The Bruins lost 5-4 to the first place Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday, March 25. Lightning center Anthony Cirelli broke a tie with under a minute remaining in the third period, and Tampa Bay became the fourth team in NHL history to win at least 59 games in a season. For the Bruins, left-wing Brad Marchand picked up two goals while right-wing David Pastrnak and center Patrice Bergeron both picked up two assists.
On Wednesday, March 27, the Bruins beat the New York Rangers 6-3 at the TD Garden in Boston. Pastrnak had a hat trick and scored five points for the Bruins, tallying his third hat trick of the season.
On Saturday, March 30, the Bruins fell to the Florida Panthers 4-1, snapping their twelve game winning streak at home. Noel Acciari picked up his sixth goal of the season while Torey Krug picked up his 45th assist of the season. The Bruins (47-22-9), who have clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup playoffs, lead the third-place Toronto Maple Leafs by six points, who are fresh off of a 6-3 loss to the Ottawa Senators the same night. Boston has four games remaining in their regular season, including their next three on the road.
Hot Teams in the NHL
The Washington Capitals have regained first place in the Metropolitan Division. They won their last three games and have gone 6-3-1 in their last ten games.
The Dallas Stars have moved into the seventh place spot in the Western Conference with four games left in the season. They have won four games in a row and have gone 6-3-1 in their last ten games. They finish out the season playing the Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Chicago Blackhawks and the Minnesota Wild.
Wild Card Teams
The Colorado Avalanche are in the second wild card spot in the Western Conference with 85 points. They have won their last two games and have gone 7-2-1 in the last ten games. The Dallas Stars are in the first wild card spot three points ahead of the Avalanche. The Arizona Coyotes are outside looking in as they are three points behind the Avalanche. The Wild are also four points out of the wild card spot with four games left in the season.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are in the second wild card spot in the Eastern conference with 90 points. The Blue Jackets are currently three points behind the Carolina Hurricanes for the first spot in the wild card. The Montreal Canadiens are tied with the Blue Jackets but have played one more game than Columbus has.
Cold Teams in the NHL
The Vegas Golden Knights have clinched a Stanley Cup playoff berth but have been cold lately, losing three consecutive games. In their last ten games they have gone 5-4-1 and are tied for fifth place in the Western Conference. Vegas leads the Dallas Stars by two points with both teams having four games remaining in the season.
The Buffalo Sabers have dropped to 13th place in the Eastern Conference, cooling off quickly from a flashy beginning to the season. They have gone 1-8-1 in the last ten games and are officially eliminated from playoff contention.