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Boston Bruins Causeway gameday! Can they beat the Capitals?

By Jeremy Hynes

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 01: Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) works the puck in the first period against Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara (33) on February 1, 2017, at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 01: Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) works the puck in the first period against Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara (33) on February 1, 2017, at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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The Boston Bruins hope to ride momentum to victory in DC against the Washington Capitals.

The Boston Bruins (20-10-5) face the Capitals (22-13-3) in the second half of another mid-week back to back. These teams squared off two weeks ago in a similar situation, which was the Bruins’ last regulation loss. Since that time, the Bruins are 5-0-1 and coming off a big divisional win against the Ottawa Senators last night. The Capitals are also coming off an away game last night, which they lost in a shootout. The Bruins hope to continue their success in the battle of two tired teams.

The Capitals are 2-1-2 since the last meeting with the Bs, so these teams are trending in different directions. However, history isn’t on the Bruins’ side as they’ve dropped their first two meetings with the Capitals this season. The Bruins aim to avoid being swept in the season series by submitting a win tonight and securing two important points as they head into the mid-season winter stretch.

Lineup Changes

The skaters may be tired, but the goalie will be fresh. After a brilliant stretch by Tuukka Rask (9-0-1 in his last 10 games), the Bruins turn to Anton Khudobin tonight who is well rested and capable of stealing games.

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The Capitals deployed their backup, Philipp Grubauer, in New York last night, so they hope Braden Holtby will continue his dominance of the Bruins tonight.

Keys for the Bs

Don’t chase the score. It is another quick turnaround for the Bruins with late-night travel on a frigid night, so bring out the smelly salts. The Capitals carry some of the best offensive weapons in the league and will undoubtedly be looking to improve on their recent record. It will be important for the Bs to stay strong defensively and possess the puck early to gain the momentum advantage while they still have their legs. Depth players need to step up again tonight to help carry the workload.

Limit the Capitals’ powerplay chances. This may seem obvious but the Bruins went to the box too many times in their last meeting with the Caps. Although only one of the five goals in that game was on the powerplay, Alex Ovechkin was uncharacteristically quiet. Ovechkin is a game changer, and his shot from the dot on the powerplay is lethal. He is also complemented by a slick setup man in Nicklas Backstrom. The Capitals’ powerplay hasn’t clicked yet this season, and the Bruins don’t want to give them the opportunity to show up tonight.

Bombard Braden Holtby. Holtby is 13-2 against the Bruins and stole the show the last time the Bs saw him by stopping 34 of 37 shots. He stopped 31 of 33 shots in their first meeting on November 4. The Bruins haven’t had a shortage of chances against Holtby, but they need to bury more to earn a win tonight. Look for them to throw everything including the kitchen sink at Holtby to avoid a season series sweep by the Caps.

Next: Bruins players holiday wish lists

Watch & Listen

When: 7:30pm EST

Where: Verizon Center, Washington, DC

Watch: NBCSN, NESN

Listen: 98.5 The Sports Hub

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