The Vegas Golden Knights (32-17-6) are on the last game of a four-game Eastern Conference road trip where they’ve gone 1-2-0. Today’s game is the last one before the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off Tournament. They’ll take on the Boston Bruins (27-23-6) in a matinee matchup at TD Garden today.
The puck drops just after 12:30 p.m.
The Golden Knights are coming off of a domineering win over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday, in which they allowed just 16 shots on goal. That win snapped a four-game losing streak, and the Golden Knights will try to win two games in a row for the first time in over a month.
The Bruins lost to the New York Rangers on Wednesday. They’ve been off since, so they’ll be rested. The Bruins are sixth in the Atlantic Division with a -24 goal differential, but they’re currently just one point out of a playoff spot. I expect them to come out swinging, desperate to go into the break on a high.
Ilya Samsonov gets the nod this afternoon. Samsonov has a record of 1-2-2 and an average save percentage of .899 in seven career games against the Bruins.
Jeremy Swayman starts in net for the Bruins. He has struggled this season but is coming off of a 36-save shutout against the Minnesota Wild. Swayman has a record of 2-1-2 and an average save percentage of .897 in five career games against the Golden Knights.
Projected Golden Knights Lines
Ivan Barbashev-Jack Eichel-Victor Olofsson
Raphaël Lavoie-Tomáš Hertl-Pavel Dorofeyev
Brandon Saad-Brett Howden-Mark Stone
Jonas Røndbjerg-Nicolas Roy-Keegan Kolesar
Defense
Brayden McNabb-Shea Theodore
Nicolas Hague-Alex Pietrangelo
Noah Hanifin-Zach Whitecloud
Goalie: Ilya Samsonov
Projected Bruins Lines
Morgan Geekie-Pavel Zacha-David Pastrňák
Brad Marchand-Elias Lindholm-Charlie Coyle
Trent Frederic-Matthew Poitras-Oliver Wahlstrom
Cole Koepke-Mark Kastelic-John Beecher
Defense
Mason Lohrei-Charlie McAvoy
Michael Callahan-Brandon Carlo
Nikita Zadorov-Andrew Peeke
Goalie: Jeremy Swayman
Special Teams
Golden Knights power play: 27.3%, 4th. Golden Knights penalty kill: 76.5%, 21st.
Bruins power play: 14.6%, 30th. Bruins penalty kill: 76.0%, 22nd.
Game Notes
This is the second and final meeting of the season between the Golden Knights and the Bruins. The Golden Knights took the first matchup by a score of 2-1 and are 4-7-1 against the Bruins all-time.
Mark Stone is on a nine-game point streak against the Bruins; he has four goals and seven assists over that stretch.
Noah Hanifin snapped a 15-game pointless drought last game against the New Jersey Devils. He has five goals and eight assists in 19 career games against the Bruins.
David Pastrňák has six goals and six assists in 11 career games against the Golden Knights.
The Golden Knights are 13-11-3 on the road this season; the Bruins are 18-8-3 at the Garden.
How to Watch
TV: ABC/ESPN+
Radio: FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340
