GAUNTLET: A Look Boston Bruins’ Insane Schedule to End This Season

It's the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day.

Don't start planning your schedules around the Stanley Cup playoffs just yet because the

Boston Bruins schedule down the stretch is an absolute nightmare.

Your Lockdown Bruins, your daily podcast on the Boston Bruins, part of the Lockdown

Podcast Network, your team every day.

What is up Bruins fans and welcome to a bonus episode of Lockdown Boston Bruins.

I'm Ian McLaren and on this episode we are discussing Boston's absolutely brutal

schedule coming up to end this season.

It is just nightmarish and begins tonight against the Buffalo Sabers and compounded

by the fact that they lost last night at home to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

You absolutely had to win that game because of the gauntlet that they are about to go

through.

Let's talk about, well tonight they traveled the Buffalo to take on a Sabers team that

is challenging for first in the Eastern Conference.

We've come out of nowhere, started off slow the season now 44, 20 and 7 and could overtake

the Carolina Hurricanes for top spot in the East with a win tonight.

They've got plus 44 gold differential versus second only to the Tampa Bay Lightning at

plus 62, 69.0% is just lightly behind the Hurricanes who are one point up.

This is on a back-to-back after losing a very demoralizing game last night to the Toronto

Maple Leafs.

Again, they have to have that one.

All right, let's not stop there.

Let's look towards the next game.

They will come home to host the Minnesota Wild on Saturday.

This is a team that is third in the Western Conference and they have the third best gold

differential in the West, third best point percentage and the third most points.

Just a few shy of the Buffalo Sabers.

This is one of the best teams in the Western Conference in the NHL.

So that's two of the top going into tonight's action anyways, top six teams in the NHL

coming up next.

And then on Sunday, they have to travel to Columbus to take on the current eighth best team

in the NHL in terms of point percentage and total points.

A Columbus Blue Jackets team that like the Sabers start off slow, made a coaching change

and they have been one of the best teams in the NHL since they hired Rick bonus to take

over as head coach.

And if that weren't enough on when is it next Tuesday to wrap up the month of March,

the Bruins have to host the Dallas stars who are currently second in the NHL in total

points, second in point percentage and third in gold differential.

Like that to end March is an absolutely brutal little schedule there.

The Sabers tonight followed by the wild, a top three team in the NHL, the Blue Jackets

who since the new year, one of the top teams in the NHL and then the Dallas stars, one

of the top teams all season long and they've been able to maintain that success with El

Mico Ranton and who may be back in the lineup in time for that game.

He could be back as early as this weekend.

My fantasy team is praying that is the case.

So that's to end March.

And then we turn the calendar to April and they begin with four road games.

They go to Florida to take on the Panthers.

Panthers are of course well out of it, but two time defending Stanley Cup champions and

you know that they will be looking to be as disruptive as possible down the stretch.

Then the Bruins take on the Tampa Bay Lightning in Tampa.

And that was got the best goal differential in the Eastern Conference.

They have the third most points in the Eastern Conference.

Third best record in the Eastern Conference.

Fantastic.

That will not be an easy game.

Then they go to Philadelphia.

Now this is one that should be a win.

Even though the Flyers are coming on here pretty strong.

Six, three and one over their past 10 games.

They have a five 71 point percentage overall and they are only six points back of the Boston

Bruins for a wild card spot.

This is a Flyers team that is not going lightly into the night and you can bet they will

be amped up for this one, especially if they're still right in the playoff race.

And if the Bruins are dropping out, this is a game that the Flyers on home ice could

very much take advantage of.

And then to end that road trip, the Bruins have to go to Carolina.

The number one team in the Eastern Conference currently third overall in points, point percentage

and have one of the best goal differentials in the NHL.

So if you're tracking those like eight games, maybe they beat the Flyers, maybe they're

able to take advantage of a Panther's team that is fatigued and out of it.

They're Minnesota, Buffalo, Columbus, Dallas, it's going to be very hard to win any of

those games, same with Tampa, same with Carolina.

And then to top it all off, they'll have one more back to back on the final weekend of

the regular season where they will host the Tampa Bay Lightning once again, we've already

talked about how good they are.

And then travel back to Columbus to take on the Blue Jackets.

So not only are they playing the Blue Jackets twice down the stretch, but they're both

in Columbus and on the second half of a back to back situation.

Just diabolical scheduling on the part of the NHL.

And then from there, the Bruins will come home to finish off the regular season against

Andrew Jersey Devil's team that is out of the playoff race.

This should be the most winnable game on their schedule.

They're well out of it, one of the top or bottom, you know, 10, 12 teams in the NHL.

That should be a gamey on home ice to end the season.

But out of the other 10 games remaining on the schedule, how many of those can you confidently

look at and say the Bruins are winning that game?

Tonight?

No, I wouldn't say that.

Against the wild on Sunday or Saturday, Blue Jackets on Sunday, those are going to be

tough.

The stars, even at home, maybe the Panthers, but two games against the Lightning, the

Flyers, yeah, Hurricanes, probably not Blue Jackets, probably not.

So maybe that's like two wins that you can safely pencil in for the Boston Bruins over

the next 11 games.

They have to go at least 500, that would give them 96, 98 points.

They probably have to get to the 100 mark to really make sure they get in there.

So that's 14 points out of the next 11 games.

So seven wins or some loser points in there, boy, they really set themselves back, especially

by not taking care of business last night against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

A brutal, brutal, brutal schedule remaining for the Boston Bruins.

Seven road games, three sets of back-to-backs, each weekend is a back-to-back for the Bruins

until the end of the regular season.

And eight of those games are against playoff teams, ones against the defending Stanley Cup

champions, ones against a team sort of still in it in the Flyers, three against two of

the best teams in the East as of late in Buffalo, Columbus, taking on the Lightning, Hurricanes,

two of the best teams in the West in the wild in the Stars, like this is problematic to

say the least.

And it will be a miracle at this point if the Boston Bruins are able to squeak into

the Stanley Cup playoffs.

We'll take a look at the latest items of note prior to tonight's game against Buffalo

Sabers here as the podcast continues.

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Heading into tonight's game against the Sabers, we haven't really got any idea of if there

will be any lineup changes for tonight's game.

Of course, the Bruins with a first line of who Stundinov, Minton, Poshronok, Middlestat,

Zaka, Arvetson, Rikol, Lindholm, Geeky on the third line with Geno, Kerali, Kasslik

on the fourth line.

That's probably their best lineup right now, but keep an eye on Providence tonight.

As James Hagen's will be making his AHL debut and I believe that's a game that you can

stream for free if you Google that up.

That's Perot, McAvoy, Lindholm, Loris, Adora, Avyoki, Haru, and I would expect it'll

be, you want us to call him a salo in net for the Bruins tonight.

The Bruins may be tempted to go back to Jeremy Swamon because he has been their best player

all season long.

This is a possible first round preview, but depending on the Sabers finish first in the

Atlantic or in the Eastern Conference in which Wildcard spot, the Bruins may end up

in, if at all, the Sabers have the benefit of playing seven of their last 11 games at

home.

It's the opposite for the Boston Bruins and it's going to be a rocket's crowd because

they're starting to fill the building again, Buffalo fans are excited and they haven't

had this kind of hockey for a very, very long time.

Sabers 1-1-1, so far this season in the matchup, Uko Peckalukin will be in net, he's 6-1

with a 9-35 save percentage since the Olympic break and MoneyPot credits him with 8.9

goals above expected in his last 10 games, 4-0 against the Bruins since last season.

Sabers are 5-2-1 and nationally televised games this season, 15-4-3 against Atlantic

Division opponents, 4 of those 7 losses came back in October when they were really still

figuring it out.

Buffalo has the most wins since 2009-10 for the franchise, they've got a tough back end,

Rasmus Dalline, plus 19 with 17 points in his last 12 games, Owen Power, 5 points in his

last 7 games, another first overall pick.

They've outscored opponents, 4-0 with Stanley Logan and Zach Metsa deployed at 5 on 5 as

well, so this is a deep team and it's going to be a tough go for the Boston Bruins tonight,

let's just end with that, all right, tough go tonight, tough schedule ahead.

Gord bless the Boston Bruins as they try to lock down a playoff spot here down the

stretch.

Thank you so much for joining me on this bonus episode of Lockdown Boston Bruins, please

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