BOSTON Jeremy SwaymanRecovered from a tough stretch with 23 saves, and the Boston BruinsBy holding off on the draw, they clinched a playoff place Pittsburgh PenguinsTo end a three-game losing streak that had been going on for three consecutive seasons, the score was 2-1
Trent FredericAnd Erik HaulaBoston won 17 of 21 games and scored first-period goals.
Former Bruin Danton HeinenThe Penguins were defeated by 2-5-1 in their last eight games. Casey DeSmith27 shots were stopped
The Bruins went 0-2 on power play, increasing their streak of scoreless games to 25.
The Penguins won a playoff berth earlier this week, making them the longest-running North American pro sports team. However, they aren’t at their best heading into the final two weeks of the season. Their Eastern Conference playoff seeding is still in doubt.
The first-round matchup against the New York RangersThat seemed very likely for weeks but is now uncertain. Pittsburgh (97 points, 3-6-1) is just five points ahead at the moment. Washington Capitals(92), with the latter having three games in hand against the Penguins. Washington could catch Pittsburgh, and Pittsburgh would be in the second wild-card slot for the East. That would give Pittsburgh a chance to face the likely top-seeded. Florida Panthers.
Meanwhile, the Bruins were without their leading goal scorer David PastrnakAn undisclosed injury prevented them from playing a sixth consecutive match and they secured a playoff berth.
“We have a standard, right?” “So we are not going out to celebrate that we made it to the playoffs,” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy stated. It’s still a great accomplishment that you should be proud.
Swayman, 23, seemed certain to be No. He was the No. 1 goalie for playoffs. However, he lost his three previous decisions due to allowing soft goals. While he was making solid stops during the Penguins’ power plays, the second period saw them make two more. The third had nine stops.
Swayman stated, “It’s really a win for us,” especially in these difficult economic times. “Just the manner we did it. Making small plays, simple play, everything was sharp and on-point for us. It was a great feeling to win the playoffs and to be able do it at home, is just amazing.
Just two minutes into their game, the Bruins seized a 2-0 advantage looking to erase any sporadic play.
Cassidy stated, “There are still some issues we need to clean up.” “Some decision-making. We know that we need to do better.
Frederic redirected a rebound from the edge to the crease in just the first minute. Haula’s shot from right circle ricocheted off the Penguins defenseman and was then scored. Marcus PetterssonAt 2:01.
5:38 into Swayman’s second round, Heinen launched a rising wrister that he aimed over Swayman’s left shoulder.
The Penguins started slowly after securing a playoff spot on Thursday night by beating the Islanders. After being outshot by 11-6 in the initial, they quickly recovered their composure.
The Bruins also played with no defenseman Hampus LindholmHe was forced to miss his fifth consecutive game due to an upper-body injury. Boston still has plans to acquire Lindholm at the trade deadline in the postseason. This situation will be closely monitored.
Boston can now begin seeding and arranging matches.
Cassidy spoke out about clinching, saying, “It’s difficult to do, year-in and year-out in this league.” It’s not automatic.
This report was contributed by The Associated Press.