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MONTREAL -- Coach Michel Therrien calls Francis Bouillon a success story, and he would know. Jake Rudock Lions Jersey . Therrien was Bouillons coach in junior hockey when they won the Memorial Cup with the Granby Predateurs and was coaching him again when the stocky Montreal Canadiens defenceman celebrated his 38th birthday on Thursday. "Time goes fast," said Therrien. "But when you look at success stories, heres a guy who was never drafted, he played in the ECHL, he played as a 20-year-old in the Quebec league when we won the Memorial Cup together. "Hes had such a great career." Bouillon, the Canadiens oldest player, beat the odds by making it to the NHL as a five-foot-eight defenceman and beat them again by carving out a long career. His playing days looked to be finished when Montreal cut him (and his $1.8 million salary) loose in 2009, but he went to the Nashville Predators camp on a try-out and made the team. Then he played well enough for the Preds to offer him a two-year extension. He looked to be headed for retirement again in 2012, but then the Canadiens hired Therrien back as head coach and Bouillon got a one-year contract. Now hes on another one-year US$1.5 million deal. "Today, its important to have good contacts," said Bouillon. "When Michel got hired last year and I got the call from him to sign here, I was really happy about that. "Today, you need to have good relationships with people. I had it with Michel in the past, and to have a chance to play for him again is a pleasure." His job this season is partly to play and partly to be the on-ice mentor to gifted rookies Jarred Tinordi and Nathan Beaulieu. The Canadiens have three injured veterans on the back end -- Alexei Emelin, Douglas Murray and Davis Drewiske -- so the youngsters have been taking turns in the lineup, mostly on the third pairing with Bouillon. "As a defenceman, its always nice to have one partner for the whole season, but for me, its been maybe three years, since I was in Nashville, that I played with a few different guys," he said. "Here I play with Tinordi or Beaulieu. Theyre both playing really good. Theyre young but they play with a lot of confidence." The job entails playing on the right side, which has been an adjustment for the left-shooting Bouillon. "The hardest part has got to be your vision when you get a puck," he said. "On the strong side, I know whats coming on the other side. Playing on the right is a bit different, but now Ive played a few games there and its getting better." Bouillon has never been a flashy player. His best season was 2005-06 when he had three goals and 19 assists. But he moves the puck well, plays on the second power play unit and is very strong for his size. He doesnt fight much, but he doesnt shy away from physical play either. Defenceman Josh Gorges said the Canadiens lost a warrior when they let Bouillon get away, and he was glad to see him return. "When I first came here (in 2006), he was one of the guys I really looked up to and who really helped me get settled in," said Gorges. "People counted him out early in his career, in the middle of his career and late in his career, and hes still there playing at a high level. "Thats a testament to his work ethic and his demeanour as a person." After going undrafted, Bouillon played a season for the Wheeling Nailers in the ECHL before moving up to the AHL with the Quebec Citadelles after Montreal signed him as a free agent in 1997. Two seasons later, he was in the NHL. He was born in New York City and moved to Montreal when he was three, but retains his U.S. citizenship. He even played for the Americans at the 2003 IIHF world championship. Whether Bouillon is back next season is to be determined. When Emelin returns, likely in late November or early December, and when Murray is healed in a few weeks, spots in the starting lineup may be scarce. And the rookies he is working with may soon be ready for full-time NHL action. "I take it year by year," he said. "I dont want to think long-term. If Im healthy and Ive still got a passion to play hockey, Ill be there again next year. "For me, being 38 doesnt matter. I feel pretty good." Larry Warford Lions Jersey . -- Arizona raced out to a big lead and did not back off, hitting the accelerator instead. Rafael Bush Lions Jersey . -- Stanford squashed Oregons national championship hopes again, schooling the Ducks in power football. http:///...tigrew-Elite-Jersey/ . Didier Drogba gave away the penalty that put Senegal one goal away from a major upset, but the veteran striker will get another chance -- probably his last -- at the World Cup after Salomon Kalous injury-time strike sealed the Ivorians place in Brazil next year.PHILADELPHIA -- From snipers to defencemen, the Boston Bruins are getting plenty of scoring. Jarome Iginla and Zdeno Chara each had two goals, Tuukka Rask made 25 saves and the Bruins beat the Philadelphia Flyers 6-1 Saturday. Reilly Smith and Patrice Bergeron also had goals for the Bruins. The defending Eastern Conference champions are 3-0-1 since losing five of eight, and trail only Pittsburgh in the conference. "The more you can spread around the scoring, the tougher you are to defend," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "Its important to have. We like the fact that we are well-balanced and our scoring is spread around." Chara became the eighth Bruins player to reach double-digits in goals when he scored in the first period to make it 1-0. He also capped the scoring with another power-play goal. "I think its important we have a lot of contributions," Iginla said. "When you get in tight games, we feel we have a lot of guys who can find goals. You want a lot of different guys who can score and a lot of guys are feeling it." Claude Giroux scored a power-play goal for the slumping Flyers, whove lost four in a row. Theyre 2-5-2 in their last nine games, tumbling from second place in the division to eighth in the East. Its their worst stretch since a 1-7 start that saw coach Peter Laviolette fired three games into the season. "We need to be a consistent team and thats what we strive to be," coach Craig Berube said. "If you want to be a good team, a playoff team, a team that does something in the playoffs, you have to be consistent. You lose a few games and youre fragile. Thats what I see. But we can correct that and go in the right direction. Were a goood team. Tahir Whitehead Lions Jersey. Its a confidence thing for us." Steve Mason allowed four goals on 19 shots and was yanked for the second time in three starts since signing a contract extension last Saturday. The Bruins took a 1-0 lead on Charas first power-play goal in the first period. After Sean Couturier failed on a clearing attempt, David Krejci swung the puck around down low. Iginla passed it to Chara, who flipped a shot from a side angle that bounced off defenceman Braydon Coburns skate and went in. Iginla fired a slap shot from the right circle past Mason to make it 2-0 just 17 seconds before the first intermission. A turnover by defenceman Nicklas Grossmann led to Bostons third goal. Smith stepped around Grossmann and swiped at the puck, which hit the post, hit Mason and went in. "Teams cant just rely on shutting down one line when you have a lot of guys scoring," Smith said. "It stifles the defence and changes the game." Rask kept it 3-0 with his toughest save, a sliding glove stab going right to left to rob Jakub Voracek on a one-timer. Bergeron made it 4-0 minutes later, sending Mason to the bench. Giroux and Iginla traded power-play goals in the third. "We have to get better," Giroux said. "Were going away from how we want to be as a team and how we were winning games." NOTES: Rask earned his career-high 23rd win. ... Iginlas first goal was his first since Jan. 2, snapping an eight-game drought. ... Flyers D Andrej Meszaros was a healthy scratch despite his recent offensive production. RW Steve Downie also was benched. ... The Bruins are 43-35-12 in Philadelphia. Theyre the only team with a winning record on the road vs. the Flyers. Cheap NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys Cheap Soccer Jerseys' ' '