Boston Bruins: Next Two Northeast Division Games Will Be Biggest Test Yet

As of Sunday morning, the Boston Bruins are seventh in the Eastern Conference and third in the Northeast Division with two games in hand on all four divisional cohabitants.

After all of Sunday evening’s NHL action is completed, they will have three games in hand on the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators and can be docked down no farther than eighth in the conference.

A pleasant surprise for most every Boston buff after an acrid 3-7-0 start to the season, to be sure. But with their next two games on the road against the other two Northeast Division clubs, the Montreal Canadiens and the Buffalo Sabres, the Bruins have a radiant opportunity to restate their refined status.

In recent history, the Habs and Sabres have arguably been Boston’s two peskiest roadblocks. The Bruins won last year’s divisional crown despite failing to get the better part of Montreal or Buffalo in their respective six-game season series. They finished 2-3-1 against the Canadiens and 2-2-2 versus the Sabres, claiming only one of those four wins away from TD Garden.

Already this season, they have lost two out of two to Montreal, having conceded a home-and-home series that they originally hoped was going to be their immediate turning point at the end of a vinegary October.

There may be no worse way for the Bruins to invite back a little instability than a few more rough showings against these two teams. Then again, there’s no better way to follow up on their recent resurgence than by reaping two, three or four points out of these places.

Boston’s active, month-long eight-game winning streak began immediately after a 4-2, Oct. 29 falter at the Bell Centre. That streak will be placed on the line with a return trip to the Montreal mansion Monday night.

The division-leading Sabres, meanwhile, are idle until Wednesday’s confrontation at the First Niagara Center. Depending on how the Leafs handle their next two adversaries and Monday’s result in Montreal, the Bruins could venture into Buffalo with a chance to seize sole possession of the top spot in Northeast. Or, at least, they could pole-vault over the Sabres for second place.

Because of their consistent results over the last three weeks, there may be no better time for the Bruins to visit the often treacherous Bell Centre.

When they previously renewed their topmost Original Six rivalry at the end of October, they were in a desperate frenzy and waging a losing battle against their own self-doubt. The result was another slow start that could not be redeemed and a sweep of a home-and-home pair that dropped them to 3-7-0 and dead last on the Eastern leaderboard.

This time around, after eight straight wins and an eight-slot improvement in the standings, they should not only be pulling into the Belle Centre parking lot armed with conviction. They should be concocting that healthy dose of confidence with a thirst for retribution.

To reiterate, Boston’s most recent loss took place on Montreal ice. That was indubitably the nadir of the first quarter of their season and it effectively turned on the kinetic force everyone has witnessed throughout November.

If the Bruins can sic the beast on the very team that sounded its alarm out of hibernation, a certain element of closure ought to be attained.

That’s enough positive incentive to cloud the frenetic angle of this matchup.

Technically speaking, another shortcoming against the Habs, particularly in regulation, would not only mean dropping the entire first half of the season series. It would also allow Montreal to pole-vault the Bruins and potentially bump them back below the playoff poverty line.

But, hey, that attitude is so last month, right?

Since the calendar Zamboni razed October off the wall, the Bruins have let the data underline the difference. When Part I of their home-and-home with the Canadiens rolled around, they had already played eight games in October, going 3-5-0 for only six of a possible 16 points.

When they revisit the Bell Centre this Monday, they will have likewise played eight games so far in November, only with the full 16-point allotment secure in their duffel bags.

With that being said, they will once again need to take note of the opponent’s recent trends. The Habs just cut off the New York Rangers’ seven-game winning streak, rendering the Bruins the single-hottest team in the NHL.

Can they keep the streak spoilers from striking again?

So long as the Bruins embrace that challenge rather than lumber at it with nervous desperation, they have a chance.

And either way, how they issue their response to Monday’s upshot through their next engagement in Buffalo could be just as telling as Boston curtains the first quarter of its schedule.