Practice Report: Bruins Prepare for Game 6, ‘Rewrite the Script’

BOSTON –– The Boston Bruins are ready to continue battling.​

After beating the Buffalo Sabres 2-1 in Game 5 on Tuesday at KeyBank Center, the B’s return to TD Garden on Friday for Game 6, trailing the first-round series 3-2.  

Boston held a full-team practice on Thursday at Warrior Ice Arena to prepare for another elimination matchup.

“Everyone knows kind of what happened the last time we were home, and nobody was happy with the result. It’s a great opportunity now to try to rewrite the script a little bit. There are a lot of different motivating factors – we want to keep playing hockey, too,” Mark Kastelic said. “We can’t really overthink it too much. We’ve been playing good hockey. In Buffalo, I think that was a great win for us there. Just try to build off that and just come ready to play.”

Kastelic posted three blocked shots and four hits through 11:50 of ice time in Game 5. One of the blocked shots came on the penalty kill, when Kastelic threw his leg in front of a rocket from the point.

“We all feed off each other – off those kinds of moments,” head coach Marco Sturm said. “That’s what good teams are all about, and we are very lucky to have him.”

Kastelic briefly left the second period, but finished the game on the fourth line with Sean Kuraly and Tanner Jeannot. The forward was a full participant at Thursday’s practice and said he is feeling “great.”

​“I think everybody is pretty dialed in here, and everybody takes care of themselves really well,” Kastelic said. “Just do a lot of cold tubs, contrast, that type of stuff. Red light. Anything you can kind of get your hands on this time of year, gives you a 0.1% edge – I’ll try it.”

Viktor Arvidsson was the only Bruin absent from the skate. The 33-year-old winger suffered an upper-body injury in Game 4 and has not played since. Sturm said he does not think Arvidsson will play on Friday.

Boston accordingly practiced with the same combinations it used in Game 5, which broke up the second line that Arvidsson was previously on. Marat Khusnutdinov remained on the first line with Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak; Elias Lindholm centered the second between Casey Mittelstadt and Morgan Geekie; Alex Steeves, Mikey Eyssimont and Fraser Minten made up the third.

The backend was untouched, too, with Henri Jokiharju staying on the second pair with Hampus Lindholm. Jokiharju, along with Steeves, made his NHL playoff debut on Tuesday. Eyssimont played in his first game of the series.

“Those guys, they should be hungry, they should be full of energy,” Sturm said. “And I think that’s exactly what they showed me for the rest of the game. Just try to get on that forecheck and being hard to play against – but not being in trouble.”

Nikita Zadorov logged the second-most ice time of all B’s defensemen (behind Charlie McAvoy) on Tuesday while on the third pair with Andrew Peeke. Zadorov, the former Sabre, heard it from the crowd, but did not stray from his physical style.

​“There are probably five rinks in the league who boos me every time I touch the puck – it’s nothing new for me,” Zadorov said. “It’s fine. It means you do something that people hate. That is my job.”

​The 6-foot-7 blueliner has embraced his leadership role this season, especially in his first playoff run in the Black & Gold.​

“We are a confident group, and we always have a belief in that. That’s why we're in the spot where we’re at right now,” Zadorov said. “Same mentality as last game. Our backs are against the wall. It is do or die for us. We are excited to go out there and leave everything on the ice.”​

The Bruins will be backstopped by Jeremy Swayman, who has been one of the best players on the ice every game this series. On Wednesday, the goaltender was announced as a finalist for the 2025-26 Vezina Trophy, awarded annually “to the goalkeeper adjudged to be the best at his position” as voted by the general managers of all NHL clubs.

Swayman posted a 31-18-4 record with a 2.71 goals-against average, a .908 save percentage and two shutouts during the regular season. He has a 2.87 GAA and .910 SV% through five games this series.

“It’s great. It’s amazing. Just like that, he’s on top again. And he showed it especially last game. All year long, it doesn’t matter. Well deserved. The guys are really happy, and he should be really proud of the way he handled things,” Sturm said. “We are here to support him, and we know how important he is for us as a team.”