because of a "too many men" penalty. Had the Bruins won their series, the two teams would have met in the Conference Finals.
caption: A ceremonial puck drop between Zdeno Chara and Saku Koivu before a Canadiens-Bruins game at the then-TD Banknorth Garden, March 2007
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