Practice Report: Bruins Have Last Skate in Boston Before Leaving for Buffalo

BOSTON –– The Boston Bruins got in one last practice on Saturday at Warrior Ice Arena before taking off to Buffalo.

Sunday’s 7:30 p.m. Game-1 meeting against the Sabres will mark the opening of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs for the B’s, and they’re ready to get going.

​After closing out the regular season on Tuesday, the Bruins had two full-team practices and one off-ice training day to prepare for their first-round series.

​“I thought we used the week pretty good,” head coach Marco Sturm said. “Guys are full of energy now. Now these days, you just have to work on things and tweak some things towards Buffalo, and also towards our strength. You’re not going to reinvent the wheel here. Just touch on little things, and that’s what we did today.”

While Sturm has competed in the postseason as a Bruins player, it is his first time entering the NHL playoffs as a head coach. He led Boston to a 100-point regular season with a 45-27-10 record.

“I am excited. I am pretty much the same. It is going to be different tomorrow, not feeling like a regular-season game; it’s going to be playoffs. I always say to the players, they have to keep their emotions under control. I think me too,” Sturm said. “The intensity goes up. That means the guys need a guy behind the bench who they can rely on by being steady like I’ve been all year long. Message being under control. I think that’s what playoffs are all about. I know these guys will work. I know these guys will be excited. But we’ve got to make sure our emotions will be under control. And I’m a big part of it.”

Hampus Lindholm is entering his ninth NHL playoffs and fourth with the Bruins. The 32-year-old alternate captain has remained on the second pair with Mason Lohrei throughout practices this week. Lindholm has posted 26 points (five goals, 21 assists) through 67 games while averaging 21:37 of ice time per night.

​“It ramps up this time of year. We know our strengths and what we have to do to be successful this year. Just trying to hammer it down,” Lindholm said.

The Bruins saw the Sabres four times in the regular season, coming away with a 3-1-0 record. But two of those contests were in October, and playoffs are a different game.

“It is a division team, we’ve played them enough to know kind of what they’re about. They’ve had a great season. They’re a high rush team, a lot of speed and a lot of skill. It is going to be a fun matchup,” Lindholm said. “It is a fun challenge for us, coming in a little bit as an underdog and prove people wrong.”

Lindholm has also been quarterbacking the second power-play unit, which is primed to feature James Hagens. The 19-year-old forward signed his entry-level contract on April 8 and played in the final two games of the regular season. The B’s, however, did not get on the man advantage in either game, so Sturm has yet to see Hagens on the power play outside of practice. The coach thinks it is one of Hagens’ best assets, though.

“He doesn’t have to play or make special plays. He has some really good players on that unit. As long as he’s going to play fast and keep it simple – I think that is something that might be different from college and NHL,” Sturm said. “I think it will be fine because Buffalo, they will come, they pressure hard. So you don’t want to be surprised. You want to be quick, you want to be fast. That’s something that has to be in his mind.”​

Hagens has been skating on the third line with Fraser Minten and Marat Khusnutdinov, and that stayed the same in Saturday’s practice. The three youngsters will all be playing in their first NHL postseason.

​“Every night you have to give it your all. You have to give everything you possibly have. This is playoff hockey – you want to win every single game like always. Nothing changes, but there are a lot higher stakes,” Hagens said. “This is something you dream of. Something you grow up watching and praying that you could be in the moment one day and be playing in. Now that it’s reality, it’s something that is really surreal.”

After having a whirlwind start to his pro career, it has been helpful for Hagens to get full practices in with the group.

“It’s been great to be able to be out there, practice with these guys. Not only to learn the systems but to be able to talk to teammates, get feedback from coaches,” Hagens said. “Just the repetition, being able to do reps, try to learn day by day.”

The energy is palpable for Boston, but the team knows the work has just begun.

“Everyone is equal in this room. We’re a tight-knit group here, we’re all good buddies…Just go out there and play with that joy that we have in the locker room,” Lindholm said. “It is a really serious time of year, but I think within this room here, just go out there and enjoy, too. Play for each other – I think that’s how you win this time of year.”