Fight Cub (Feb. 22, 2009)

After 21 days and eight full games without a fight, the Bruins (finally) dropped the gloves Sunday night in Tampa, producing not one, but two scraps in a 4-3 loss to the Lightning.

It was only the fifth multi-fight game of the year for the Bruins as Shawn Thornton mixed it up with David Koci midway through the first period before Mark Stuart tangled with Gary Roberts later in the same stanza.

The Bruins were left beating themselves up after some costly penalties allowed the Lightning to skate away with the win on a power-play goal late in the third period.

But who won the fights? We break down the jousts and you vote at the end. As always, your comments are welcome.

Fight 1: Thornton vs. Koci

Tale of the Tape

Thornton vs. Koci (AP)

The expert’s take

• Fluto Shinzawa, Boston Globe: Shawn Thornton takes on David Koci. Thornton connects with a left hand before Koci pushes him down. First fight for the Bruins in nine games.

The not-so expert’s take

• Chris Forsberg, Boston.com: We waited three weeks for this!? Thornton demonstrates the rust by barely shaking his gloves and pads free before tumbling to the ice. Hard to even call this a fight, but we’ll give Koci credit for mixing it up with anyone dressed in black and gold. You’d think he’d be a bit more skittish after last season’s dance with Zdeno Chara. Lack of action leaves this a draw on our scorecard.

Another look

With an assist from HockeyFights.com ….

This undercard certainly left us yearning for another bout and we didn’t have to wait long for the main event.

Fight 2: Stuart vs. Roberts

Tale of the Tape

The expert’s take

• Fluto Shinzawa, Boston Globe: Mark Stuart vs. Gary Roberts in a long, punch-filled fight. Stuart has the upper hand early, but old man Roberts hangs in, gets a couple pops late, and scores the takedown.

The not-so expert’s take

• Chris Forsberg, Boston.com: Stuart was one takedown away from registering the TKO early in the fight, but — seemingly disappointed like the rest of us after the earlier tussle — the refs let the the combatants go and we’re rewarded with some quality haymakers before Roberts falls down on top of Stuart to end the battle. We’d typically give Stuart the edge given his early dominance, but you have to respect your elders, so this one’s a draw in our book.

Another look

With another assist from HockeyFights.com ….

And now it’s your turn: