Who: Pittsburgh Penguins (31-15-13, 75 points, 2nd place Metropolitan Division) @ Boston Bruins
(33-21-5, 71 points, 5th place Atlantic Division)When: 7:00 p.m. ET
How to Watch: Streaming on ESPN+, local broadcasts on SN-PT and NESN
Pens’ Path Ahead: The Penguins are back home later this week for a three-game homestand, which starts Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres, continues Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers and wraps up with a Sunday rematch against the Bruins.
Opponent Track: After heading
into the Olympic break with back-to-back shootout losses, the Bruins have split their schedule since between a 4-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets and a 3-1 loss in Philadelphia.
Season Series: Joonas Korpisalo earned a 27-save, 1-0 shutout win against the Penguins the last time these two teams met on Jan. 11 at TD Garden.
Hidden Stat: The Bruins have claimed 10 straight wins at TD Garden, marking the franchise’s longest home win streak since the 2022-23 season.
Getting to know the Bruins
Projected lines
FORWARDS
Marat Khusnutdinov – Elias Lindholm – David Pastrnak
Casey Mittelstadt – Pavel Zacha – Viktor Arvidsson
Michael Eyssimont – Fraser Minten – Morgan Geekie
Tanner Jeannot – Sean Kuraly – Mark Kastelic
DEFENSEMEN
Jonathan Aspirot / Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm / Mason Lohrei
Nikita Zadorov / Henri Jokirharju
Goalies: Jeremy Swayman, Joonas Korpisalo
Potential scratches: Alex Steeves, Andrew Peeke, Jordan Harris
Injured Reserve: Dans Locmelis
- The Bruins were riding an eight-game point streak, dating back to before the Olympic break, before dropping a 3-1 decision to the Flyers on Saturday in Philadelphia.
- Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha, both sidelined ahead of the Olympic break with upper-body injuries, are back to anchor the Bruins’ top two lines.
Season stats
via hockeydb
- Morgan Geekie just tied a career high with 33 goals, and he’s done it in just 58 games this season.
- The Bruins’ top defenseman, Charlie McAvoy, is riding a nine-game point streak dating all the way back to Jan. 22.
- The penalty kill has been a weakness this season for the Bruins, who are heading into this matchup ranked 27th in the NHL with a 76.7 percent PK rate. The team reportedly made some significant changes to the unit after the Olympic break, per The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa. Since then— albeit in a small sample size— the Bruins PK has been perfect, going 1-for-1 against the Blue Jackets and 3-for-3 against the Flyers last week.
- The Bruins are in the market for a “top-six forward and a right-shot defenseman” at the trade deadline, according to a recent report from The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta. They’re reportedly dangling AHL forward Matthew Poitras as a potential trade piece, per Pagnotta.
- Here’s a look at the Eastern Conference playoff race as of Monday night, per NHL.com. The Bruins are just two points up on the race for the final Wild Card spot in the East, although they have three games in hand on the Washington Capitals for the spot.
And now for the Pens
Projected lines
FORWARDS
Egor Chinakhov – Tommy Novak – Evgeni Malkin
Avery Hayes – Rickard Rakell – Bryan Rust
Anthony Mantha – Ben Kindel – Justin Brazeau
Connor Dewar – Blake Lizotte – Noel Acciari
DEFENSEMEN
Parker Wotherspoon / Erik Karlsson
Sam Girard / Kris Letang
Ryan Shea / Connor Clifton
Goalies: Arturs Silovs, Stuart Skinner played yesterday
Potential Scratches: Kevin Hayes, Ryan Graves, Ilya Solovyov
IR: Sidney Crosby, Filip Hallander, Jack St. Ivany
- Not much news from Monday. As of Monday, Evgeni Malkin was set to have a talk with Penguins management about a potential extension “in the next day or two,” per The Athletic’s Josh Yohe.
- A few milestones potentially on the table tonight: Rickard Rakell is three assists short of 300, Sam Girard is two assists shy of 200 and Kris Letang is one point back from No. 800.
- Per Pens PR: Only the Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights have more 20-goal scorers than in Pittsburgh, where Sidney Crosby, Anthony Mantha and Bryan Rust have each reached the threshold this season.
- Another fun fact from Pens PR: the Pens’ fourth line of Noel Acciari, Connor Dewar and Blake Lizotte has been on the ice for seven 5v5 goals against, the fewest of any forward line that has been together for at least 250 minutes at even strength this season.
- The Pens’ Sunday win over the Vegas Golden Knights boosted their MoneyPuck playoff odds to 89.4 percent heading into Tuesday.
