by By RICH THOMPSON , The Boston Herald

Whitfield, 32, was busy centering Blake Wheeler and Vladimir Sobotka during yesterday's long practice at Ristuccia Arena. He was a healthy scratch in Saturday's 4-3 shootout victory at Ottawa but wants to be included in Thursday's game against the New Jersey Devils at the Garden.

``I like Trent for numerous reasons,'' Julien said. ``He's been around the block a few times, he's a veteran. I like his work ethic and he knows how to handle himself as far as being ready every night. The one thing he's got going is that he gives you an honest effort every game he's in there. We had a choice of sending him back or keeping him. In my discussions with (general manager) Peter (Chiarelli) we decided no doubt we would like to keep him here.''

Whitfield played in 177 NHL games with the Capitals, Rangers and Blues before signing with the Bruins as a free agent on July 13. Whitfield played well in training camp but was relegated to Providence, where he had three goals and five assists before his promotion. Injuries to Marc Savard (foot) and Milan Lucic (broken finger) created an opportunity that Whitfield hopes plays to his advantage.

``Coach wants you to play solid positionally, play the system and be real strong on faceoffs,'' Whitfield said. ``That's something I take a lot of pride in, but it's in those three areas mainly, being accountable on defense and not doing anything you don't normally do.''

The opening on the third line was the result of David Krejci taking Savard's spot between Marco Sturm and Mark Recchi.

Time for 3-on-3

The NHL adopted its five-minute, 4-on-4 overtime format to enhance scoring chances. But evolving 4-on-4 strategies are so efficient that OT goals have become scarce, according to Bruins defenseman Derek Morris.

``Maybe they should make it 3-on-3,'' Morris said. ``These are the best players in the world and they find ways to adjust. These are the best coaches in the world and they find ways to adjust. The 4-on-4 has been adjusted, too.''

Slap happy

Bruins captain Zdeno Chara and defenseman Matt Hunwick spent an extra half-hour after practice working on one-time slap shots. They opened fire on the empty net from all angles of the zone. . . .

Newcomer Daniel Paille was excused from practice so he could retrieve his belongings . . .

Goalie Tim Thomas and forward Byron Bitz engaged in a mock flare up during a tipping drill. . . .

Julien simplified the Bruins system with a back-to-basics approach.

``When you have high expectations placed on you, you have to know how to handle those things,'' Julien said. ``They are realizing how hard it is to stay on top and we got an early lesson. We had to get back our game and our identity and work from there.''

- rthompson@bostonherald.com

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