The Boston Bruins are in the middle of a strong push for a place in this seasons NHL postseason. After a six game losing streak in the middle of March a playoff spot looked unlikely for the Bruins. Now they are currently on a five game win streak and hold the 3rd spot in the Atlantic Division and the 6th seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. With a win against the Washington Capitals in their next game along with a lose by the Ottawa Senators in their game against the New York Rangers the Bruins would clinch a playoff birth. This would be their 8th straight season with a playoff birth and give them a chance to bring home another Stanley Cup Finals trophy.
The current standings in the Eastern Conference are 1st. New York Rangers with 107 points, 2nd. Montreal Canadians with 106 points, 3rd. Tampa Bay Lightning with 104 points, 4th. Washington Capitals with 99 points, 5th. New York Islanders with 98 points, 6th. Boston Bruins with 95 points points, 7th. Pittsburgh Penguins with 95 points and 8th. Detroit Red Wings with 95 points. Although the Bruins are tied with the Red Wings in number of points they own the tie breaker so are higher in the standings. They are also tied in points with the Penguins but the Bruins are in third in their division and Penguins are in fourth in theirs so the Penguins are the top wildcard seed. The Ottawa Senators have 93 points and with a win by the Bruins along with a Ottawa lose to New York they would be out of contention for the playoffs.
With the way the Schedules of the Bruins and the teams near them in the Standings look the Bruins could go as high as the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. To do this they would need help from the other teams in the Conference. First off for this to be possible the Bruins have to win their final three games against the Capitals, Panthers and Lightning. If they win out they will move up to the 5th seed because they would beat the Capitals in one of their three games and pass or tie them in the points system. To move to the 4th seed they would need the Islanders to lose 1 of their remaining 2 games in either regulation or overtime. Remaining on the New York Islanders schedule is the Penguins and Blue Jackets. If the Bruins were to lose one of their three remaining games they would need Detroit to lose their game to either Montreal or Carolina to remain in 3rd in their Division and 6th in the Conference.
With their being a number of spots the Bruins could end up in their is a number of first round matchups they could have. If they fall to the 8th seed they would play the New York Rangers who they are 2-1 against this season. If they fall to the 7th seed they would play the Canadians who they are 0-4 against this year. The 6th seed would match them up against the Lightning who they are 2-1 against on the season with 1 game remaining between the two. In the 5th or 4th seeds the Bruins could play either the Islanders who they are 2-1 against or the Capitals who they are 0-2 against. The Bruins seem ready to make a strong push for the playoffs and maybe even a deep playoff run.
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