Done Deal?

RDS.ca reports that Alexander Ovechkin has agreed to a $54 million extension that would keep him in Washington through 2014.

Damn.

It has yet to be confirmed, but it does look like the Caps made him an offer they couldn't refuse, and thus Alexander the Great won't become a Hab until his late 20s.

The good news is, the Canadiens have a great nucleus in place and are widely considered one of the most promising franchises in the NHL. The only question mark is up the middle, where a lack of centres does not bode well for the future. Other than that, things look great in goal, on defence and on the wings.

This year's NHL draft is deep, as is the next one. Here's hoping the Habs address the team's question marks at centre and make a splash.

Onto the here and now.

The Canadiens are in Boston, where they have absolutely owned the Bruins for the last few years. The current streak between the rivals stands at seven consecutive wins for the Habs. They are very comfortable against Boston and seem to do a great job at getting under Zdeno Chara's skin. When Chara is off his game, the Bruins have a very tough time competing.

The Bruins also have five regulars out of the lineup: Glen Murray, Patrice Bergeron and a couple of less significant guys will not be out there tonight.

The Habs scratched Tom Kostopoulos. I don't get it. Tom the Bomb had one of his best games as a Hab against the Blackhawks the other night and his reward is a night in the pressbox. It's hard to know what's going on behind the scenes but I just don't like this move.

Francis Bouillon and Josh Gorges were awful the other night. Turnovers, miscues and bad decisions. Patrice Brisebois' shortcomings are far less evident when he's paired with Roman Hamrlik, but the same can't be said for Gorges and Bouillon. Anyone have a nickname suggestion for that defensive pairing?

Carey Price is in Hamilton and reportedly looked good in his first start last night. Good to see the kid getting some shots and hopefully progressing more than he would watching the Habs from the bench.

Should be a good one tonight, hopefully the bad blood between the teams doesn't produce any injuries.