This is the time of year when the better teams rise to the top. The Bruins lost to Carolina the other night, in a game they needed for seeding in the division. They are chasing the Rangers and can’t afford another loss. They will be angry they dropped that game to the Hurricanes and will tighten up on defense in this game. Boston are allowing less than 2 goals to opponents and kill off over 80 percent of their penalties. Boston has the better goaltending with Ullmark between the pipes and he has a 21-9-7 record, 2.55 GAA and .916 save percentage.They are the stronger well balanced team, so expect them to beat down on a Penguins team that needed overtime in their last game against Detroit to get the win. The Penguins are chasing a wild card spot and will have to get by the Bruins first in what will be a playoff type atmosphere to this game. If the Bruins want to get wins on the road in the playoffs, they have to start here in this spot, because a team can’t win the Cup if they can’t win on the road.

Best bet: take Boston on the moneyline (ML).