Need to Know: Bruins at Sabres | Game 5

BUFFALO –– It is now or never for the Boston Bruins.

The B’s, who trail the first-round series 3-1, will battle to keep their season alive on Tuesday when they face the Buffalo Sabres for Game 5 at 7:30 p.m. at KeyBank Center.

“Probably a little bit of everything, I would say,” head coach Marco Sturm said of how his team is feeling. “I think we are excited to bounce back. That’s the biggest thing. We want to show everyone that last game, that’s not really us…We have nothing to lose here. We have to try to find our game again and see where it’s going to take us.”

Viktor Arvidsson will not play on Tuesday due to an upper-body injury, Sturm said. The Bruins will have a few more decisions to make after warmups, Sturm continued, but Mikey Eyssimont and Alex Steeves will be “ready to go if needed.” It would be Steeves’ NHL playoff debut.

“I think we have good enough players who want to step up their game from last game,” Pavel Zacha said. “We have a chance for success, and that’s what we need to focus on. All year, there’s been ups and downs. If everyone steps up and plays their game, we’re going to win.”​

Former Sabre Henri Jokiharju will enter the lineup for the first time this series. The defenseman is projected to skate on the second pair with Hampus Lindholm, replacing Jordan Harris. It will be Jokiharju’s first time playing in the NHL postseason.

“I think that’s our mindset for one game right now – get back to our hockey, get back to our Boston identity, get back to what has been successful through the year. Just play our brand,” Nikita Zadorov said. “Everybody saw the result. It is a slap to the face and just cannot happen with our team, our organization, our identity. Today we’ve just got to come out and play like it’s the last game of our lives. Like our life is on the line. We’ve just got to go out there and try to die on the ice.”

Wait, There’s More

• Jeremy Swayman will start in net for Boston. The goaltender made 23 saves on 29 shots in Game 4 before Joonas Korpisalo finished the night with six stops. Swayman has a 3.50 goals against average and a .900 save percentage through four games this series.

• Sean Kuraly scored Boston’s only goal in Game 4. It was the 33-year-old forward’s first goal of this postseason, and 10th of his playoff career – all of which have come as a Bruin. Kuraly remains on the fourth line, centering Tanner Jeannot and Mark Kastelic. Kuraly had 22 points (six goals, 16 assists) through 82 games in the regular season.

• Andrew Peeke picked up his first career playoff point with an assist on Kuraly’s goal. The defenseman logged 22:32 of ice time in Game 4, second-most on the team behind Charlie McAvoy (23:23). Peeke had three shots, two blocks and two hits. He is projected to be on the third pair with Zadorov.

Opposing View

• Alex Lyon is projected to start in net for Buffalo, per the team’s morning skate on Tuesday. The 33-year-old goaltender has a 0.89 GAA and a .964 SV% through three games. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who played the first two games of the series, is set to back Lyon up.

• Bowen Byram leads all Sabres defensemen with five points (three goals, two assists) this series. The 24-year-old blueliner has posted a goal and an assist in each of the last two games. Byram is skating on the second pair with Owen Power, as well as the second power-play unit.

• Buffalo head coach Lindy Ruff said forwards Jason Zucker, Tyson Kozak and Josh Norris are all available for Game 5. Norris has been sidelined with an undisclosed injury since Game 2; Zucker and Kozak left Game 4 in the third period. Per the Sabres’ morning line rushes, Kozak will remain on the fourth line and Zucker on the second. Norris is not expected to play.