The Bruins earned a huge 7-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers in Lake Tahoe last weekend, and now Boston looks to carry that momentum into its upcoming week of games.
The B’s have dates with the New York Islanders and New York Rangers. The Rangers, as of Thursday, sit in sixth place in the East Division while the Isles are hanging on to that fourth and final playoff spot about midway through the season.
Boston, meanwhile, sits atop the East with 24 points.
Let’s take a look at what’s on deck:
Thursday, Feb. 25 at Islanders, 7 p.m. ET
Friday, Feb. 27 at Rangers, 7 p.m. ET
Sunday, Feb. 28 at Rangers, 12 p.m. ET
What Bruins fans need to know
The B’s are a tad shorthanded heading into the road trip without Jeremy Lauzon (broken hand), Kevan Miller (knee), Ondrej Kase (upper-body) and David Krejci (lower-body).
Head coach Bruce Cassidy revealed Miller’s knee didn’t respond during practice after being held out of the Lake Tahoe game to rest the defenseman.
It’s also likely Krejci, who remains day-to-day, will not play Thursday after not practicing Wednesday.
The good news, though, is that it appears Matt Grzelcyk will return at some point during the trip, though he won’t play Thursday. Jakub Zboril, who missed the last two games, should slot back into the lineup against the Islanders.
Boston’s depth on defense will be tested these next few games, but now will be a crucial time to see just how deep that blue line is.
Who Bruins need to watch out for
Alexis Lafrenière (Rangers) — The rookie has started his first NHL season off a bit slow, but there’s plenty of reason to believe he’ll find his groove. And with the B’s defense down a few men, this may be the perfect time to break out.
Mika Zibanejad (Rangers) — Zibanejad is coming off his first multi-point game of the season against the Philadelphia Flyers, and it’s fair to assume it won’t be his last.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau (Islanders) — The Bruins are all too familiar with Pageau, who scored two goals against them in New York’s 4-2 win Feb. 13, while also potting the lone tally in the Isles’ 1-0 win Jan. 18.
