The Boston Bruins went 2-0-1 last week, topping both the Winnipeg Jets and Detroit Red Wings, while losing in overtime to the Montreal Canadiens. Boston finds itself in fourth place in the Atlantic Division and fifth place in the Eastern Conference, with a 39-23-8 record, 86 points and a +17 goal differential.
Entering the new week, the Bruins will have a pair of back-to-backs. The club will start the week with division matchups against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres, receive two full days of rest, and then take on the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday and Sunday to end the week. With less than a month left in the regular season and current possession of the top Eastern Conference Wild Card spot, these games are very important for the Bruins, and it’d be a success to walk out of this week with at least two wins.
Boston Bruins’ upcoming schedule for the week of March 24:
- Tuesday, March 24 vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
- Wednesday, March 25 at Buffalo Sabres
- Saturday, March 28 vs. Minnesota Wild
- Sunday, March 29 at Columbus Blue Jackets
Boston Bruins’ DraftKings Fantasy Preview
Tuesday, March 24 vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
- The Toronto Maple Leafs are in eighth place in the Atlantic Division and in 15th place in the Eastern Conference with a 29-29-13 record, 71 points, and a -29 goal differential.
- These teams met twice back in November, with Boston coming out on top both times. Toronto is a miserable 2-8-4 since returning from the Olympic break, and the club is dealing with multiple injuries, with both Auston Matthews and Chris Tanev sidelined for the remainder of the season. Morgan Reilly is deemed day-to-day as well. It’s been an uncharacteristic season for the Maple Leafs, to say the least. The club ranks dead last in the NHL in 5v5 goals against per 60, 12th in 5v5 goals per 60 and 29th in 5v5 xGoals%. The usually-dominant power play unit has been average, ranking 20th in PP%, and it rarely even sees consistent opportunities either, ranking 28th in penalties drawn per 60.
- With Matthews sidelined, William Nylander (24G, 41A) has been the Maple Leafs’ primary source of production, with guys like John Tavares (25G, 32A) and Matthew Knies (18G, 39A) rounding out the top three. Nylander has missed his fair share of games this season, too, but he is still averaging 11.6 DraftKings fantasy points (DK FPTS) per game, which ranks first on the team. Toronto’s Achilles heel has been its goaltending. It comes down to either Joseph Woll (3.17 GAA, .905 SV%) or Anthony Stolarz (3.34 GAA, .894 SV%), both of which rank inside the bottom half of the league in goals saved above expected. 24-year-old Dennis Hildeby (2.90 GAA, .912 SV%) looked like the Maple Leafs’ best goaltender; however, he has not made an appearance since mid January.
Wednesday, March 25 at Buffalo Sabres
- The Buffalo Sabres are in first place in the Atlantic Division and in second place in the Eastern Conference with a 44-20-7 record, 95 points, and a +44 goal differential.
- These teams have met three times already this season, with Boston claiming the first two and Buffalo claiming the most recent matchup on Dec. 27. Around that date is when the Sabres started to completely switch gears. Since Dec. 9, the Sabres are an absurd 33-6-3, while averaging 3.9 goals and allowing 2.5 goals per game. The club is 12-1-1 since returning from the break, with both of its losses coming by just one goal each. On the season, Buffalo has netted the fifth-most goals per game and allowed the ninth-fewest goals per game.
- Tage Thompson (36G, 36A) leads the club in points and is in search of his third career 40-goal season. Rasmus Dahlin (15G, 50A) and Alex Tuch (29G, 30A) round out the top three in terms of points, and at least 14 skaters have totaled 25 points on the season. The Sabres’ trade deadline moves have proved to be useful, too, with Sam Carrick (9G, 7A) making his mark offensively and Logan Stanley (9G, 14A) adding some much-needed big-man protection. The recurring theme for Buffalo the past few seasons has been poor goaltending, but the times have changed. Whether it is Alex Lyon (2.64 GAA, .912 SV%) or Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (2.54 GAA, .911 SV%) manning the net, Buffalo is in good shape. Since Feb. 25, the Sabres have allowed the second-fewest goals per game, with these two guys swapping starts.
Saturday, March 28 vs. Minnesota Wild
- The Minnesota Wild are in third place in the Central Division and in third place in the Western Conference with a 40-19-12 record, 92 points, and a +31 goal differential.
- This will be the second and last meeting between these teams this season, with Minnesota winning the first matchup back on Dec. 14. The Wild were rolling in November and December, but they’ve come back down to Earth since the start of the new year, posting a 16-9-5 record, while averaging 3.5 goals and allowing 3.1 goals per game. On the season, Minnesota has netted the 11th-most goals per game, while allowing the fifth-fewest goals per game. The club ranks sixth in PP% and has netted the third-most power play goals, but the penalty kill is a middling unit (ranked 16th). Luckily, the Wild rank 30th in penalties taken per 60, so their opponents tend not to see many opportunities to exploit their average penalty kill unit.
- Unsurprisingly, Kirill Kaprizov (38G, 42A) is leading the way in terms of points, but he has been sidelined for the past two games and is considered day-to-day. Joel Eriksson Ek (17G, 27A), who ranks fifth on the team in points, has also been sidelined for the past three games for Minnesota. Still, this club is loaded with enough talent that their absences don’t automatically result in losses. Matt Boldy (38G, 37A) is having a career-best season thus far, and he is averaging a whopping 14.1 DK FPTS per game, which is a better game average than Kaprizov. Having two goaltenders who each rank inside the top-40 in terms of goals saved above expected also certainly helps the club when the offense is unable to produce. Filip Gustavsson (2.48 GAA, .913 SV%) ranks 17th in goals saved above expected and 30th in SV% above expected.
Sunday, March 29 at Columbus Blue Jackets
- The Columbus Blue Jackets are in third place in the Metropolitan Division and in seventh place in the Eastern Conference with a 37-22-11 record, 85 points, and a +13 goal differential.
- This will be the second of three meetings between these teams, with the Bruins winning the first matchup. Since returning from the break, the Blue Jackets have gone 8-2-4, while averaging 3.5 goals and allowing 2.7 goals per game. On the season, the Blue Jackets have averaged the 13th-most goals and allowed the 16th-most goals per game. When playing at 5-on-5, the club ranks 10th in 5v5 goals per 60 and seventh in 5v5 xGoals%. Columbus has drawn the second-fewest penalties per 60, which has resulted in limited opportunities for its power play unit, which ranks 17th in the NHL in PP%.
- 10 skaters have notched at least 30 points on the season, with the leading point-getter, Zach Werenski (20G, 55A), on pace for a career-best season. Werenski has averaged 14.1 DK FPTS per game, and he ranks second in points and fourth in goals among defensemen. Kirill Marchenko (25G, 33A) and Charlie Coyle (17G, 38A) round out the top three in terms of leading point-getters. The goaltending tandem of Jet Greaves (2.58 GAA, .910 SV%) and Elvis Merzlikins (3.35 GAA, .885 SV%) has been among the best in the NHL, although Merzlikins’ recent play has been poor. Still, Greaves ranks seventh in goals saved above expected and has allowed just one goal in three of his past four starts.
