The Boston Bruins will play the Philadelphia Flyers tonight in Lake Tahoe, Nevada as part of the NHL Outdoors at Lake Tahoe. It will be the fourth meeting of the season between the 2021 East Division foes.
In the first four games, the Bruins have won each contest, two at home and two on the road. Two teams that were picked to finish near the top of the division, each team will be missing key players. Boston is missing key pieces due to injuries, while the Flyers are missing some key players to the league’s COVID-19 protocols.
Regardless of who takes the ice tonight, the Bruins will be looking for their fifth straight win over the Flyers and if they are to get it, these three keys will go a long way in helping them head into a three-day break on a winning note.
1. Bruins need to get ahead and stay ahead.
Early in the season, the Bruins were able to dig out third-period deficits to win some games, but they have not been as lucky in their last two contests.
On Feb. 13 on Long Island, the Bruins grabbed a 1-0 lead on the New York Islanders in the first period, only to give up the lead and battle back to tie it, before eventually losing 4-2 on a pair of third-period goals. Five days later the TD Garden, three second-period goals by the New Jersey Devils helped lead them to a 3-1 lead on their way to a 3-2 victory.
It’s no secret that the Black and Gold are struggling to score as of late and falling behind in games and chasing goals is not something that can happen on a nightly basis. Sooner or later the law of averages will catch up with them, like in their last two contests. Scoring early and getting ahead of the Flyers will be key, especially with them missing some of their top-nine forwards who were left back in Philadelphia.