The set-up: The 28-14-5 Chicago Blackhawks avoided a third consecutive loss by scoring three unanswered goals in the third period Tuesday, rallying for a 6-4 victory over Colorado. They'll be in Boston tonight to take on the 23-19-6 Bruins, with speculation growing that head coach Claude Julien's tenure with the Bruins could be coming to an end.

Chicago: "Good response," Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville said after his team avoided a third consecutive setback and also halted a three-game road losing streak in beating the Avalance. Then again, Colorado is the NHL's worst team with only 13 wins and 27 points. Quenneville shuffled his lines Tuesday, moving the slumping Marian Hossa (he's mired in a 10-game goalless drought) away from captain Jonathan Toews and on a line with rookies Vinnie Hinostroza and Tanner Kero, who scored two goals apiece. Rookies accounted for five of Chicago's six goals against Colorado.

Boston: The Bruins are in a rut with just three wins in their nine games (3-4-2) in 2017 and blew a pair of three-goal leads in Wednesday's 6-5 shootout loss at Detroit. Returning home is hardly a guarantee of success for Boston, which remains under .500 (10-11-0) at TD Garden this season. The team "collapsed" in Detroit, which followed a listless 4-0 home loss to the lowly New York Islanders. "Honestly, right now, it's about making sure we go back and we have to find a way," Bruins center Patrice Bergeron said. "It's unacceptable what just happened the last two games." The talk shows are filled with the chatter. Social media is filled with tweets. Is Claude Julien about to lose his job coaching the Boston Bruins?

The pick: Corey Crawford, who has started the last five games in the Chicago net, won't start in Boston, where Scott Darling gets the call. Darling is 2-1 with a 3.40 goals against average and .905 save percent in his career against Boston. I expect a spirited effort from the Bruins and Chicago's last five games have seen an average of seven goals scored. The Over is a 10* play.