Tonight's Officials
Referees Ian Walsh (29), Eric Furlatt (27)
Linesmen Ryan Daisy (81), Darren Gibbs (66)
Ntl. Anthem Angelica Salem
TONIGHT’S GAME - The Bruins visit the Islanders tonight in the 3rd of 3 games between these teams this season and the Bruins’ lone visit to Nassau Coliseum this year … The Bruins are 43-20-9 this season and are 15-13-6 on the road … They are 9-9-2 vs. Metropolitan Division opponents and are 24-15-4 vs. Eastern Conference foes. - The Bruins open a 4-game road trip tonight in a span that has them playing 7 of 8 games on the road (1-3-0) … They continue this trip at NJ (3/21), FLA (3/23) & TB (3/25) before returning home to host NYR on 3/27.
MILESTONES APPROACHING - Torey Krug is 1 point shy of his 284th career point, which will move him past Craig Janney for the most points in team history by a U.S.-born Bruin. - Zdeno Chara is 1 goal short of his 200th NHL goal … He will become just the 22nd defenseman in NHL history to reach that milestone & 2nd active (Shea Weber).
INJURIES (Total man-games lost in 2018-19: 214) - Matt Grzelcyk – Upper body - Marcus Johansson – Lung contusion - Torey Krug – Concussion - on current trip - Kevan Miller – Upper body - David Pastrnak – 2/12 left thumb surgery - on current trip
BOSTON vs NEW YORK, LIFETIME SERIES - The Bruins and Islanders are meeting for the 169th time in their histories with the Bruins having an 89-54-21-4 record and 571-482 scoring advantage in those games. - The Bruins are 42-30-10-2 lifetime in New York with a 278-257 scoring edge in those 84 contests. - The Bruins have won their last 6 games vs. the Islanders, including a 2-1 shootout win in Boston on 11/29 & 3-1 home win on 2/5 in the 1st 2 games of this season’s series, with their last loss to New York a 4-0 home setback on 1/16/2017 … They are 11-2-0 in their last 13 games overall vs. the Islanders … They have won their last 7 games of this lifetime series in New York with their last road loss to the Islanders a 3-1 setback on 11/2/2013 & they are 15-2-1 in their last 18 road games vs. New York.
The Boston Bruins could have a significant piece of their lineup back when they play at the New York Islanders on Tuesday night.
Right winger David Pastrnak, who has missed 16 games after injuring his left thumb in an off-ice fall, participated fully in practice Monday and could play Tuesday in a battle of playoff-bound Eastern Conference teams at Nassau Coliseum.
"Not saying that he will, but he'll make that decision in conjunction with the medical staff as early as (Tuesday) after morning skate," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said on NHL.com. "I would assume he'll be a game-time decision. ... I suspect if he doesn't play (Tuesday) that Thursday will be a real good day."
Pastrnak, 22, was the team's leader scorer when he slipped and fell after attending a sponsorship dinner with several of his teammates on Feb. 10. Pastrnak is still tied for the team lead with 31 goals and is third with 66 points in 56 games.
He also was leading the NHL in power-play goals (15) at the time of his injury.
The Islanders were off Monday after earning a 3-2 overtime win over the host Minnesota Wild on Sunday,
The Bruins last played Saturday, when they snapped a three-game losing streak by edging the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets, 2-1, in overtime.
New York goalie Thomas Greiss capped one of the best weeks of his career in recording the win Sunday, when he made 32 saves. The 33-year-old was named the NHL's first star of the week Monday in recognition of going 3-1-0 with a 1.25 goals against average while recording a .959 save percentage and facing the most shots in the NHL (121) in that span.
The recent surge began with Robin Lehner sidelined due to an upper-body injury believed to be a concussion. Lehner, who started 19 of the Islanders' first 28 games of 2019 before getting hurt against Ottawa on March 5, was establishing himself as a Vezina Trophy candidate by going 20-11-5 with a 2.19 goals-against average.
But now Greiss, who is 22-12-2 this season with a 2.21 goals-against average, has basically become Lehner's equal. It's a nice problem for the Islanders to have as they head toward the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
"We haven't overextended our goalies all year," Islanders head coach Barry Trotz said after Greiss recorded a 31-save shutout in a 2-0 win over the Blue Jackets on March 11. "I don't see any reason for concern right now."
Boston will likely turn to Tuukka Rask, who has started five of the last eight games and 39 overall this season. Jaroslav Halak started and earned the win Saturday by making 19 saves.
Regardless of who starts at goalie, the Bruins will expect to continue the defensive effort they displayed against the Blue Jackets. Boston, which allowed 15 goals during its three-game losing streak, limited Columbus to just 20 shots on Saturday.
The Bruins' 95 points are the second-most in the Eastern Conference behind the Atlantic Division-leading Tampa Bay Lightning (114 points). Boston entered Monday with the third-fewest goals allowed (185) in the NHL.
The Islanders are first at 173 goals allowed.
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Unfortunately I will miss this one in real time, work function until around 9:30 pm
, so it’s DVR and delayed GDT for me. Let’s go Bruins
