PREVIEW: struggling Senators visit red-hot Bruins

Just The Facts:

What: The Ottawa Senators 11-15-8, 30pts, 7th in ATL) visit the Boston Bruins (19-10-5, 43pts, 3rd in Atlantic)

When: 7:00 PM ET

Where: TD Garden, Boston, MA

Where to watch: NESN, TSN-3

Where to listen: 98.5 The Sports Hub

Preview

Ottawa has eight losses in their last ten games, and have dropped three in a row. Alexandre Burrows is the first-line right wing, proving you CAN eat your way to the top of SOMETHING. It’s been a bit of a fall since last year’s playoff run.

Boston, meanwhile, is walkin’ out of the holiday break like...

The Bruins have played solid hockey for several weeks in a row, going 8-2-1 record in December. This is an excellent spot for the Bruins at this point in the season - they’re in a good spot in the Atlantic division, holding a decent grip on third with the Toronto Maple Leafs just two points ahead of them in the standings. They’re building confidence and now that the early-season injury bug is passing (hopefully, along with the illness bug from last week).

Players to Watch:

• Let’s see if David Backes stays hot following the birth of his second child; he had two assists in Saturday’s win over Detroit.
• Bratrice Pastrchand is humming along as well, with the wingers already topping 30 points each and Saint Patrice winning nearly 57% of his faceoffs. Yikes!
• Never. Stop. Watching. Charlie McAvoy.
• Ottawa’s loss of Kyle Turris via trade has stung, with the acquired Matt Duchene still lagging in the points category despite playing on the top line. A saving grace for the Senators has been depth contributions from Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman.
• The goalie tandem of Craig Anderson and Mike Condon has been... less than stellar. While it’s not entirely their fault, Ottawa allows 3.21 goals per game, good for sixth-most in the league.

NEVER 4GET:

Sean Kuraly’s arrival in the 2017 ECQF: