Senators at Bruins
THE STORY: Boston’s Zdeno Chara and Ottawa’s Daniel Alfredsson had a
blast picking the All-Star Game rosters. They also seemed to thoroughly
enjoy themselves throughout All-Star Weekend in Ottawa, which
culminated with Team Chara’s 12-9 victory over Team Alfredsson in
Sunday’s All-Star Game. The tone will turn far more serious, though,
when the captains lead their respective teams back into games that
count, beginning with Tuesday’s meeting at Boston. The Senators trail
the Bruins by four points in the Northeast Division, but Boston has a
whopping five games in hand. Ottawa slid into the break on a three-game
road losing streak while Boston has alternated wins and losses in its
last eight. The Bruins have won six straight over the Senators,
including 5-2 and 5-3 victories this season.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NESN (Boston), SNET-East, TVA (Ottawa)
ABOUT THE SENATORS (27-19-6): Ottawa is five points clear of three
teams tied for seventh in the Eastern Conference playoff race, but has
played three or four more games than those teams. Craig Anderson
(25-16-4, 2.90, .910) leads the NHL in ice time and has made 14
consecutive starts. All-Star Erik Karlsson tops NHL defenseman in points
with 47. The Senators have failed to score the first goal in seven
straight games, but managed to win three of them.
ABOUT THE BRUINS (31-14-2): Boston enters the second half two points
behind the New York Rangers for the Eastern Conference lead and tied
with Vancouver for the third-highest point total in the NHL. The break
came at a good time for the Bruins, who have given up 19 goals in their
last five games (2-2-1). Right wing Nathan Horton missed last Tuesday’s
5-3 loss at Washington with a mild concussion and will not play. Boston
is 14-2-2 in its last 18 at home.
OVERTIME:
1. Both Bruins goaltenders – Tuukka Rask (second, .938) and Tim Thomas (fifth, .933) – are in the top five in save percentage.
2. The under is 7-0-1 in the Senators’ last eight games.