Rask Stays Hot With Shutout Of Senators
The Boston Bruins have really been rolling of late as they come in having won 15 of their last 20 games and a big part of the reason for their recent surge has been the play of Tuukka Rask. He comes in off a strong 5-0 win over the Senators and has now gone 10-1 in his last 11 starts while allowing a total of 13 goals over those 11 starts. He has been on fire. The shutout was his 2nd of the year and the 40th of his career. Rask is now 13-11 with a 2.13 GAA and a .923 save percentage on the year overall, including 3-5 with a 2.31 GAA and a .921 save percentage on the road. In his career, he has gone 95-90 with a 2.39 GAA on the road and 157-123 with a 2.20 GAA against the Eastern Conference, while against the Islanders he has gone 11-5 with a 2.30 GAA. The Bruins as a team have now allowed just eight total goals over their last six games. The offense has been solid of late as they have averaged 3.50 gpg over their last 10 games. Scoring in the win over the Senators was Ryan Spooner, who scored twice and now has eight on the year, Noel Acciari, which was his 4th, David Krejci, which was his 6th and Patrice Bergeron, which was his 11th. The Bruins have gone 8-8 on the road and have averaged 2.88 gpg and have allowed 2.44 gpg in those games.
Isles Get Blasted By Avs On The Road
The New York Islanders are really struggling as they come in having lost six of their last nine games after falling by a score of 6-1 in Colorado. They were blasted in that game by a bad team, which has to raise so red flags. The offense has been solid for the Isles all year, but if they don’t fix their play in the crease, then they will not make the postseason. They are last in the league in goals allowed and have now given up 4.00 gpg over their last 10 games. That will not get it done. Taking the loss against the Avs was Jaroslav Halak, who allowed five goals on 35 shot attempts before being removed in favor of Thomas Greiss, who allowed the final goal on 13 shot attempts. Halak is now 11-12 with a 3.15 GAA and a .905 save percentage on the year. Greiss is expected to get the start in this one and he has gone 9-7 with a 3.82 GAA and a .884 save percentage on the year, including 5-3 with a 3.50 GAA and a .884 save percentage here at home. In his career, he has gone 50-31 with a 2.45 GAA in his home games and 44-43 with a 2.82 GAA against the Eastern Conference, while against the Bruins he has gone 2-3 with a 1.63 GAA. Scoring their lone goal against the Avs was Josh Bailey, which was his 12th of the year. The Islanders have gone 12-6 here at home for the year and have averaged 4.17 gpg and have allowed 3.28 gpg in those games.
Trends
Boston is:
- 5-0 in their last five games playing on two days rest
- 5-1 in their last six vs. the Eastern Conference
New York is:
- 3-7 in their last 10 vs. a team with a winning record
- 2-6 in their last eight when their opponent allows two goals or less in their previous game
Prediction: Boston -110*