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Boston Bruins Causeway Gameday! Playoff Test with the Penguins

By Dan Luise

PITTSBURGH, PA - JANUARY 07: Boston Bruins Right Wing David Pastrnak (88) clears the puck away from Pittsburgh Penguins Right Wing Daniel Sprong (41) during the second period in the NHL game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Boston Bruins on January 7, 2018, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. The Penguins defeated the Bruins 6-5 in overtime. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - JANUARY 07: Boston Bruins Right Wing David Pastrnak (88) clears the puck away from Pittsburgh Penguins Right Wing Daniel Sprong (41) during the second period in the NHL game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Boston Bruins on January 7, 2018, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. The Penguins defeated the Bruins 6-5 in overtime. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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The Boston Bruins are set to host the two-time defending Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins tonight. This will be a good test for the Bruins in terms of where they stand with playoff caliber teams.

The Boston Bruins are entering tonight with 39 more days left in the season and still have 21 games to play. The game tonight will be a good measuring stick for where the Bruins stand against playoff caliber teams. Both teams were active over the weekend at the Trade Deadline and are preparing to make runs in the post-season.

The season series between these two teams is split at one apiece. The Bruins took game one 4-3 and Pittsburgh won game two in overtime 6-5 back at the beginning of January.

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Need to Know: Boston Bruins

Tonight’s matchup against the Penguins marks the Bruins second of a six-game homestand. This, of course, following a subpar five-game road trip last week. In their last 10 games, the Bruins are 6-4 and were 9-4 in the month of February.

Boston currently sits third in the Division. However, they are only one point behind Toronto with five games in hand and six points behind Tampa with three games in hand.

Coming off of an overtime win against Carolina Tuesday, the black and gold newcomers seem to fit right in. Both Rick Nash and Tommy Wingels recorded a goal and Wingels added an assist in that come-from-behind victory. With Patrice Bergeron sidelined two weeks, and his strong performance in game one, Wingels is likely to be suited up again tonight. Other recent trade acquire, Nick Holden, may be making his Boston debut tonight as well.

The “other Nash” should not be overlooked either. In Bergeron’s absence, Riley Nash moved up to first line center and as evidence against Carolina proved he belonged, at least for the time being. He has four goals and four assists in his last ten and a career-high 11 goals this season.

Need to Know: Pittsburgh Penguins

While the playoff race in the Atlantic is pretty much set with the top three teams, the Metropolitan Division is still a tight race. The Penguins currently sit in the last divisional spot with 76 points. They are three points behind first-place Washington and only two points ahead of New Jersey, who holds the first wild-card spot.

Pittsburgh is 7-2-1 in their last ten and was 8-3-1 in the month of February. Since the start of the new year, the Penguins have been one of the hottest teams in the league and clearly ready to make a run at defending their Cup.

The Penguins have the league-best powerplay percentage at 27%. While the Bruins have been struggling as of late and are 0 for their last 18. It helps when there are players like Evgeni Malkin, who is second in the league in both goals and points with 36 and 76 respectively.

Next: Bruins Deadline Deals are Paying Off

Tonight’s matchup should be a fast-paced and exciting game between two very talented teams.  Tune into NESN if you live locally, but NBC Sports if you find yourself outside of the local viewing market.  Puck drop is set for 7:00 pm.

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