The Bruins will look to extend their winning streak to five games when they begin a four-game road trip at Florida against the Panthers Thursday night.
With just one regulation loss in their last 10 games, the Bruins are closing in on a spot in the playoffs. A win tonight would not only inch them closer to the postseason, but would push the struggling two-time defending Stanley Cup champions to the brink of elimination.
The Panthers are one spot above last place in the Eastern Conference after losing six of their last nine games and have 12 players on the injured list, but they are still a dangerous team, having defeated the Senators 6-3 on Tuesday.
The Bruins are coming off a 6-3 win over the Stars in which Viktor Arvidsson posted the fifth hat trick of his career and first since March March 4, 2022.
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“It was three easy ones,” Arvidsson said. “One was two inches from the goal, and the other two were empty-netters.”
Here is a preview.
When: Thursday, 7 p.m.
Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise, Fla.
TV, radio: NESN, WBZ-FM 98.5
Line: Boston -150. O/U: 6.5.
BRUINS
Season record: 43-24-8. vs. spread: 49-26. Over/under: 42-32, 1 push
Last 10 games: 7-1-2. vs. spread: 9-1. Over/under: 7-3
PANTHERS
Season record: 36-35-3. vs. spread: 25-49. Over/under: 41-31, 2 pushes
Last 10 games: 4-6-0. vs. spread: 4-6. Over/under: 5-5
TEAM STATISTICS
Goals scored: Boston 252, Florida 217
Goals allowed: Boston 230, Florida 246
Power play: Boston 24.0%, Florida 19.8%
Penalty minutes: Boston 942, Florida 848
Penalty kill: Boston 76.2%, Florida 81.9%
Faceoffs won: Boston 52.7%, Florida 47.2%
Stat of the day: David Pastrnak has 23 points in his last 14 games.
Notes: Pastrnak leads the Bruins in assists (66) and points (95), and is closing in on 100 points for the fourth straight season. His previous career-high in assists was 63. … Morgan Geekie is first on the Bruins with 34 goals and ranks second in points (63). Pavel Zacha’s career-high 60 points is good for third. … The Bruins are just 15-14-7 on the road. Florida is 20-15-3 at home. … After tonight, the Bruins will face the Lightning on Saturday and Flyers on Sunday before concluding their road trip against the Hurricanes at Carolina on Tuesday. … Former Bruin Brad Marchand has been out of action for Florida since March 6 with a lower body injury.
Follow Andrew Mahoney @GlobeMahoney.
