After a 22-day break, the Boston Bruins (32-20-5) are back.

Seven of them (plus one P-Bruin) were in the Olympics, and four came back with medals. The rest enjoyed their breaks and returned to practice on February 18.

The Bruins entered the break on a 12-2-3 run dating back to New Year’s Eve. They played well on home ice, especially in January, and they are carrying a nine-game home winning streak into tonight’s contest. 

Tonight’s opponent is the red-hot Columbus Blue Jackets (29-20-7).

The story with tonight’s opponent was their surge after head coach Rick Bowness was hired. Since the change, ‘Bones’ has led them to a 10-1-0 record since taking over on January 12. When the change happened, the Blue Jackets were in last place in the East; now, they are tenth.

And tonight marks Charlie Coyle’s return to the TD Garden. He was traded on March 6, 2025, to the Colorado Avalanche. The Avalanche traded him to the Blue Jackets over the summer. 

It’s a crucial game as the push for the playoffs picks up. The Bruins are in the second wild card spot, and the Blue Jackets are four points behind. 

Bruins Morning Skate Notes

The Bruins skated in an optional skate at 10:30 this morning at the TD Garden. 

Charlie McAvoy returned, and Marco Sturm said that his status is to be determined, though the expectation is that he will be ready to go.

“McAvoy, we will see after practice,” Sturm said. “See how he feels. He just got in.”

“It’s been a long, exciting journey for him, even after they won,” Sturm added about McAvoy. “I just want to make sure he feels healthy, he feels in his mind, ready to go. We talked briefly this morning. We expect him to play, but you never know.”

Sturm also added that everyone else is healthy. 

The Bruins carried all three rostered goalies, and Sturm announced Joonas Korpisalo as the starter. With Jeremy Swayman returning to the team yesterday, he will be watching tonight’s game from the press box.

“Sway, we will give him a night off,” Sturm said. “That was just – he didn’t play for a while. So, just want to make sure we are going to be careful down the stretch because we need him.”

“DiPietro will be the backup, with (Swayman) shooting for the weekend.”

Michael DiPietro will back up Joonas Korpisalo.  

Expected Bruins Lines
Forwards

Marat Khusnutdinov – Elias Lindholm – David Pastrnak

Casey Mittelstadt – Pavel Zacha – Viktor Arvidsson

Mikey Eyssimont – Fraser Minten – Morgan Geekie

Tanner Jeannot – Sean Kuraly – Mark Kastelic

Defensemen

Nikita Zadorov – Henri Jokiharju

Hampus Lindholm – Mason Lohrei

Jonathan Aspirot – Andrew Peeke

Source: Belle Fraser (Boston Bruins)

Starting Goalie

Joonas Korpisalo (10-8-2, 3.15 GAA, .893 SV%)

Source: Marco Sturm

Expected Blue Jackets Lines
Forwards

Mason Marchment – Adam Fantilli – Kirill Marchenko

Dmitri Voronkov – Sean Monahan – Kent Johnson

Cole Sillinger – Charlie Coyle – Mathieu Olivier

Carl Lundestrom – Boone Jenner – Miles Wood

Defensemen

Zach Werenski – Damon Severson

Ivan Provorov – Denton Mateychuk

Dante Fabbro – Erik Gudbranson

Source: Jeff Svoboda (Columbus Blue Jackets)

Starting Goalie

Elvis Merzlikins (11-8-1, 3.49 GAA, .888 SV%)

Source: The Hockey News-Columbus

Special Teams

The Bruins have seen their special teams fall into two different categories: the power play is incredible, but the penalty kill needs some work. However, Marco Sturm said that “our biggest homework” over the break was the penalty kill. 

The Bruins’ power play ranks third in the NHL (26.3%). Since the New Year, they have converted at a 30.4% rate. On the other hand, the B’s penalty kill ranks 28th in the NHL (76.4%). It has not been good since January 1; they have only killed 65.5% of penalties in that frame. 

In Columbus, the power play is right in the middle of the pack. They are ranked 18th in the NHL at 19.7%. The penalty kill is slightly ahead of the Bruins. They have killed 77.4% of penalties this season and rank 23rd. 

Since Rick Bowness took over, their power play has scored on 24.0% of chances. The penalty kill has killed off 81.4% of the Blue Jackets’ infractions. Both of those rank 13th in the NHL since he took over.

Season Series

Thursday, February 26: Blue Jackets @ Bruins

Sunday, March 29: Bruins @ Blue Jackets

Sunday, April 12: Bruins @ Blue Jackets

Upcoming Schedule

Saturday, February 28: Bruins @ Flyers, 3:00 PM

Tuesday, March 3: Penguins @ Bruins, 7:00 PM

Thursday, March 5: Bruins @ Predators, 8:00 PM

Saturday, March 7: Capitals @ Bruins, 12:30 PM

Sunday, March 8: Bruins @ Penguins, 4:30 PM

How To Watch

7:00 PM

TV: NESN

Radio: 98.5 The Sports Hub