Patrice Bergeron reached for the puck against Matt Hunwick last month. (Matt Kincaid/Getty Images)
BOSTON (WBZ-AM) -- The Bruins are six points behind the Lightning for the top spot in the NHL with three games in-hand, and Bruce Cassidy's club has a big test tonight at the Garden against the Penguins.
"I think the best thing for us about the game is to measure where we're at," Cassidy said. "This is two-time defending Stanley Cup champions playing very well, a lot of people say trending toward a third, so it'll be a good measuring stick for our hockey club, to see where we're at."
Pens have dropped their last two, but they'd won 11 of 13 before that. Pittsburgh's also missing goalie Matt Murray. He suffered a concussion in practice.
Patrice Bergeron Disappointed Having To Sit And Watch Bruins
The Bruins won on home-ice last night, but had to do it without their leading goal-scorer.
The B's rallied past the Hurricanes 4-3 in overtime Tuesday, but they've really struggled on the power play - 2-for-34 their last 11 games! Not even a six percent success rate!
Coach, what's the issue? Can the new faces help?
"You're struggling and you're trying to develop chemistry, so it's a two-headed monster for us to fix," he said. "I don't think it's an overnight fix. There's plenty of guys on the power play who have had success at this level, some with this team, some from other teams, so I believe we'll get it fixed, hopefully sooner rather than later."
The puck drops at 7. Boston's 9-1-and-3 its last 13 against Pittsburgh.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Adam Kaufman reports