Preview: Bruins open second round against Islanders to a full house tonight

Just the facts

When: Tonight, 8:00 PM

Where: TD Garden – Boston, MA

How to follow: NBC, TVAS, SN360, 98.5 The Sports Hub

Rival SBN site: Lighthouse Hockey

Know your enemy

• Playoffs: Anthony Beauvillier: 6GP, 3G, 4A, 7PTS; Jean-Gabriel Pageau: 6GP, 1G, 6A, 7PTS; Josh Bailey: 6GP, 3G, 3A, 6PTS; Brock Nelson: 6GP, 3G, 3A, 6PTS
• Ilya Sorokin: 4-0-0, 1.95 GAA, .943 save percentage; Semyon Varlamov: 0-2-0, 3.61 GAA, .903 save percentage
• Regular season leaders: Mathew Barzal: 17G, 28A, 45PTS; Josh Bailey: 8G, 27A, 35PTS; Brock Nelson: 18G, 15A, 33PTS; Jordan Eberle: 16G, 17A, 33PTS

Game notes

• After a week’s break, hockey is back! The Boston Bruins host the New York Islanders for Game 1 of the second round and Boston will be buzzing. It’s going to be a packed house, as the TD Garden will be at near full capacity, with COVID restrictions lifted across the state today. The Bruins last played to 18,000+ home fans on March 7, 2020 and are sure to feed off the energy in the building tonight.
• The Bruins were 3-4-1 against the Islanders during the regular season and only got one point out of them in the first five meetings of the season. But after the trade deadline, the Bruins were 3-0-0 to close out the last handful of games, which included the overtime win against the Isles to cap off the season series. That game ultimately gave the Bruins the home ice advantage for the second round.
• The Bruins closed out the first round against the Washington Capitals with a 3-1 win in DC to take the series in five games. The B’s dropped the opening game, but that would be it. The series saw three consecutive overtime games, in which the Bruins took two wins. The Bruins did not have more than a goal-lead until Game 4 where they led by three twice during the victory.
• Patrice Bergeron’s line saw the most production during the first round, accounting for eight goals and 13 points combined. The line netted five goals in the last two games. David Pastrnak had a quiet start to the series, but finished games 4 and 5 with two goals and two assists. David Krejci’s line registered eight points in the five games. Charlie McAvoy leads the team with an impressive five assists this postseason.
• The Islanders have had a couple days off after eliminating the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday. The Islanders took the series over the Pens in six games. The Isles defeated the Penguins twice in extra minutes, with one of the games reaching double overtime. Out of 21 goals in the first round, nine were scored by the Isles’ line of Beauvillier, Bailey and Nelson. During the regular season, those three players combined for four goals against the Bruins.
• The Bruins will have to watch out for that line, but also when Kyle Palmieri and Pageau have the puck. Both were thorns in the B’s side during the regular season and have had impactful postseasons thus far. Against the Bruins, Palmieri registered five goals and one assist – all of those points came pre-trade deadline while on the New Jersey Devils. Palmieri has three goals this postseason, including an overtime game-winner. Pageau had five goals and three assists against the Bs. Pageau lit the lamp once against the Pens, but accumulated six assists in the series. Both players however, didn’t register any points in their last three meetings against the Bruins.
• Brad Marchand led the team with four goals against the Islanders, helping add to his line’s leading seven goals in the regular-season series. Taylor Hall netted four goals in his three games against the Islanders after he was acquired by the B’s.
• The Bruins and Islanders both had strong penalty kills against each other during the regular season, as success on either sides’ power play was held to 16% (Bruins) or 15% (Islanders) during the eight games. But heading into the second-round series, the Bruins have the edge on special teams. The Bruins netted five power-play goals against the Capitals in the first round, for a production of 26.3%. In the first round, the Islanders’ power-play was 18.8% effective on 16 opportunities.
• Bruce Cassidy announce yesterday that Kevan Miller will miss Game 1. Miller has not been on the ice since being injured during Game 4 against the Capitals. Jeremy Lauzon’s status is still undetermined. But Lauzon has participated in practice the past couple days and a decision will be made today. For the Islanders, Barry Trotz said Oliver Wahlstrom is “day-to-day” and unlikely to play.

See ya tonight!