Bruins at Senators
THE STORY: The Boston Bruins visit the Ottawa Senators on Thursday in what likely is a preview of an Eastern Conference quarterfinal series. Boston, which will be the second seed, has won four straight away from home and 13 of its last 16 trips to Ottawa. The Senators need one point to clinch seventh in the East. Ottawa has won four of five overall but has lost three of four at home.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NESN (Boston), Rogers Sportsnet East (Ottawa)
ABOUT THE BRUINS (47-29-4): The Northeast Division champions are 5-1-1 in their last seven games overall and have won 22 of the last 28 meetings with the Senators. Defenseman Johnny Boychuk left Tuesday's loss to Pittsburgh with a leg injury and is questionable. "He got hit on the side of the leg," coach Claude Julien said. "We are still confident that it will hopefully not be as bad as it looked." Tim Thomas will get another night off as he did not travel with the team to Ottawa. Anton Khudobin could make his Bruins debut in net. The 25-year old has made four starts in the NHL, all with Minnesota.
ABOUT THE SENATORS (41-29-10): Ottawa will be playing its regular-season home finale. It is 20-16-4 at Scotiabank Place. The Senators won their last meeting with the Bruins on Feb. 28, ending an eight-game losing streak in the all-time series. Jason Spezza needs one goal over his final two games to match his career high. Spezza scored 34 goals in back-to-back seasons from 2006-08. Coach Paul MacLean was blunt when explaining Tuesday's loss to Carolina that ended Ottawa's four-game winning streak. "They obviously were more competitive than we were," he said. "I think we got what we deserved."
OVERTIME:
1. The Bruins have won 21 of their last 27 divisional games while the Senators have lost four of five.
2. The road team has captured 11 of the last 15 matches in the all-time series.