Preview: Bruins get back to work against Wild tonight

Just the facts

When: Tonight, 7:00 PM

Where: TD Garden – Boston, MA

How to follow: ESPN, SNE, SNO, SNP, 98.5 The Sports Hub

Rival SBN site: Hockey Wilderness

Know your enemy

• 19-10-2, 40PTS, tied for 3rd in Central Division
• Kirill Kaprizov: 31GP, 13G, 26A, 39PTS; Ryan Hartman: 31GP, 15G, 13A, 28PTS; Mats Zuccarello: 25GP, 8G, 17A, 25PTS
• Kaapo Kahkonen: 4-2-1, 2.67 GAA, .906 save percentage

Game notes

• The Boston Bruins are back in action tonight against the Minnesota Wild for the first of two meetings this season.
• It’s the first time since February 1, 2020 that the two clubs have seen each other. In that game, the Bruins won 6-1 on the road.
• A Bruins’ win tonight would give the team their longest win streak of the season. The B’s current three-game win streak is tied for their longest so far. They last won three in a row November 13-20, 2021 when each win was determined by three goals and a final score of 5-2.
• January has gotten off to a strong start in the points column for the Bruins. Although the most complete effort came during January 2’s road game, the B’s have found secondary scoring on nights that the top line hasn’t been as impactful.
• Tuesday’s 5-3 win was won with weird goals, but a goal is a goal no matter what it looks like. The Bruins’ fourth line produced two goals and assisted on another, while David Pastrnak and Oskar Steen added the other goals in the victory over the Devils.
• The Wild last played on January 1 and lost 6-4 to the St. Louis Blues. It’s the only game they’ve played since the COVID pause and Christmas break. The Wild had a rough start to the game. Kaprizov netted the tying goal in the first period to make it 1-1, but the Blues then scored four goals during the second period. Rem Pitlick cut into the Wild’s deficit in the final minutes of the second to make it 5-2 before less than a minute later, the Blues scored again. Hartman and Kevin Fiala added tallies to make the final score a 6-4 loss.
• Minnesota is on a five-game losing streak and last won on December 9, 2021 against the San Jose Sharks. All but one of the losses were high-scoring games in which the Wild scored four goals and their opponent netted six or more.
• The Wild have hit a rough patch with injuries and COVID protocol. Three players, including their goaltender Cam Talbot, are sidelined with injuries and one player is in protocol. The team recalled Matt Boldy and Marco Rossi from the AHL this week. Both will make their NHL debuts tonight.
• Tomas Nosek was added to COVID protocol yesterday. He joins Karson Kuhlman and Jake DeBrusk already in protocol, along with four team staffers.
• Practice updates: Trent Frederic centered Anton Blidh and Curtiz Lazar on the fourth line yesterday with Nosek out. Bruce Cassidy said Jeremy Swayman will get the start in net tonight.

See ya tonight!