BOSTON – Another night, another step closer in the Bruins’ playoff push.

The Boston Bruins (43-24-8) beat the Dallas Stars (44-19-12) 6-3 at the TD Garden, and a four-goal third period pulled the game away for the Bruins. Viktor Arvidsson notched a hat trick, Elias Lindholm scored his first power-play goal since January 22, and Henri Jokiharju scored his first as a Bruin. 

Viktor Arvidsson’s hat trick is his first since March 2022, when he was with the Los Angeles Kings. It was also a special day in the Arvidsson household.

“Yeah, my oldest [daughter] is turning five, so that was pretty cool, I got a hat trick on her birthday,” Arvidsson said after the game.  

He smiled when asked if she would get the puck.

Arvidsson now has 10 goals since the Olympic break, second to Pavel Zacha (13), and he is a team-leading plus-14. He was quick to speak up and say he had an easy hat trick, but three goals were the difference on Tuesday night. 

Arvidsson banked two goals on an empty net, but both were shot from behind center ice. His other one was from David Pastrnak, who finished the night with three assists.

Coming out of the break, Elias Lindholm had three points in 12 games. He has seven in the last six games, including five goals. 

“He was good. Not just tonight. I think since he’s in that C3 hole now, I feel like he’s, and also Lukas, you know, Geeks. I feel like he has more freedom now. He plays more his game,” Marco Sturm said about Lindholm. 

“He’s definitely healthy now, back to being healthy. Don’t forget that. He was going to the Olympics, he was not 100%.” 

Marco Sturm on Elias Lindholm: “He was good. Not just tonight. I think since he’s in that C3 hole now, I feel like he’s, and also Lukas, you know, Geeks. I feel like he has more freedom now.” 

“He’s definitely healthy now, back to being healthy. Don’t forget that. He was going… pic.twitter.com/EldJ6MewwO

— Jack Studley (@jackstudley13) April 1, 2026

The Bruins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first, but the Stars tied the game in the second.

Elias Lindholm’s power-play goal on Tuesday was his first since January 22, and it shifted momentum back to Boston. 

“First period, we played well,” Lindholm said after the game. “Second period, we kind of, you know, obviously we knew they were going to come out better, and we kind of went down a little bit. I thought they played some good hockey. And that 3-2 goal right away, it was huge.”

The goal came just 13 seconds into the period, and the Bruins scored twice more before the Stars scored their third goal. 

Henri Jokiharju then tallied his first goal in a Bruins sweater. He was acquired at the 2025 Trade Deadline and has played in 57 games. 

He has never played in a playoff game in his NHL career, spending his first year with the Chicago Blackhawks and the next six in Buffalo. 

“Oh, for sure. For sure, [it means] a lot,” Jokiharju said about contributing to a playoff push. “But, you know, like I said before, it’s a huge, huge win for us. Obviously, it feels good to get those personal things and points. But at this time of the year, I really enjoyed playing. I’ve never actually played these kind of games before this end of the year. So it’s awesome. And just, you know, it’s so much [of a] different feeling than before.”

After losing at home against Toronto, the Bruins faced four straight teams in the playoff picture. They won all four, and their playoff chances improved.

“The good thing is that, you know, everyone was talking about, and it’s true though, everyone was talking about the schedule, you know, the Bruins have the toughest schedule,” Sturm said. “Yeah, I believe that too. But what I liked about it is we always seems like play better when we are playing against better teams, and for us, the playoffs already started a long time ago. That’s the good thing about our team right now. We want to get challenged right now.”

“I do believe so,” Sturm said when asked if the players believe they can beat any team. “I think that really, guys are believing [in] themselves, and they know we are a good, solid team.”

The Bruins also had some help across the board. They now rank six points ahead of the Blue Jackets for the second wild card; Columbus lost on Tuesday. Ottawa, Detroit, and Philadelphia also lost on Tuesday; they are all chasing the second wild card.

According to MoneyPuck, the Bruins’ playoff odds are now at 98.2%. The magic number is now nine, according to Hockey Magic Numbers. The Bruins have seven games remaining. 

Their next is against the Florida Panthers (36-35-13), who have been battered with injuries and rank last in the Atlantic Division. 

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