Need to Know: Bruins at Sabres | First Round

Postseason History

This is the ninth time the Bruins and Sabres have met in the playoffs; Boston has won six of the previous eight series.

The most recent postseason matchup between the two teams was in 2009-10. The Bruins won the conference quarterfinals in six games. Sturm was a B’s player at the time, in his fifth year with the organization. Now, he’ll be behind the bench, trying to coach his squad to another series victory.

“I said it today, I actually want to play right now,” Sturm said with a smile. “Those were the good days, those were the fun days. That’s why you play the game, I feel like – those kinds of moments. It doesn’t matter who you’re going to play against. It’s the postseason, it’s the playoffs. You’ve got to go out, and you’ve got to enjoy, you’ve got to battle hard. Those are the memories I personally have from my playing days, and those are the best ones.”

Buffalo and Boston first faced off in the 1981-82 playoffs, when the Bruins won the Adams Division Semifinals in four games. The following year, Boston beat the Sabres in seven games in the Adams Division Finals. The next meeting was in 1987-88; the Bruins won the division semifinals in six games, and did the same the following season (1988-89), but this time in five games.

Ruff played for the Sabres for 10 seasons (1979-89) and remembers those bruising series against the Bruins.

“Back then, I had a hard time sleeping during the day when you knew that night was going to be one of those nights you feared for your life sometimes. The game is different. The intimidation was a huge part of the game back then,” Ruff said. “When you lived through the game, it was fun, yeah.”

The B’s topped Buffalo once again in the 1991-92 division semifinals in seven games. The Sabres then swept the Bruins in the 1992-93 division semifinals. Buffalo’s second series win against Boston came in 1998-99, when it won the Eastern Conference Semifinals in six games before falling to the Dallas Stars in the Stanley Cup Final.

Series Schedule

Game 1: Sunday, April 19 at 7:30 p.m. (KeyBank Center | TV: NESN, ESPN, SN360, TVAS | RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub) 

Game 2: Tuesday, April 21 at 7:30 p.m. (KeyBank Center | TV: NESN, ESPN, SN360, TVAS | RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub)

Game 3: Thursday, April 23 at 7 p.m. (TD Garden | TV: NESN, TNT, truTV, HBO MAX, SN360, TVAS | RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub) 

Game 4: Sunday, April 26 at 2 p.m. (TD Garden | TV: NESN, TNT, truTV, HBO MAX, SN, TVAS | RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub) 

Game 5: Tuesday, April 28 at TBD (KeyBank Center | TV: TBD | RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub 

Game 6: Friday May 1 at TBD (TD Garden | TV: TBD | RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub) 

Game 7: Sunday, May 3 at TBD (KeyBank Center | TV: TBD | RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub)