The Boston Bruins cannot afford to be playing this badly, especially with the regular season coming to a close. They have no sort of momentum with the losses piling up. But they still hold a coveted automatic playoff spot, ranking third in the Atlantic Division.
Boston’s road to the playoffs won’t get any easier on Friday night. They head over to St. Louis to take on the Blues. St. Louis has been spectacular of late, and is riding a five-game win streak. They’re tied for the best record in the Western Conference with Dallas. They’ll be hard-pressed to earn the top spot in the West against their divisional rivals.
The Boston Bruins seem to be giving a playoff spot away. They lost for the sixth time in the past seven games at New Jersey on Tuesday. But it wasn’t for any lack of effort. The Bruins outshot the Devils 40-15 in the 2-1 loss. They were buried by penalties when the Devils went 2 for 5 on the man advantage.
Tuukka Rask made 13 stops, while Brad Marchand scored for the first time in nine games. Patrice Bergeron struggled as he failed to score on five shots on goal. Bergeron has only scored once during the Bruins’ 1-6 rut. He may have a difficult time getting past St. Louis’ Brian Elliott, who has been stellar as of late.
The Bruins are struggling to find the back of the net. They’ve scored just 10 goals in their seven-game rut. But they still own one of the best offenses in the league, ranking fourth with 2.8 goals per game. At their best, the Bruins have the firepower to necessary to win games. Marchand is their go-to forward with a team-high 35 goals. Bergeron and Loui Eriksson aren’t too far behind with 29 and 27 goals respectively.
The trio of scorers have a solid playmaker in the form of David Krejci, who leads the team with 41 assists this season. But scoring is just one part of the equation. Rask will need to be at the top of his game between the pipes if the Bruins are to win this game. He’s allowed 10 goals in a 0-5 road losing streak.
Betting on the St. Louis Blues
Aren’t these Blues something? St. Louis recorded a franchise-record scoreless run of 258 minutes and 29 seconds after allowing one goal late in the first period in a 3-1 home win over Colorado on Tuesday night. Brian Elliott had 20 saves and Vladimir Tarasenko scored his 36th goal of the season to lift St. Louis to victory. David Backes and Troy Brouwer also scored for the Blues.
The Blues have now won five-straight games heading into this big clash against Boston. They can continue rolling with their combination of relentless offense and a solid defense against the visiting Bruins.
St. Louis has plenty of playmakers in the frontline. Tarasenko and Backes are among the best scorers on the team with 36 and 20 goals respectively. They’ll have some support from Alexander Steen, who had two assists Tuesday. Steen now has four points in his last two games alone. Expect the Blues to be all over the Boston net, especially with the way Tuukka Rask is struggling recently.
Goaltending will be a strong suit for the Blues right now. Net minders Jake Allen and Elliott had four straight shutouts combined before the 3-1 win over Colorado. They’ll be looking to start a new streak when the offensively-challenged Bruins come rolling into town on Friday.
Elliott should get the nod as he’s been stellar as of late. Before shutting out Washington on Saturday, Allen had allowed 13 goals in his last three games. But Elliot may have a rough outing ahead. He’s 1-4 with a 3.2 GAA.
Writer’s Prediction
The Blues keep rolling as they beat up Boston 3-0.
