BOSTON BRUINS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S GAME
- The Bruins visit the Sharks tonight in the 1st of 2 game between these teams this season and the Bruins’ lone visit to SAP Center at San Jose.
- They are the NHL’s 1st 30-win team this season at 30-4-4 overall and are 11-4-1 on the road … They are 13-1-2 vs. Western Conference opponents.
- The Bruins are playing their 6th of 14 sets of back-to-back games this season tonight in San Jose and tomorrow in Anaheim … They are currently 4-0-1 in the 1st game of those sets and are 4-1-0 in the 2nd games so far.
- The Bruins play game 2 of their 3-game road trip tonight in San Jose (1-0-0) and conclude in Anaheim on 1/8.
RECENT GAMES:
- The Bruins are 9-0-3 in their last 12 games, including a 2-1 win vs Pittsburgh on 1/2 at the Winter Classic at Fenway Park and 5-2 win in Los Angeles on 1/5 in their last game.
- They are 13-1-4 in their last 18 games and are 20-2-4 in their last 26 contests.
- Thay are 4-0-1 in their last 5 road games
- They are 19-0-3 in their 22 home games, including a 14-game home win streak, the longest from the start of a season in league history … That is the longest point streak from a season’s start in Boston annals and is their fourth longest home point streak overall in team history with their club mark a 26-0-1 stretch in 1970-71.
- Boston 3 vs Buffalo 4/OT … David Pastrnak (1-1=2 totals) opened the scoring and Patrice Bergeron (PP) and Brad Marchand (1-1=2) took a 3-2 lead before dropping the extra point … Jeremy Swayman earned the decision in goal … SOG: Bos 40, Buf 25 … PP: 1/5 … PK: 0/3 – Boston 3 vs Pittsburgh 2 at Winter Classic … The Bruins faced a 1-goal deficit entering the 3rd period but 2 goals by Jake DeBrusk took the win before a Fenway Park home crowd of 39,243 … Linus Ullmark extended is NHL-leading win total to 21 … SOG: Bos 29, Pit 27 … PP: 0/3 … PK: 0/3 – Boston 5 at Los Angeles 2 … David Pastrnak and Trent Frederic had 2G each, Brad Marchand had 1-1=2 totals and Charlie McAvoy added 2A for multiple-point nights … Jeremy Swayman went to 3-0-2 in his last 5 starts … SOG: Bos 22, LA 29 … PP: 1/1 … PK: 0/1
INJURIES (Total man-games lost in 2022-23: 39)
- Jake DeBrusk: Hand and lower body injuries, IR
BOSTON vs SAN JOSE, LIFETIME SERIES
- The Bruins and Sharks are meeting for the 44th time in their histories with the Bruins having a 26-12-5-0 record and 141-113 scoring advantage in those games.
- The Bruins are 12-7-2-0 lifetime in San Jose.
FUN FACTS
- The Bruins currently have 23 players on their roster … 10 were drafted by the team, 4 were acquired in trade and 9 were signed as free agents.
- The Bruins play 16 matinees this season (local start time 4:00 pm or earlier) … They have a 4-0-1 record in afternoon games so far.
- The Bruins play 14 sets of back-to-back games this season … They are currently 4-0-1 in the 1st game of those sets and are 4-1-0 in the 2nd games so far.
- The Bruins are playing game 3 of their 14-game January schedule tonight (5 hm/9 rd, 2-0-0) … They will play 10 in February (3 hm/7 rd), 15 in March (9 hm/6 rd) and 7 in April (3 hm/4 rd) … They went 8-1-0 in October, 11- 2-0 in November, and 9-1-4 in December.
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Dec. 20: Craig Smith assigned to Providence/AHL (cleared waivers 12/19).
Dec. 21: Craig Smith recalled from Providence/AHL.
Jan. 5: Chris Wagner recalled from Providence/AHL.
SAN JOSE SHARKS NOTES:
LAST GAME
Game 40 – 1/6 – SJS 4 at ANA 5 (OT)…Timo Meier (2g, 0a) lit the lamp twice in his fourth multi-goal game of the season and Matt Nieto (1g, 0a) scored in the opening minute of action, but a fast start for the Sharks was not enough as the Anaheim Ducks rallied to overcome a 2-0 hole in a 5-4 overtime decision. Steven Lorentz (1g, 0a) scored 6:03 into the game to push the early lead to 2-0, a goal in which Erik Karlsson (0g, 1a) extended his franchise-record scoring and assist streaks to 14 games. Kevin Labanc (0g, 2a) earned assists on San Jose’s third and fourth goals, markers that came in a span of 3:04 in the second period.
SJ Goals: Nieto (7), Lorentz (4), Meier (22), Meier (23)
SF: 41
SA: 29
SJ PP: 0/2
SJ PK: 4/4
W: Stolarz
OTL: Kahkonen
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
1/6 Claimed F Mikey Eyssimont off waivers; placed D Radim Simek on IR
1/5 Recalled D Nick Cicek from the San Jose Barracuda
1/4 Assigned D Nick Cicek to the San Jose Barracuda
1/1 Recalled D Nick Cicek from the San Jose Barracuda
12/22 Assigned F C.J. Suess to the San Jose Barracuda
12/20 Activated D Mario Ferraro off IR
12/20 Recalled F C.J. Suess from the San Jose Barracuda
12/18 Assigned D Nick Cicek and F C.J. Suess to the San Jose Barracuda
12/17 Placed F Luke Kunin on IR; activated F Matt Nieto off IR
12/12 Activated G James Reimer off IR; Assigned G Eetu Makiniemi to the San Jose Barracuda
TONIGHT’S OPPONENT
The Boston Bruins continue their four-game California swing with a Saturday contest against San Jose, bringing a 12-game point streak (9-0-3) into SAP Center at San Jose. Boston boasts the best record in the NHL at 30-4-4 and have yet to lose in regulation on home ice, and the Bruins are 10th in the league with a road record of 11-4-1. David Pastrnak leads the club in goals (27), assists (25) and points (52) after posting scoring streaks of 11 games and nine games earlier in the year. The Bruins are without forward Jake DeBrusk for the road trip after the forward suffered an injury in the Winter Classic against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Fenway Park. All-time, Boston is 12-7-2 at San Jose, and the Bruins have won the last nine meetings overall.
STORYLINES
DEFENSE TO OFFENSE…With an assist provided by Marc-Edouard Vlasic on Oskar Lindblom’s second period goal at DAL on Dec. 31, San Jose became the first NHL team to have their defensemen reach 100 points on the season. San Jose blueliners then added five points (1g, 4a) on Jan. 1, with four of the six in the game finding the score sheet, and another three helpers on Jan. 6 at Anaheim. The Sharks lead the league in assists (90) and points (108) from defensemen this season. Last campaign, the Sharks finished 23rd and 25th in the League with 151 points and 117 assists, respectively, from defensemen. Below is a breakdown of San Jose’s defensive scoring this season.
