Two teams that are on the outside looking in at the Eastern Conference playoff race will meet at the TD Garden on Saturday afternoon. The Boston Bruins and New York Rangers, two teams that made a run in last spring’s postseason are in trouble of missing out in 2024-25.
Both teams have underachieved after preseason expectations and unless one goes on a run before the 4 Nations Faceoff Break in just over a week, there could be some changes to their rosters come the trade deadline on March 7. The Bruins enter the game off a 6-2 drubbing at the hands of the Western Conference-leading Winnipeg Jets Thursday night at home, while the Rangers dropped a 4-0 decision to the Carolina Hurricanes at home on Tuesday night. This is the first of two matchups between the teams in four days with the second coming Wednesday night in New York.
How to watch New York Rangers vs. Boston Bruins with & without cable
New York has had a recent run to move up the standings into the conversation of the wild card race in the East. The Bruins on the other hand enter with what could be considered three “bad losses” in the last 10 days. They lost 5-1 at the New Jersey Devils on Jan. 22, then were routed by the Buffalo Sabres, 7-2, on Jan. 28, then lost to the Jets. After tying the game 11 seconds into the third period, they promptly allowed four goals in the final 19 minutes of the game.
Date: Saturday, Feb. 1
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Venue: TD Garden
How to Watch: ABC, ESPN.com, ESPN+, or FuboTV
This is the second of three matchups between the teams with the Rangers winning the first matchup, 2-1, at home last month. Like the Bruins, they are stuck in the middle of whether or not they buy, sell, or stand pat the deadline. For the Black and Gold, it feels like it is retooling time for the organization, whether or not they want to accept it, but they face a daunting stretch before the break with home games against the Minnesota Wild and Vegas Golden Knights sandwiched around the Rangers’ games.