Bruins vs Penguins 1/28/21: Rematch preview, lineups, and more

The Boston Bruins will be looking for their fourth straight win tonight and to complete the two-game series sweep against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Last game saw the Black and Gold dominate almost the entirety of the game as they brought a 2-0 lead into the third period. However, the Pens were able to force their way back and tie the game 2-2 to force overtime. Ultimately, the B’s were able to win in OT thanks to a Craig Smith goal on a 2-on-0.

While Boston looks to continue their win streak tonight, Pittsburgh will be looking to start a new one as they had their four-game streak ended last game.

The B’s will be more shorthanded at forward than they’ve previously been as Jake DeBrusk was injured in the first period of last game and will miss tonight’s game with a lower-body injury. Additionally, Ondrej Kase and David Pastrnak are still on injured reserve and are not ready to return for tonight.

Boston Bruins vs Pittsburgh Penguins projected lineups.

Boston Bruins
Record: 4-1-1 (9 points)

As I mentioned earlier, the Bruins will be shorthanded at forward in this matchup. DeBrusk will be missing his first game of the season with a lower-body injury, Kase is still on IR with an upper-body injury, and Pasta is still making his way back from offseason hip surgery.

With DeBrusk out, head coach Bruce Cassidy has been forced to make some interesting changes to the lineup, including separating what has been the best and most effective trio of Trent Frederic, Charlie Coyle, and Craig Smith.

While the B’s may be injured up front, they seem to be back to full strength on the blue line as defenseman Matt Grzelcyk is expect to make his return from a lower-body injury after missing the last two games.

Expect the Bruins lineup to look like this tonight:

Marchand – Bergeron – Smith
Ritchie – Krejci – Coyle
Frederic – Lindholm – Studnicka
Bjork – Kuraly – Wagner

Lauzon – McAvoy
Grzelcyk – Carlo
Zboril – Miller

Halak (Vladar)

Jaroslav gets the start tonight as Cassidy continues his goalie rotation. However, rookie Dan Vladar receives back up duties as Tuukka Rask is a bit sore from last game where he appeared to suffer a lower-body injury in the third period but remained in the game.

Rask also missed practice yesterday, but he is expected to be ready to start Saturday’s game against the Washington Capitals.

Pittsburgh Penguins
Record: 4-2-1 (9 points)

While the B’s are forced to make some alterations to their lineup up front because of injuries, the Penguins look like they’ll be going with the same lineup as last game.

However, the Pens will have to make some changes to their backend as Brian Dumoulin will miss tonight’s game. John Marino will move up to the first pairing, while Pierre-Olivier Joseph moves up to the second, and Kevin Czuczman gets the nod for the third pair.

Expect the Penguins lineup to look like this tonight:

Guentzel – Crosby – Rust
Zucker – Malkin – Kapanen
McCann – Blueger – Tanev
O’Connor – Jankowski – Sceviour

Marino – Letang
Joseph – Ceci
Czuczman – Ruhwedel

Jarry (DeSmith)

Where and when to watch Boston Bruins vs Pittsburgh Penguins.

When: 7 PM EST

Where: TD Garden

TV Broadcast: NESN, ESPN+,

Radio Broadcast: 98.5 The Sports Hub

I don’t expect the Bruins to be able to dominate this game like they did two days ago. Without DeBrusk, they have an extremely top-heavy lineup. The Penguins might get the better of this injured B’s in this one.