January 29, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins right winger David Pastrnak (88) shoots the puck in the first quarter of a game against the Philadelphia Flyers at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Image A fellow Eastern Conference playoff contender stands between the Boston Bruins and their quest to sweep very important back-to-back weekend games.
The Bruins, coming off a 3-1 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday, will hit the road to face the Pittsburgh Penguins for the second time in five days on Sunday. The game represents another opportunity for Boston to snap a 12-game winning streak and snap a six-game losing streak (0-3-3) at TD Garden of recent road woes.
Bruins coach Marco Sturm said, “It all seems to go back to the way we play. For some reason, we play smarter at home. We don’t panic, we don’t panic, we don’t have anything.” “And on the road, we try really hard. Maybe that’s the problem. Maybe we want to overdo things and cause trouble.”
Sturm’s club will need to change that trend towards the end of the regular season, with five of their eight games scheduled in the coming 14 days. But Boston could gain momentum Tuesday with a 2-1 win over Pittsburgh, which entered its fifth straight game with a point record (3-0-2) but is 0-2-1 in its last three games.
The Bruins still clinch the East’s final wild-card playoff spot, two points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets, but Saturday’s win over the Capitals pushed them back within six points of Washington.
Boston’s Viktor Arvidsson broke a 1-1 tie in the top of the third inning with his sixth goal in the last eight games.
“It’s an important time of the year and I think we’re really rallying around that,” said Boston goalie Jeremy Swayman, who made 34 saves and shut out 22 games against the Capitals to lead the Penguins.
Star Bruins winger David Pastrnak also bounced back with two assists after a three-game drought.
Also playing in their second game in a row, the Penguins are looking to turn their recent fortunes around after dropping a 4-3 shootout decision to the Philadelphia Flyers. Pittsburgh scored a total of two goals in the previous two games, showing a three-game losing streak.
The Penguins sit in third place in the Metropolitan Division.
“I don’t think we played to the level we did after the (Olympic) break,” defender Erik Karlsson said. “We’ve had a few consecutive down games here now, it’s unfortunate timing, but I think we know what we have here.”
In addition to the recent drop in scoring, Pittsburgh fell to 1-9 in penalty shootouts this season.
“Anytime there’s a part of the game that’s not going well consistently, there’s conversation about it, word gets out about it, and that wears you down,” Penguins coach Dan Muse said.
Sunday will be the Penguins’ second straight game without injured captain Sidney Crosby and longtime teammate Evgeni Malkin, who was handed a five-game suspension by the NHL Player Safety for stabbing Buffalo Sabers defenseman Rasmus Dahlin on Thursday.
“Obviously, it doesn’t help because we’re missing two really amazing players,” forward Bryan Rust said. “But we have very capable people here, people who need it, will do it, can do it, and have stepped up for us. And we need to continue to do that.”
Without the team’s leading duo (106 combined points), Rust was placed on the top line with Egor Chinakhov and Rickard Rakell. Rakell had a goal and an assist against the Flyers. Chinakhov has scored in six of his last nine games with two assists.
–Field level media
