by Chuck Sommers
Friday, Feb 11, 2022
Time: 12:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Canadian Tire Centre
Where to watch: RDS, SN360, SNO, NESN
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Bruins -185, Senators +155
WynnBet: Bruins -180, Senators +150
Caesars: Bruins -170, Senators +150
Season record
Bruins: 26-16-3
Senators: 16-23-4
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Bruins - Senators preview and analysis
Recent form
Bruins: lost three of four
Senators: 3-2 in last five
Not that the Boston Bruins are in complete danger of falling out of things if their leading scorer isn't around for the next six games, but it does make things difficult to not have two-thirds of the group known as the Perfection Line.
With Patrice Bergeron already out of the lineup, Brad Marchand is facing a six-game suspension for doing dumb things late into a game. He's since appealed that to Gary Bettman, but when the hell have you ever known Gary Bettman to care for such things?
But the Bruins are coming into Saturday's matchup having won three of four and will try to keep the good times rolling when they face the Ottawa Senators, who are off to as good a start as one could have coming out of the All-Star break, especially for a struggling team. Ottawa opened the post-break with wins at home against the Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils. Honestly, not even that bad given the circumstances of the state of the franchise.
Meanwhile, the Bruins have not had as great luck as the Senators have with their most recent opponents. The Bruins are coming off a 6-0 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes at home, two days removed from losing 4-2 to the Pittsburgh Penguins. That same Penguins team just shut out the Senators on Thursday despite a Herculean effort from Matt Murray against his former team.
Murray made 42 saves and kept his guys in the game for as long as he could, but the offense couldn't solve Casey DeSmith when needed. The Pittsburgh goalie made 26 saves to defeat the one that started for two Stanley Cup winning teams.
“They were dialed in on all aspects of the game and a pretty textbook game by them," Murray said of his old team. "We battled, we stayed in the game and if we had gotten one it could have gone in either way."
That was a performance well needed from Murray for the second he's endured. He chose to sign a long-term contract with this dumpster fire of an organization, and yet he was sent down to the AHL because things are not meant to be kind. Murray has actually been incredible given the circumstances, going 5-7-2 with a 2.61 GAA and .920 save percentage.
When Murray is on, that tends to be good news for the Sens. In his five wins, Murray has a 1.58 GAA and a .952 save percentage. If you could even get two games out of a goalie with those kind of numbers, you'd be parading in the streets right now. Murray does have a win against the Bruins this season, making 33 saves in the win.
The Bruins, as mentioned up top are not fully healthy but you'd think there's still some talent to at least squeak some wins out here and there. But not against the Hurricanes, one of the best teams in the league, after getting shut out. It's not like they were playing the Toronto version of Frederik Andersen. But it takes a huge hit when Marchand and Bergeron are not in the lineup. And with them both out for this game, you can't expect the high-powered Bruins to have everything go right.
“They’re key drivers for our team, so it’s going to hurt,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. “How are we going to weather it? We’re certainly going to need a little more pushback from guys that are expected to bring it and some other veteran guys that might not but have to step up in their absence."
Not that the Boston Bruins are in complete danger of falling out of things if their leading scorer isn't around for the next six games, but it does make things difficult to not have two-thirds of the group known as the Perfection Line.
With Patrice Bergeron already out of the lineup, Brad Marchand is facing a six-game suspension for doing dumb things late into a game. He's since appealed that to Gary Bettman, but when the hell have you ever known Gary Bettman to care for such things?
But the Bruins are coming into Saturday's matchup having won three of four and will try to keep the good times rolling when they face the Ottawa Senators, who are off to as good a start as one could have coming out of the All-Star break, especially for a struggling team. Ottawa opened the post-break with wins at home against the Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils. Honestly, not even that bad given the circumstances of the state of the franchise.
Meanwhile, the Bruins have not had as great luck as the Senators have with their most recent opponents. The Bruins are coming off a 6-0 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes at home, two days removed from losing 4-2 to the Pittsburgh Penguins. That same Penguins team just shut out the Senators on Thursday despite a Herculean effort from Matt Murray against his former team.
Murray made 42 saves and kept his guys in the game for as long as he could, but the offense couldn't solve Casey DeSmith when needed. The Pittsburgh goalie made 26 saves to defeat the one that started for two Stanley Cup winning teams.
“They were dialed in on all aspects of the game and a pretty textbook game by them," Murray said of his old team. "We battled, we stayed in the game and if we had gotten one it could have gone in either way."
That was a performance well needed from Murray for the second he's endured. He chose to sign a long-term contract with this dumpster fire of an organization, and yet he was sent down to the AHL because things are not meant to be kind. Murray has actually been incredible given the circumstances, going 5-7-2 with a 2.61 GAA and .920 save percentage.
When Murray is on, that tends to be good news for the Sens. In his five wins, Murray has a 1.58 GAA and a .952 save percentage. If you could even get two games out of a goalie with those kind of numbers, you'd be parading in the streets right now. Murray does have a win against the Bruins this season, making 33 saves in the win.
The Bruins, as mentioned up top are not fully healthy but you'd think there's still some talent to at least squeak some wins out here and there. But not against the Hurricanes, one of the best teams in the league, after getting shut out. It's not like they were playing the Toronto version of Frederik Andersen. But it takes a huge hit when Marchand and Bergeron are not in the lineup. And with them both out for this game, you can't expect the high-powered Bruins to have everything go right.
“They’re key drivers for our team, so it’s going to hurt,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. “How are we going to weather it? We’re certainly going to need a little more pushback from guys that are expected to bring it and some other veteran guys that might not but have to step up in their absence."
Prediction
The Senators with that line might be too good to pass up. If Murray plays even half of how he was against Pittsburgh, I'd venture to guess that'll get a win in the books. Senators win 3-2
Betting trends
The Bruins are 64-46 the past three seasons against division opponents.
The Bruins are 24-10 following back-to-back overs.
The Senators are 15-30 off a home loss the last three seasons.
Projected lines
Bruins:
Taylor Hall -- Erik Haula -- David Pastrnak
Trent Frederic -- Charlie Coyle -- Craig Smith
Jake DeBrusk -- Jack Studnicka -- Nick Foligno
Anton Blidh -- Tomas Nosek -- Curtis Lazar
Matt Grzelcyk -- Charlie McAvoy
Jack Ahcan -- Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort -- Connor Clifton
Jeremy Swayman
Taylor Hall -- Erik Haula -- David Pastrnak
Trent Frederic -- Charlie Coyle -- Craig Smith
Jake DeBrusk -- Jack Studnicka -- Nick Foligno
Anton Blidh -- Tomas Nosek -- Curtis Lazar
Matt Grzelcyk -- Charlie McAvoy
Jack Ahcan -- Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort -- Connor Clifton
Jeremy Swayman
Senators:
Brady Tkachuk -- Tim Stutzle -- Adam Gaudette
Alex Formenton -- Nick Paul -- Connor Brown
Chris Tierney -- Mark Kastelic -- Tyler Ennis
Zach Sanford -- Dylan Gambrell -- Austin Watson
Thomas Chabot -- Nikita Zaitsev
Nick Holden -- Artem Zub
Erik Brannstrom -- Josh Brown
Matt Murray
Brady Tkachuk -- Tim Stutzle -- Adam Gaudette
Alex Formenton -- Nick Paul -- Connor Brown
Chris Tierney -- Mark Kastelic -- Tyler Ennis
Zach Sanford -- Dylan Gambrell -- Austin Watson
Thomas Chabot -- Nikita Zaitsev
Nick Holden -- Artem Zub
Erik Brannstrom -- Josh Brown
Matt Murray
Key injuries
Bruins: Brad Marchand (suspension), Patrice Bergeron (upper body), John Moore (upper body), Urho Vaakanainen (upper body)
Senators: Drake Batherson (ankle), Scott Sabourin (hand), Colin White (shoulder), Josh Norris (shoulder)
Coaches:
Bruins: Bruce Cassidy
Senators: DJ Smith
Bruins: Bruce Cassidy
Senators: DJ Smith
Statistical leaders
Bruins:
Points: Brad Marchand -- 49
Goals: David Pastrnak -- 24
Assists: Brad Marchand -- 28
Goalie: Linus Ullmark -- 16-7-1, 2.78 GAA, .910 SV%
Senators:
Points: Drake Batherson -- 34
Goals: Josh Norris -- 18
Assists: Drake Batherson -- 21
Goalie: Anton Forsberg -- 8-8-1, 3.02 GAA, .911 SV%
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
