The Boston Bruins have their eyes set on first place in the Eastern Conference.
With help from the Carolina Hurricanes’ overtime win over the Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston now controls its own destiny after it defeated the Ottawa Senators 5-2 Saturday night at TD Garden. With one game left on their regular-season schedule, the Bruins must win Sunday night against the Florida Panthers in order to claim the No. 1 seed. If they lose, first place will belong to the Bolts.
A win for Boston on Sunday would mean the team would play the New Jersey Devils in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, while a loss would lock up a first-round match-up against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The fourth line played a major role in Boston’s win over Ottawa. Despite a slow start in the first period, it was the line of Tim Schaller, Noel Acciari and Tommy Wingels that played physical and was able to put the puck on net. The line continued their strong play in the second after Wingels scored the go-ahead goal just 51 seconds after David Pastrnak netted the equalizer. Acciari, who’s been a crucial piece to the fourth line all season, added some insurance late in the third with his 10th goal of the season.
Here are some other notes from Bruins vs. Senators:
— The Bruins are 10-0-1 in their last 11 home games.
— Bruce Cassidy picked up his 68th win since taking over as Boston’s head coach last season.
— Before the game, the Bruins handed out their annual awards, including the three stars of the season: Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and Tuukka Rask.
— The Bruins became the first organization in NHL history to record 10 50-win seasons.
— Sunday’s game will mark national anthem singer Rene Rancourt’s final performance at TD Garden. The 78-year-old announced in January he would be retiring after 40 seasons of singing the anthem.
— Acciari became the team’s 11th goal scorer to notch double-digit goals on the season.
