Projected lines, pairings for Bruins vs. Islanders Game 1 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Bruins are well-rested entering Game 1 of their second-round Stanley Cup Playoff series against the New York Islanders on Saturday night at TD Garden.
The B’s eliminated the Washington Capitals in Game 5 of the first-round last Sunday. So, they’ve had almost a week off between the two rounds. For a veteran team with some injuries on the blue line, the rest should be a benefit for the Bruins.
We shouldn’t expect any major lineup changes for Boston going into Round 2. Same for the Islanders, who eliminated the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 of their Round 1 series Wednesday night.
Tuukka Rask will start in net for the Bruins and Ilya Sorokin should start for the Islanders.
Complete preview and prediction for Bruins vs. Islanders series
Home ice advantage could also be a huge boost for the Bruins in this series, and Saturday night in particular. The series opener will be the first game of the Bruins’ season with TD Garden at a near-full capacity. Massachusetts lifted its COVID-19 restrictions Saturday.
Here are the projected lines and pairings for Bruins vs. Islanders Game 1.
BOSTON BRUINS
FORWARDS
Brad Marchand–Patrice Bergeron–David Pastrnak
Taylor Hall–David Krejci–Craig Smith
Nick Ritchie–Charlie Coyle–Jake DeBrusk
Sean Kuraly–Curtis Lazar–Chris Wagner
DEFENSEMEN
Matt Grzelcyk–Charlie McAvoy
Mike Reilly–Brandon Carlo
Connor Clifton–Jarred Tinordi
GOALIES
Tuukka Rask (starter), Jeremy Swayman (backup)
NEW YORK ISLANDERS
FORWARDS
Leo Komarov–Matthew Barzal–Jordan Eberle
Anthony Beauvillier–Brock Nelson–Josh Bailey
Kyle Palmieri–John-Gabriel Pageau–Travis Zajac
Matt Martin–Casey Cizikas–Cal Clutterbuck
DEFENSEMEN
Adam Pelech–Ryan Pulock
Nick Leddy–Scott Mayfield
Andy Greene–Noah Dobson
GOALIES
Ilya Sorokin (starter), Semyon Varlamov (backup)