SENATORS (42-27-10) at BRUINS (44-30-6)
7 p.m. ET; NBCSN, NESN, TSN5, RDS, NHL.TV
Senators team scope
The Ottawa Senators will try to clinch their first Stanley Cup Playoff berth since 2015 by earning at least one point against the Boston Bruins. The Senators also could clinch if the Tampa Bay Lightning lose at the Toronto Maple Leafs in any fashion, and the New York Islanders lose at the Carolina Hurricanes in any fashion. The Senators and Bruins are tied for second place in the Atlantic Division; Ottawa has one game in hand, but Boston has five more regulation/overtime wins, which is the first tiebreaker. The Senators and Bruins are each one point ahead of the Maple Leafs; Toronto has a game in hand on Boston. Defenseman Erik Karlsson, the Senators' leading scorer with 71 points (17 goals, 54 assists), will not play because of a lower-body injury he sustained in a 2-0 win against the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday. "Anybody losing their top player obviously is a gigantic hole," coach Guy Boucher said. "But we've had games without Erik and we were playing it tight. And we've got to play the same way. ... I think as a team our game won't change. We're playing the same way, we're expecting our players to continue to buy in like they bought in all year." Defenseman Cody Ceci practiced but is likely to miss his third straight game with a lower-body injury. "I'm not expecting him to play," Boucher said. "At best, it could be a game-time decision."
Bruins team scope
The Bruins will try to move closer to securing home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference First Round with a victory against the Senators, who could be their opponent in that series. Boston will be without leading scorer Brad Marchand, who will serve the first of a two-game suspension issued by the NHL Department of Player Safety on Thursday for spearing Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Jake Dotchin on Tuesday. Marchand will finish the regular season with 85 points (39 goals, 46 assists), each an NHL career high. Boston is 11-3-0 in its past 14 games at TD Garden and 23-16-0 at home this season. "It's a big difference if you play those deciding games at home or on the road," defenseman Zdeno Chara said. "It's something that gives us motivation to still play for something that's important, especially at this time of the year. With a few games left in the season you want to make sure you continue to play a certain way and you get ready for the playoffs. You don't get complacent." The Bruins have been outscored 10-5 in losing all three games against the Senators this season. "When you play a team the number of times we have in our division, you obviously want to get your share of wins against them," coach Bruce Cassidy said, "but it's more about how we're playing right now, how we're playing to our standard, continue our winning ways going into the playoffs." Forward David Backes will play his 800th NHL game.
Senators projected lineup
Mike Hoffman -- Kyle Turris -- Mark Stone
Viktor Stalberg -- Derick Brassard -- Alexandre Burrows
Ryan Dzingel -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- Tom Pyatt
Tommy Wingels -- Chris Kelly -- Clarke MacArthur
Fredrik Claesson -- Jyrki Jokipakka
Dion Phaneuf -- Ben Harpur
Mark Borowiecki -- Chris Wideman
Scratched: Christopher DiDomenico, Colin White
Injured: Zack Smith (upper body), Marc Methot (finger), Cody Ceci (lower body), Chris Neil (finger), Bobby Ryan (upper body), Erik Karlsson (foot)
Bruins projected lineup
Frank Vatrano -- Patrice Bergeron -- David Backes
Drew Stafford -- David Krejci -- David Pastrnak
Sean Kuraly -- Ryan Spooner -- Matt Beleskey
Dominic Moore -- Riley Nash -- Noel Acciari
Zdeno Chara -- Brandon Carlo
John-Michael Liles -- Kevan Miller
Scratched: Colin Miller, Joe Morrow
Injured: Tim Schaller (lower body), Jimmy Hayes (lower body), Frank Vatrano (lower body)
Suspended: Brad Marchand
Status report
The Senators will use the same 12 forwards they did Tuesday. ... Cassidy didn't confirm his plan for replacing Marchand, but Beleskey replaced Marchand on one power-play unit during the morning skate and Vatrano, who has missed the past four games, filled Beleskey's spot on the other unit.
Who's hot
Hoffman has 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in his past 11 games. ... Turris has nine points (four goals, five assists) in his past eight games. ... Pastrnak has 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in his past 20 games.
Entertainment Plaza - TV, Movies, Sports, Music, Soaps
http://almosthuman99.com
Babe Of The Month - Vote Now!
http://almosthuman99.com/polls/babes/babeofthemonth.html
Hunk Of The Month - Vote Now!
http://almosthuman99.com/polls/hunks/hunkofthemonth.html
No comments:
Post a Comment