Hurricanes at Bruins
THE STORY: One look at the standings and the easy assumption is that the host Boston Bruins will dominate the lowly Carolina Hurricanes when they clash on Thursday. The Bruins are atop the Northeast Division and second in the Eastern Conference with 66 points. The Hurricanes are both last in the Southeast Division and the conference. One look at the season series matchup tells a completely different story. The Hurricanes have won the first three of four meetings against the Bruins. Carolina has wins of 4-2 and 3-2 on home ice and 4-1 in Boston. Hurricanes defenseman Joni Pitkanen has led the offense in the season series with two goals and four points.
TV: 7 p.m. ET. NHLN-US (HD), FS-Carolina (HD), NESN (HD)
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (18-25-9): Carolina, which is 4-4-2 in its last 10 games, is coming off its first winning month of the season. The Hurricanes were 5-4-3 in January but lost their last outing – 5-2 to the New York Islanders on Tuesday. Captain Eric Staal is coming off a point-per-game month with two goals and 10 assists in 12 contests. G Cam Ward has been doing his part as well, giving up just 20 goals in his last 11 starts. “We need everybody. We can’t have any passengers and that’s what it’s going to take every game – no matter who we’re playing against,” Carolina coach Kirk Muller said. Carolina has a conference-worst five road wins this season.
ABOUT THE BRUINS (32-14-2): Boston, which is 6-3-1 in its last 10 games, is coming off a 4-3 home win over the Ottawa Senators. Captain Zdeno Chara and Brad Marchand scored power-play goals and Milan Lucic also tallied. The game winner came off the stick of defenseman Dennis Seidenberg from center ice. Reigning Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas made 30 saves to improve to 21-9-0 on the season. Boston rallied from a 3-1 deficit to earn its sixth win when trailing after two periods. The Bruins are 17-7-2 at home this season.
OVERTIME:
1. Boston's Tyler Seguin leads the NHL with a plus-32 rating.
2. The Bruins lead the NHL in goal differential (plus 70). The Hurricanes are last in the East (minus-32).
3. Offense has been a struggle for Carolina as the Hurricanes have scored just 10 goals in their last six outings.