BOSTON — The Bruins will close out their regular-season schedule and attempt to secure safe passage to the Stanley Cup playoffs Saturday afternoon as they host the Ottawa Senators at TD Garden.
While a win is not absolutely necessary for Boston to earn a playoff spot — it also can get in if the Philadelphia Flyers earn one or zero points from their final two games this weekend — it would make doing so much more probable.
If the Bruins defeat the Senators, they can clinch a postseason berth if the Detroit Red Wings lose to the New York Rangers in regulation or beat them in a shootout, or if the Flyers lose to either the Pittsburgh Penguins or New York Islanders in any fashion.
Ottawa, which is eliminated from playoff contention, has won two of the teams’ three meetings this season, most recently knocking off Boston 2-1 in overtime on Jan. 9.
UPDATE (12:10 p.m. ET): Backup goaltender Jonas Gustavsson, not usual starter Tuukka Rask, led the Bruins onto the ice for pregame warmups, indicating he will start the game in net. The team has yet to announce a reason for the change.
Here are Saturday’s projected lines and pairings:
BOSTON BRUINS (42-30-9)
Brad Marchand — Patrice Bergeron — Lee Stempniak
Ryan Spooner — David Krejci — Loui Eriksson
Matt Beleskey — Max Talbot — David Pastrnak
Frank Vatrano — Noel Acciari — Landon Ferraro
Zdeno Chara — Kevan Miller
John-Michael Liles — Colin Miller
Torey Krug — Adam McQuaid
Jonas Gustavsson
OTTAWA SENATORS (37-35-9)
Zack Smith — Jean-Gabriel Pageau — Bobby Ryan
Mike Hoffman — Mika Zibanejad — Ryan Dzingel
Matt Puempel — Phil Varone — Alex Chiasson
Buddy Robinson — Nick Paul — Chris Neil
Fredrik Claesson — Erik Karlsson
Mike Kostka — Chris Wideman
Ben Harpur — Cody Ceci
Andrew Hammond
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
