Bruins First To 40 Wins

David Krejci had a short-handed goal and an assist and the Bruins snapped a season-worst, four-game losing streak Tuesday night by pulling away late to rout the Hurricanes 5-1 in Raleigh, N.C.

The NHL's best team became the first to reach 40 wins by continuing its dominance of the Southeast Division and clinched its first sweep of the franchise that once was its New England-based rival.

The Bruins are 12-0 against every Southeast Division team but Washington, and sealed their first sweep of the Hurricanes since the franchise joined the NHL in 1979 as the Whalers. Boston won the four meetings by a combined, 18-6.

The latest victory came on the night the Hurricanes retired defenseman Glen Wesley's No. 2.

The Bruins made for an appropriate opponent, because they drafted Wesley in 1987 and traded him to the Whalers in 1994 for three draft picks, one of whom wound up being eventual Carolina teammate Sergei Samsonov.