By: Ryan Bosworth | Follow me on Twitter/X @RyanJBosworth
The Boston Bruins have played 72 of their 82 game 2025-26 season. Through their 72 games, they’ve recorded a record of 40-24-8, their best record since the 2023-24 season. The final ten games of the season, though, could make or break their playoff chances.
The talent of their opposition isn’t the only thing that presents as a challenge for Boston, but it’s also the fact that six out of their final ten games are on the road, and Boston is a significantly weaker team when playing on the road. It’s been their Kryptonite for a majority of the season.
They’re home-game juggernauts, recording the best home record in the entire National Hockey League. On the road is a completely different story, as they have a record of 14-14-7.
With such a drastic difference in the way they perform on the road versus at home, the final stretch will be the toughest of the entire season, though they haven’t been without their statement road-wins, most notably, their win in Detroit.
The other hurdle they’re going to face? Their competition. Seven of their next ten opponents are currently holding a playoff spot, while another team isn’t incredibly far behind. Let’s break it down, starting with the teams they’ll face twice in the final ten games.
Columbus Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets have been one team that just doesn’t seem to go away this season, especially after making a coaching change that sparked an impressive push for the postseason, and they now find themselves holding sole possession of the third place spot in the Metropolitan Division.
Since hiring Bowness, the Jackets have put together an impressive 19-4-4 record. Prior to Bowness becoming bench boss, under coach Dean Evason, they were mediocre, only posting a record of 19-19-7, and firmly outside of the playoffs. Since the change, they’ve become incredibly hard to play against.
The Bruins play Columbus tomorrow and again on April 12th, both of which are away games for Boston. The two teams have already faced off against each other once this season, which resulting in a Bruins 4-2 victory.
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Bruins and Lightning face each other twice in seven days, with the second match up of the season coming on April 4th, and the third, and final, match up of the season series coming on April 11th. The first matchup between these two clubs is hard to forget, as Boston blew a 5-1 lead in the 2026 Stadium Series back on February 1st.
Tampa Bay has consistently been atop the Atlantic Division this season, and they held it firmly until the shocking rise of the Buffalo Sabres pushed them into second in the Division. These inter-conference and inter-division matchups will pose the biggest challenge for Boston, especially considering how close in the standings they are, and could end up being.
The Bruins will host the Lightning on the 4th, and the Lightning will host the third and final matchup of the season on the Bruins’ final road trip of the season.
Carolina Hurricanes
Another tough customer for the Bruins will be the Carolina Hurricanes, though they’re so firmly in first the Metropolitan Division that the points won’t have as much of a swing as, say, the Bruins’ games with Tampa Bay or Columbus. However, in the final stretch of games, every point is crucial.
The Bruins and Hurricanes have faced off twice this season, both coming in the month of November. Each team has taken a game, as Boston won on November 1st, 2-1, and Carolina on November 11th, 3-1. Both previous games were held in Boston, and their season series finale will be held down in Raleigh, North Carolina, on April 7th.
Dallas Stars
The next of the Bruins’ true playoff spot-holding opponents are the Dallas Stars. Dallas comes into Boston on Tuesday, March 31st, for the second, and final, matchup of their season series. The first game came on January 20th, and it was as lopsided as they come, as Dallas took it in dominant fashion, winning 6-2.
Dallas is one of just two teams to have already clinched a playoff spot, the other being the dominant Colorado Avalanche, and they clinched just under a week ago. Similarly to the Hurricanes, the points on the line don’t hold as much potential weight as an inter-division or inter-conference matchup, but Boston needs all the points they can get.
It’ll be a tough bid, but it won’t be the first time they beat a dominant Western Conference team, as the took down the Avalanche earlier in the season, and it was during a run for Colorado of just pure dominance in the league.
Minnesota Wild
The final of the Bruins’ matchups with playoff teams comes this afternoon, as they face the Minnesota Wild at TD Garden at 5 p.m. today. The Bruins have faced the Wild just once this season, back in December.
It was the first game for the new-look Minnesota Wild, after acquiring star defenseman Quinn Hughes. The Wild took the first meeting, in dominant fashion, similarly to the Stars, beating Boston 6-2. The Bruins were playing in Minnesota, and tonight being at home, they’re hoping they can rewrite history and brave the Wild to secure two points.
Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Florida
The final three teams the Bruins face are the Philadelphia Flyers, New Jersey Devils, and Florida Panthers, all three of which are pretty firmly outside of the playoff bubble, so they’re getting grouped into one category. As they’re all inter-conference games, with the exception of the Panthers, which is inter-division.
The only team that is even remotely close are the Flyers. Both New Jersey and Florida are firmly out of the race, though the points are still crucial. Their matchup with Florida is on April 2nd. They’ll face the Flyers on April 5th, and they’ll face the New Jersey Devils in their final regular season game of the year, on April 14th.
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