Bruins and Lightning Keeping Pace With Each Other in NHL Eastern Conference

The Boston Bruins beat the Sharks 6-5 in San Jose in overtime February 18th for the team’s sixth straight win. The Bruins are 8-0-2 in their last two games, which has propelled them into 2nd place in both the Atlantic Division and the Eastern Conference of the NHL, with 78 points.

Charlie McAvoy scored the winning goal with 1:01 left in overtime. San Jose has been on a roll lately too; the Sharks are 14-4-1 since the calendar changed to 2019 and with 78 points are just one point behind Pacific Division and Western Conference leader Calgary. The loss overshadowed the Sharks’ Joe Thornton’s first hat trick since October 2010.

The Bruins have moved into 2nd in the East, but can’t make any headway against the conference leading Tampa Bay Lightning. The Lightning are also 8-0-2 in their last 10 games, and have built up a big lead with 94 points. Tampa Bay beat the Blue Jackets 5-1 in Columbus on February 18th, behind a two goal, three assist night from Nikita Kucherov. Kucherov leads the NHL with 99 points (29 goals, 70 assists).