For the 2010 to 2011 season, justSports has been given a press pass to attend Boston Bruins home games. We will cover these games periodically throughout the year.Bruins right wing Michael Ryder entered last Saturday's game against the Atlanta Thrashers having not scored a goal in his last 12 games. However, Ryder broke his scoreless streak with a successful penalty shot with 7 minutes, 29 seconds remaining in the third period to give the Bruins a 3-2 win and a division crown.

"I knew if I could score, it would get the team going," Ryder said. "We have a few games left, and we're hoping we can move up even further."

The win allowed the Bruins-who lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in a shoot-out last Thursday and defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 3-0 last Tuesday to clinch the Northeast Division title. With the win over the Thrashers, the Bruins are now 44-23-11 and can finish no worse than the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference. "[The division is] what a lot of teams battle for," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "I'm just glad that's out of the way. We've got to keep winning games and see where we end up."

Ryder was awarded a penalty shot after being tripped by Thrashers defenseman Johnny Oduya while he was on a breakaway. Ryder put the penalty above Thrashers goalie Ondrej Pavelec's left shoulder, giving Ryder his 18th goal of the season and the Bruins a one-goal advantage they would keep for the rest of the game.

"It's nice to see him score that goal," Julien said. "It's a step in the right direction. When he starts getting his confidence out there and allowing things to happen and not thinking about things, he's going to be a good player again."

The Bruins were on the attack from the start of the game and struck first when right wing Mark Recchi scored 4:34 into the game. Bruins center Brad Marchand backhanded the puck past Pavelec, leaving Recchi an open net to score on. However, with 8:49 left in the first period, the Thrashers answered back to tie the game with a power-play goal from Thrashers defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, who scored after Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask could not secure a slap shot by Atlanta defender Zach Bogosian.

The Thrashers took a 2-1 lead 1:37 into the start of the second period on a goal from left wing Evander Kane. Bruins left wing Milan Lucic blocked a shot, which also caused Rask to go down to the ice to save the shot. The puck rebounded right in front of the net, where Kane was able to get it past the reach of Rask for his 19th goal of the season.

Bruins defenseman Daniel Paille drew Boston level just minutes later on a shorthanded goal, and the game remained tied until Ryder's goal clinched the win for the Bruins.

Prior to the game, Marchand was awarded the Seventh Player Award, which is voted on by Bruins fans on

NESN.com to the player who best exceeds expectations. Marchand, a rookie who has 21 goals and 20 assists, will receive $5,000 to donate to the charity of his choice.

"It was a question mark if I was even going to be on the team this year,'' Marchand said. "It's an honor to win that award; it's special.''

Against the Maple Leafs last Thursday, the Bruins lost 4-3 in shoot-outs. At 7:06 in the first period, Leafs defenseman Luke Schenn crossed a pass through the middle of the crease. Bruins defenseman Tomas Kaberle sprinted to the puck in a bid to break up the pass, but instead he deflected it into his own net. Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas' shutout was snapped at 122 minutes.

In the second period, the Bruins got off to a hot start, scoring on a shorthanded goal. Marchand stole a lazy Toronto pass in the neutral zone, broke to the net and deked to his left, causing Leafs goaltender James Reimer to lunge for the puck. Marchand then brought the puck to his right and easily backhanded the puck into the net.

One minute later, Lucic moved to the left of the net and passed the puck in front of the net to center David Krejci, who flipped the puck into the right side of the net, giving the Bruins a 2-1 lead. The lead wouldn't last long though, as Toronto left wing Joffrey Lupul added a shorthanded goal of his own a few minutes later. Just 1:25 later, defenseman Andrew Ference reclaimed the lead for Boston.

At 7:53 in the third, Lupul snapped the puck past Thomas to tie the game at 3-3, precipitating overtime.

During overtime, a controversial penalty shot was awarded to the Maple Leafs, but center Mikhail Grabovski was denied at the low right side of the net by Thomas. Thomas' save prompted loud chants of "U.S.A., U.S.A., U.S.A.." Neither team converted on multiple opportunities. This lead to shoot-outs, which the Leafs handled without much drama.

To open up the week, the Bruins squared off against the defending-champion Blackhawks. Due to flawless goaltending by Thomas and an offense outburst in the last two periods, Boston blanked the Blackhawks 3-0.

"We played well and brought our best," Thomas said. "Our players were in the right places position-wide, and we battled through until we were able to break out [with the goals]."

The first period, a defensive battle, ended in a 0-0 stalemate. The goalies for both teams were impenetrable in the crease, especially Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford, who saved 12 Bruins shots. At the start of the second period, Bruins left wing Shawn Thornton took a skate to the face, causing a massive gash that required more than 40 stitches. The scene caused several fights in the next few minutes and seemed to wake up the Bruins.

Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara finally broke through at 12:02 in the period with a slicing goal-his 14th of the season lead. Centers Patrice Bergeron and Marchand came up with the assists. Defenseman Johnny Boychuk soon followed with a well-placed shot past Crawford, increasing Boston's lead to 2-0. Lucic and Recchi each earned assists. With the assist, Recchi earned his 1532nd point, passing defenseman Paul Coffey for the 12th-most points all time.

The Bruins' offensive onslaught continued into the third period. At 5:20, right wing Nathan Horton tapped in the puck past Crawford's weak side. Paille and center Gregory Campbell each came up with the assists.

The Bruins' next game takes place tomorrow night at home against the New York Islanders. They will then face the Ottawa Senators Saturday night in Boston and will conclude the regular season Sunday on the road against the New Jersey Devils.