BUFFALO –– It is now or never for the Boston Bruins.
The B’s, who trail the first-round series 3-1, will battle to keep their season alive on Tuesday when they face the Buffalo Sabres for Game 5 at 7:30 p.m. at KeyBank Center.
“Probably a little bit of everything, I would say,” head coach Marco Sturm said of how his team is feeling. “I think we are excited to bounce back. That’s the biggest thing. We want to show everyone that last game, that’s not really us…We have nothing to lose here. We have to try to find our game again and see where it’s going to take us.”
Viktor Arvidsson will not play on Tuesday due to an upper-body injury, Sturm said. The Bruins will have a few more decisions to make after warmups, Sturm continued, but Mikey Eyssimont and Alex Steeves will be “ready to go if needed.” It would be Steeves’ NHL playoff debut.
“I think we have good enough players who want to step up their game from last game,” Pavel Zacha said. “We have a chance for success, and that’s what we need to focus on. All year, there’s been ups and downs. If everyone steps up and plays their game, we’re going to win.”
Former Sabre Henri Jokiharju will enter the lineup for the first time this series. The defenseman is projected to skate on the second pair with Hampus Lindholm, replacing Jordan Harris. It will be Jokiharju’s first time playing in the NHL postseason.
“I think that’s our mindset for one game right now – get back to our hockey, get back to our Boston identity, get back to what has been successful through the year. Just play our brand,” Nikita Zadorov said. “Everybody saw the result. It is a slap to the face and just cannot happen with our team, our organization, our identity. Today we’ve just got to come out and play like it’s the last game of our lives. Like our life is on the line. We’ve just got to go out there and try to die on the ice.”
