On Saturday, the Boston Bruins defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins on home ice, 2-1, to even up the season series at one win apiece. On Thursday, the venue changes to Pittsburgh, where the Penguins look for a measure of revenge at PPG Paints Arena.
The Bruins (47-24-5) remain three points ahead of the Washington Capitals (43-23-10) for the top wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, The Penguins (43-23-11) are also fending off the Capitals in the Metropolitan Division, sitting just a point ahead of Washington for third place in the division.
This matchup is sure to be an exciting one with playoff implications. Pittsburgh is listed at -130 over Boston.
Bruins Look to Build Off Two-Game Winning Streak
The Boston Bruins enter Thursday’s contest at Pittsburgh having won two straight games. However, Boston hasn’t played great hockey lately, losing four of their last seven games. Offensively, the Bruins average 3.08 GF/G, which is 15th in the NHL.
The Bruins’ leading scorer, David Pastrnak, remains out with an undisclosed injury. Boston turns to their other double-digit scorers without Pastrnak, a team-high 38 goals; Boston turns to their other double-digit scorers to pull the offensive weight.
Along with Pastrnak, the Bruins have eight players with 15 or more goals, including Brad Marchand (31), Jake DeBrusk (23), Patrice Bergeron (20), Taylor Hall (17), Charlie Coyle (16), Craig Smith (16), and Erik Haula (15).
Defensively, the Bruins have been one of the best teams in the NHL at keeping opponents off the scoresheet. On offense, the Bruins average 2.67 GA/G, the fourth-best in the NHL.
Linus Ullmark has been steady in goal for the Bruins, starting 36 games, going 23-10-2 with a .912 SV% and a 2.57 GAA. However, like Pastrnak, Ullmark is out with an undisclosed injury. Without Ullmark, the Bruins will turn to Jeremy Swayman, who has made 36 starts this season, going 22-12-3, with a .916 SV% and a 2.33 GAA.
Penguins Look for Turnaround As Playoffs Near
The Pittsburgh Penguins enter Thursday’s home matchup against the Boston Bruins looking to turn around recent struggles.
In its most recent contest, the Penguins fell to the Bruins, 2-1, and have the last six of eight games overall. If the Penguins hope to get back to their winning way, they’ll likely have to lean on their offense.
Jake Guentzel (37), Sidney Crosby (29), Bryan Rust (24), Evan Rodrigues (18), Jeff Carter (18), Evgeni Malkin (17), and Danton Heinen (17) all have 17 goals or more on the season, leading the Penguins to an average of 3.26 GF/G, 11th in the NHL.
The Penguins have also been strong on the defensive end, allowing 2.70 GA/G, the fifth-best in the NHL. However, starting goaltender Tristan Jarry is day-to-day with a foot injury, and his availability moving forward isn’t known. This season, Jarry has made 56 starts, going 34-18-6 with a .919 SV% and a 2.42 GAA.
In the meantime, the Penguins will turn to Casey DeSmith and Louis Domingue to fill the void. DeSmith has made 20 starts this season, going 8-5-5 with a .907 SV% and a 2.98 GAA. This season, Domingue has made one start, going 1-0-0 with a .976 SV% and 0.99 GAA.
Betting Prediction
Coming into Thursday’s matchup, the Bruins and Penguins have something to play for as the season nears its end.
The Bruins are fighting to keep the top wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference while also keeping an eye on the third place in the Atlantic Division. Meanwhile, the Penguins are fighting off the Capitals to keep hold of the third-place position out of the Metropolitan Division.
While the first two meetings between the Bruins and Penguins yielded only nine combined goals, Thursday could be a different story.
With Boston’s Linus Ullmark and Pittsburgh’s Tristan Jarry both unlikely to play on Thursday, backups will have to man the pipes, meaning goals may not be as hard to come by in this one.
In what could be a high-paced, back-and-forth offensive game, the Penguins should have the edge. The Penguins have the better offense and should take this one at home.
Penguins -120 is the pick for this game.
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