Bruins at Panthers preview

BRUINS (44-16-8) at PANTHERS (34-26-7)
7:30 p.m. ET; FS-F, TVAS, NESN, NHL.TV

The Bruins, 7-1-0 in their past eight games, trail the Tampa Bay Lightning by four points with two games in hand but will be without injured defenseman Zdeno Chara and forward Jake DeBrusk for at least the next two games.
The Panthers, 8-1-1 in past 10 games, are four points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference and five behind the New Jersey Devils for the first wild card with three games in hand on each team.
Goalie James Reimer was first to leave the ice at Florida's morning skate, but coach Bob Boughner has not decided whether Reimer or Roberto Luongo would start.

Players to watch

Bruins forward Brad Marchand has 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in a six-game point streak.
Panthers center Vincent Trocheck has seven points (two goals, five assists) in a four-game point streak.

They said it

"There's a big void to be filled physically and in the room with his voice." -- Bruins defenseman Torey Krug on playing without captain Zdeno Chara
"I have some good friends over in that room, but it's just another hockey game. I want to go out there and prove I can play." -- Panthers forward Frank Vatrano on facing the Bruins for the first time since they traded him to Florida on Feb. 22

Bruins projected lineup

Brad Marchand -- Riley Nash -- David Pastrnak
Danton Heinen -- David Krejci -- Rick Nash
Tommy Wingels -- David Backes -- Brian Gionta
Tim Schaller -- Sean Kuraly -- Noel Acciari
Nick Holden -- Kevan Miller
Torey Krug -- Adam McQuaid
Matt Grzelcyk -- Brandon Carlo
Anton Khudobin
Tuukka Rask
Scratched:Paul Postma, Tommy Wingels, Anton Blidh
Injured:Patrice Bergeron (fractured foot), Zdeno Chara (upper body), Jake DeBrusk (upper body), Charlie McAvoy (sprained MCL)

Panthers projected lineup

Evgenii Dadonov -- Aleksander Barkov -- Nick Bjugstad
Jonathan Huberdeau -- Vincent Trocheck -- Frank Vatrano
Jamie McGinn -- Jared McCann -- Denis Malgin
Maxim Mamin -- Derek MacKenzie -- Colton Sceviour
Keith Yandle -- Aaron Ekblad
Michael Matheson -- Mark Pysyk
MacKenzie Weegar -- Alex Petrovic
James Reimer
Roberto Luongo
Scratched:Connor Brickley, Radim Vrbata, Micheal Haley, Ian McCoshen
Injured:None

Status report

Krug is a game-time decision after sustaining an upper-body injury in a 6-4 victory against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday. … Blidh and Postma were recalled from Providence of the American Hockey League on an emergency basis. … Petrovic, who sustained a lower-body injury during a 5-3 win against Ottawa on Monday, is a game-time decision. … The Bruins and Panthers will face each other four times over the final 25 days of the regular season.

Stat pack

The Bruins have scored four goals or more in five of their past eight games. … Barkov needs one point to become the first Panthers player since Olli Jokinen (71) in 2007-08 with 70 points in a season.