BOSTON -- For the first time since April 4, 2007, the Boston Bruins will play for someone other than Claude Julien when they host the San Jose Sharks Thursday night.
The game, coming two days after Julien was fired, starts a stretch of three home games in four nights that could have a great effect on whether the Bruins can end their run of two straight seasons out of the playoffs.
On Tuesday, while the New England Patriots were riding through the streets of Boston on duck boats after their Super Bowl win, the Bruins announced that Julien, who coached the team to the 2011 Stanley Cup, was being "relieved of his duties.