Faneuil Hall at Night (bostonchamber.com)

"She said I think I'll go to Boston...
I think I'll start a new life,
I think I'll start it over,
where no one knows my name,
I'll get out of California,
I'm tired of the weather,
I think I'll get a (new friend)
and fly 'em out to Spain...
I think I'll go to Boston,
I think that I'm just tired
I think I need a new town,
to leave this all behind...
I think I need a sunrise,
I'm tired of the sunset,
I hear it's nice in the summer,
some snow would be nice... oh yeah"
Augustana, Boston
---

John Bishop is the beat writer for BostonBruins.com. He covers the Black & Gold hoping to offer a positive look at the team, not only from the stands and the press box, but also from inside the locker room. A graduate of Boston U. and Northeastern, 'Bish' grew up in Connecticut and moved to the Hub of Hockey in 1993. Since then he has made all four rinks at the Beanpot schools, as well as both Gardens, his icebound homes away from home. Prior to joining the TD Banknorth Garden staff in 2005, Bishop had written for several publications, with his primary focus being college hockey. He coauthored the book Bygone Boston in 2003 and hopes someday to pen a bio of Hobey Baker.

Can't get the above song out of my head -- it just has more relevance for me now.

In any case, the team is feeling pretty good about being home and even better about having a winning record. That being said, there was not much to report from Wilmington today, as Head Coach Claude Julien kept all but a few of the Bruins off the ice.

Those participating on-ice, were:

Manny Fernandez
Bobby Allen
Brandon Bochenski
Shawn Thornton
Milan Lucic
Mark Stuart
David Krejci
Jeremy Reich

Manny took shots from everywhere, in every conceivable way -- with screens, without screens, wristers, breakaways, slap shots, etc. Everyone on the ice worked hard, Fernandez most especially.

Inside the Bruins training facility, the rest of the club was doing off-ice workouts with strength and conditioning guru, John Whitesides.

"It's certainly not a reward," said Julien about today's unusual activities. "It was something we had planned (because) I think when you come back at 9:30-10:00 a.m. it's not really a day off.

"The guys (internal) clocks are off right now and I thought the best way to go would be to have a good off-ice workout, and get a good sweat going.

"And then we have two full days of good practice and a morning skate to get us ready for another three (games) in five (days)."

The Bruins have three BIG games in five days -- all three are with Eastern Conference rivals, and one is a Northeast Division rival. First up is the Lightning on Thursday in the home opener. Then, Chris Drury et al take the express from MSG to North Station and, of course, there is Monday at Montreal.

Undaunted, the Bruins are ready for all comers.

"We did accomplish a few things," said Julien of the road trip. "But I think that the most important thing is knowing that there is still work ahead of us and (knowing) that if you want to succeed in this league you have to keep getting better as the season moves on.

"The good teams are going to get better, and we want to be one of those."

Boston's Paul Revere: Work Ethic Personified (MFA) Folks, it's really good to be home. JB

What's the bottom line, coach?

"You know, we knew it was going to be a tough trip and anytime you can come back with a winning record off a road trip like that, I think it has to be considered a successful one," he said.

Coach said that establishing a clear work ethic is important, and translates onto the ice.

"I think that today was probably a real good example of that," he said. "I think our guys worked really hard in the off-ice workout.

"It was nice to see that we didn't have to push them and that -- right then and there -- shows that they are in the right frame of mind.

"Our team is slowly catching on to the work ethic that needs to happen on a daily basis in order to succeed…it has to become second nature," said Julien.