The Boston Bruins have been on a roll since the trade deadline. Deadline acquisitions Taylor Hall, Curtis Lazar, and Mike Reilly have all brought a much-needed energy jolt to the B’s.
With a revitalized group, the Black and Gold have now won five games in a row for the second time this season, first time since the beginning of February. Tonight they will be looking for a season-best six wins in a row as they take on the Buffalo Sabres for the fifth time this season.
Like most of the teams in the East Division this season, Boston has dominated Buffalo. So far, they have won all four games against them, holding the Sabres to two goals or less in all four games.
Just two nights ago, in their most previous meeting, it was the same story as the B’s and goaltender Tuukka Rask shutout the Sabres 2-0. Boston, with rookie Jeremy Swayman in net this time, will look to continue this shutdown play tonight.
Boston Bruins vs Buffalo Sabres projected lineups.
Boston Bruins
Record: 26-12-6 (58 points)
The B’s will be going with the same forward group that they’ve been going with the last five games. However, with the Jeremy Lauzon – Jakub Zboril experiment disappointing last game, Zboril will come out of the lineup and veteran Steve Kampfer will go in.
Additionally, as I mentioned earlier, Jeremy Swayman will be in net tonight and Tuukka Rask will start tomorrow. Rask will be backing up Swayman tonight.
Expect the Bruins to look like this tonight:
Marchand – Bergeron – Pastrnak
Hall – Krejci – Smith
Ritchie – Coyle – DeBrusk
Kuraly – Lazar – Wagner
Grzelcyk – McAvoy
Reilly – Clifton
Lauzon – Kampfer
Swayman (Rask)
Buffalo Sabres
Record: 12-27-7 (31 points)
The Sabres are making one change to their lineup and it’s on defense. Colin Miller will be a healthy scratch as Will Borgen will be making his return after fracturing his right arm three months ago. Borgen will be playing on the third pairing with Jacob Bryson.
Sabres fans will have to wait another night to see their top goaltending prospect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen get his first NHL playing time (unless he comes in as relief) as Dustin Tokarski will get his fifth straight start. Luukkonen is slated to start tomorrow, however.
Expect the Sabres to look like this tonight:
Skinner – Reinhart – Olofsson
Asplund – Mittelstadt – Thompson
Bjork – Cozens – Ruotsalainen
Rieder – Sheahan – Caggiula
Dahlin – Jokiharju
Samuelsson – Ristolainen
Bryson – Borgen
Tokarski (Luukkonen)
Where and when to watch Boston Bruins vs Buffalo Sabres.
Time: 7 PM EST
Location: KeyBank Center
TV Broadcast: NESNplus, MSG-B
Radio Broadcast: 98.5 The Sports Hub
While the B’s were able to easily shutout the Sabres in their last matchup, Buffalo shouldn’t be taken lightly. They’re on a mission to not finish last in the division and to play spoiler for playoff teams and teams making a push to make the playoffs.