The Boston Bruins will aim to end their three-game losing streak Monday night against a much-improved Calgary Flames team.
It’s the second game in a five-game Bruins road trip, which began Friday night with a 5-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Boston still possesses the final wild-card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but its lead over the Florida Panthers has shrunk to just three points.
The Flames were expected to be among the draft lottery teams this season, but they have exceeded expectations by holding on to a wild-card playoff berth throughout the campaign. One player leading the charge for Calgary is former Boston College star Johnny Gaudreau, whose scoring production has placed him into the Calder Trophy race with the NHL’s top rookies.
Here’s a quick preview of Bruins-Flames.
TV, Radio Information: NESN and 98.5 The Sports Hub
Season Series:Â First meeting
Record: Boston (28-20-7, fourth in Atlantic), Calgary (31-22-3, fourth in Pacific)
Bruins Player To Watch: One player performing at a high level during Boston’s recent stretch of losses is Patrice Bergeron. The veteran center has scored four goals with 16 shots and a 65.8 faceoff percentage over the last five games. Bergeron also helped the B’s control 51.4 percent of shot attempts and 57.1 percent of scoring chances at even strength when he was on the ice during that five-game span. Boston needs another strong performance from Bergeron to end its skid.
Flames Player To Watch: Gaudreau is enjoying a fantastic rookie season and ranks second in scoring among first-year players with 42 points (15 goals, 27 assists) in 55 games. Gaudreau also has tallied 10 points (two goals, eight assists) in the last 14 games, including a three-game point streak. The Bruins must correct the mental mistakes they’ve made in recent games to avoid Gaudreau from using his speed, playmaking skill and excellent shot to create scoring chances.
Key Stat For Bruins: Boston’s power play has struggled of late with a 1-for-12 mark in the last six games. The Bruins have struggled on the road with the man advantage, too. They rank 30th in road power-play goals (seven) and 29th in road power-play percentage (11.1). Luckily for the Bruins, the Flames rank 23rd in penalty killing.
Key Stat For Flames: Calgary has ranked near the bottom in just about every puck-possession metric this season and currently sits 28th with a 45.32 Corsi-for percentage at even strength. The Flames still have been able to win games despite controlling less than 50 percent of even-strength shot attempts because they lead the league with a 10.12 shooting percentage at 5-on-5.
Thumbnail photo via Kevin Hoffman/USA TODAY Sports Images
