In the midst of a seven game winning streak, the Boston Bruins play their second to last game of March on Tuesday night against the Nashville Predators on Causeway Street. The Bruins have the Atlantic Division locked up and are right on the cusp of the Presidents Trophy, while the Predators sit five points out of a wild card spot as the season winds down.
Entering play, the Bruins have won seven straight and are coming off a back to back sweep of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Carolina Hurricanes over the weekend. On the other hand, Nashville lost their weekend back to back, falling to the Seattle Kraken on Saturday and the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday. The Predators are 2-3-0 in their last five games.
The last meeting between the two came on February 16 in Nashville. The Bruins prevailed by a 5-0 score, with goals coming from Brad Marchand, Craig Smith, Patrice Bergeron, Derek Forbort, and Trent Frederic. Jeremy Swayman had a 28 save shutout.
After Swayman got the start in the win against the Hurricanes, it’ll be Linus Ullmark in between the pipes on Tuesday night. Ullmark will continue his push for the Vezina trophy, boasting a 36-5-1 record with a 1.92 GAA and .937 save percentage. He is 4-1-0 in his last five starts.
Predators workhorse Juuse Saros will guard the crease for the visitors. Saros enters the showdown with a 2-2-1 record in his last five starts and a 28-20-7 record altogether. He has a 2.80 GAA and .915 save percentage in 56 games on the season.
With Marchand, Bergeron, and Hampus Lindholm sitting out the Carolina game due to nagging injury, look for the trio to be back in action as the Bruins return to home ice. Jakub Lauko was helped off the ice on Sunday with a lower body injury, but Jim Montgomery expects him to be available for the game.