Here's an idea for the Bruins: Play a hockey game that's only 60 minutes long.

Hard to do? The B's have played two of them in the last nine. They have played three straight that have gone to shootouts, winning two, and have gone extra time in five of the last six.

After losing to New Jersey in a shootout Friday, they beat Ottawa in another shootout Saturday, thus taking over first place in the Northeast Division.

Eleven of Boston's 26 games this season have gone into extra time, nine of them to shootouts. This current run of seven of the last nine games started with a 1-0 shootout loss to Florida. The B's have gone 4-0-3 in those seven extra-time games.

The win Saturday night came in the second game of a stretch that calls for the Bruins to play five of six at home. Tampa Bay comes in Wednesday before the B's visit Montreal Friday night.

Saturday night's game also featured the return of goalie Tim Thomas, who had missed six straight games because of a minor injury, believed to be a hand problem.

BRUINS 4, SENATORS 3 (SO): Tim Thomas was rusty in his first game since Nov. 14, rusty enough to give up a goal on the first shot he saw, two on the first four, and then a soft goal in the closing seconds that gave Ottawa a point.

Then, after the overtime period, last year's Vezina Trophy winner was 4-for-4 in the shootout and notched his first victory since Nov. 10.

"I cost us the point. I felt terrible," Thomas said after the game. "I let the team down big time. I feel like they deserved the win with the effort that they put throughout the game. They deserved to win outright. So at the time, it's one of the worst feelings I've had in like four years here with the Bruins."

The Bruins, who battled back from a 2-0 deficit, got power play goals from David Krejci, Michael Ryder and Dennis Wideman, and it was Ryder, in the fourth round, scoring the only goal of the shootout.

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