There is no such thing as breathing room in NHL playoff races this season, but the Boston Bruins look to ride the momentum of a major win into their return home for a Tuesday night matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Boston (39-23-8, 86 points) took over the top Eastern Conference wild-card position with a 4-2 Saturday win over the Detroit Red Wings, improving to 3-0-2 in its last five games and improving its playoff chances by 10.3% due to the win, according to MoneyPuck.com.
Three of the Bruins’ four goals came in the third period to erase a 2-1 deficit.
“We’ve been down in the third period a couple of times lately, but there’s no quitting in this team,” Bruins forward Elias Lindholm said. “We just stay with it and keep playing the same way, and we seem to find ways to win.”
Of course, there is no time for celebration yet, as the New York Islanders and Red Wings remain within two points in the standings.
Saturday’s win could stand tall if the Bruins are able to hold onto a playoff spot. A huge effort in the third period, including a game-winner from defenseman Nikita Zadorov and 22 of Jeremy Swayman’s 42 saves, proved to be the difference.
“That was the best I’ve seen (Swayman) play since I’ve been around,” Boston coach Marco Sturm said. “He was unbelievable and kept us in the game, won us the game.”
Swayman is 6-1-1 with a .934 save percentage in eight March outings.
David Pastrnak is looking to extend his point streak to 10 games (six goals, eight assists) after notching a goal and an assist in Detroit.
Unlike recent seasons of late, the Maple Leafs (29-29-13, 71 points) are looking far up at the Bruins in the standings as they have lost three straight games (0-2-1) and won just twice since the Olympic break (2-8-4). Only the New York Rangers sit below them in the conference standings.
Toronto, which lost both of its previous games vs. Boston this season, is coming off a 5-2 Saturday loss to the Ottawa Senators in which they were outshot for the eighth consecutive game — this time, by a whopping 44-14 margin.
Joseph Woll played both games of the team’s back-to-back in goal, making 39 saves against Ottawa after scheduled starter Anthony Stolarz took teammate William Nylander’s warmup shot to the throat and was taken to the hospital for testing. The Carolina Hurricanes put 36 shots on Woll in Toronto’s 4-3 overtime loss on Friday.
“I think he did a great job (preparing for another start), but the team’s got to respond better than that,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said after Saturday’s game.
Stolarz has since been deemed “good to go” after practicing Monday, though Berube did not name the starter for Tuesday’s game.
Outside of the net, 20-year-old Easton Cowan had a goal and an assist — his first career multi-point game — to help Toronto nearly climb out of a 3-0 deficit, and John Tavares also scored to hit the 25-goal plateau for the 14th time in his career. But it was not enough.
“It’s obviously difficult when we’re not playing the way we’re capable of and we’re in the position we’re in,” Tavares said. “But I just try to approach it one day at a time and appreciate the opportunity to play with the guys in the locker room.”
