Toronto Maple Leafs @ Boston Bruins
07:00 PM at TD Garden
Watch on: TVAS, TSN4, NESN

The Leafs last game was away on March 21 against the Ottawa Senators, which Toronto lost by a score of 5-2 in regulation. The Leafs have a record of 29-29-13 for a 0.500 Points %.

The Boston Bruins last played away on March 21 against the Detroit Red Wings. The Bruins won by a score of 4-2 in regulation, and their current league record is 39-23-8 for a 0.614 Points %.

St. Louis is the fifth to last team in the standings today with a Points % of 0.486. If they continue at that points rate, they will finish with 80 points (rounding up). The Leafs have to finish with 79 points to take that spot in the standings, and they need to play at 0.364 the rest of the season to only get eight points out of the remaining 11 games. Their points pace since the Olympics is 0.286.

This picture has now changed dramatically since before the previous Leafs game, and that is almost entirely due to St. Louis winning a game against the Canucks. This really illustrates that deciding to lose to order sounds like a plan you control, but there are a lot of other teams that decide for you if you succeed.

However, while the target looks easier to hit today, the number of teams bunching up at around the same Points % as the Leafs now includes Winnipeg, Seattle, Florida and San Jose.

Los Angeles is the third-place team contesting for the two western wild card spots. Nashville has leapt over all three west-coast Pacific teams to take the second spot with a Points % of 0.536. They can't get in via their division, so they need to hold that spot to make the playoffs. Los Angeles has a Points % of 0.521, and to overtake Nashville's 88 points (rounded up) they need to play at 0.667 over their remaining 12 games.

This picture just got much, much harder, again, because of what some other team did. But that's a good illustration of how hard making up only two points in deficit is at this time of the year.

Them

No, Fraser Minten is not their 1C. He is usually the sixth most used forward, so the middle six centre, regardless of line order between two and three.

Boston's forward ice time is actually really strange, although understandably so. They have one first-liner and about six middle-six players and a rotating cast of guys who play a little.

Today's roster looks like a "spread out the scorers" lineup, a smart play against a team whose depth is as drastically weak as the Leafs is.

Tanner Jeannot is a game-time decision, and Alex Steeves skated as the extra at practice yesterday.

The Bruins had Minten lead the stretch at the start of Bruins practice and Steeves at the end. They know right where your buttons are and they like to push them.

Lines

Scott McLaughlin via Daily Faceoff from yesterday's practice.

Marat Khusnutdinov - Fraser Minten - David Pastrnak
Casey Mittelstadt - Pavel Zacha - Viktor Arvidsson
Lukas Reichel - Elias Lindholm - Morgan Geekie
Michael Eyssimont - Sean Kuraly - Mark Kastelic

Jonathan Aspirot - Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm - Mason Lohrei
Nikita Zadorov - Henri Jokiharju

Jeremy Swayman - confirmed starter
Joonas Korpisalo

Us

All three goalies are currently on the roster ahead of a back-to-back, but Stolarz is set to start.

Lines

Mark Masters via Daily Faceoff from yesterday's practice with today's changes (defence pairs yet to be determined, and I'm assuming it's Phil Myers who sits).

Easton Cowan - John Tavares - William Nylander
Matthew Knies - Max Domi - Nicholas Robertson
Matias Maccelli - Bo Groulx - Dakota Joshua
Steven Lorentz - Jacob Quillan - Michael Pezzetta

Morgan Rielly - Brandon Carlo
Jake McCabe - Troy Stecher
Simon Benoit - Oliver Ekman-Larsson

Anthony Stolarz - starter
Joe Woll
Dennis Hildeby

The Game

Once again, give it your best shot, Leafs.

Tonight is the Leafs mentors game:

Game Coverage