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Boston Bruins Causeway Gameday! Bs visit Sens before ASG

By Chad Zimmermann

OTTAWA, ON - DECEMBER 30: Boston Bruins Center Patrice Bergeron (37) celebrates his power-play goal with teammates during third period National Hockey League action between the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators on December 30, 2017, at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, ON, Canada. (Photo by Richard A. Whittaker/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
OTTAWA, ON - DECEMBER 30: Boston Bruins Center Patrice Bergeron (37) celebrates his power-play goal with teammates during third period National Hockey League action between the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators on December 30, 2017, at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, ON, Canada. (Photo by Richard A. Whittaker/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Talk about two teams heading in opposite directions.  The Boston Bruins are one of the hottest teams in the NHL, and the Ottawa Senators are, shall we say, struggling.

There is no denying anymore that the Boston Bruins have gone from middle-of-the-road team to a contender.  A team doesn’t just luck into a 17 game point streak.  That takes hard work, believing in yourselves, and a team buying into the system.

Not to toot head coach Bruce Cassidy’s horn too much, but TOOT TOOT!  This is just staggering at this point.  In 73 games as the Bruins bench boss since taking over last February, Cassidy and the Bs have a record of 46-18-9, 101 points (18-8-1 to end last season, and 28-10-8 currently this year).  The systematic shift between Claude Julien’s coaching philosophy and Cassidy’s has clearly been welcomed in the Bruins organization.

Boston Bruins
BOSTON – NOVEMBER 11: Boston Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy watches the replay after an empty net goal late in the third period sealed the Bruins’ 4-1 loss. The Boston Bruins host the Toronto Maple Leafs in a regular season NHL hockey game at TD Garden in Boston on Nov. 11, 2017. (Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) /

With the All-Star weekend break starting tomorrow, the Bruins make a quick trip to Canada’s capital city for a game against the division rival Ottawa Senators (15-22-9, 39 points).  It seems like the Bruins have put last April’s first round exit, courtesy of the Senators, in their rear view mirror.  The Bs are nipping at Tampa Bay’s heels for the top spot in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference, whereas the Senators are fighting with the Buffalo Sabres over who can stink more.

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This will be the third meeting between the teams this season.  The Bruins thoroughly trounced the Senators in the two previous matchups, notching a 5-0 victory on December 27, 2017 and a 5-1 victory on December 30, 2017.

Schedule

The game at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada is slated for a 7:30 pm puck drop.  The game will be NESN for the New England viewers, and 98.5 The Sports Hub for those who choose to dial in.

What to watch for

Well, this will certainly be interesting.  For those who (somehow) missed the news, Brad Marchand has been suspended for five games by the NHL for an elbow to head of Marcus Johansson.  This effectively breaks up one of the top lines in all of hockey right now.  The Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-David Pastrnak line has been on fire during the Bruins 17 game point streak.  In 36 games against the Sens in his career, Marchand has 11 goals and 10 assists.

Anders Bjork was an emergency recall from Providence yesterday.  In addition to Marchand’s suspension, forwards Noel Acciari and Patrice Bergeron both missed practice.  If the Bruins end up without Acciari or Bergeron, I imagine that fans will see Frank Vatrano skate for the first time since December 21, 2017.

Next: Brad Marchand's 5 game ban is a joke

With another break coming up, I imagine we’ll see Tuukka Rask in net, who like the Bruins, is riding a 17 game point steak of his own.  He is putting up Vezina quality numbers right now.  Here’s hoping he can sustain it, and he and Khudobin can take home the Jennings like I predicted earlier this season.

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