How much is Patrice Bergeron respected around the NHL?
A team it plays just twice this season gave him a gift worthy of a king.
Before Saturday's game at TD Garden, the Los Angeles Kings presented the Boston Bruins forward with a bottle of wine worth one dollar for every game he played in his career through Tuesday, according to The Athletic's Joe McDonald.
Bergeron played in his 1,000th NHL game -- all with the Bruins -- Tuesday night against the New York Islanders, a milestone only four other players in team history have reached.
The Kings also came out to their bench early to watch a pregame ceremony honoring Bergeron for his accomplishment.
"It shows respect," Kings forward Nate Thompson told McDonald about the team's decision to watch the ceremony. “He’s a caliber player and a caliber person. He’s an all-around world-class person. There’s so much you can say about Bergy; when you think of the Bruins, you think of Patrice Bergeron. He’s represented the Bruins very well.”
Bergeron represented the B's well between the whistles, too, scoring the game-winning goal in overtime in a 5-4 victory. Maybe he'll celebrate with his new gift?
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Almost three weeks remain in the regular season, and the battle for the President's Trophy is already over, with the Lightning (116 points and counting) already wrapping up home-ice advantage throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
But even though the top spot has already been clinched, the homestretch of the season features a ton of interesting battles for playoff positioning.
Although they're in the same division as Tampa, the Bruins have a chance to finish with the second-best record in hockey and square off against the Maple Leafs in the first round for a second consecutive season.
The Flames and Sharks have both clinched playoff spots already, with Calgary holding a slim three-point lead for the top seed in the Western Conference.
While those teams will look to make noise in the playoffs, many teams are fighting and clawing just to get in, with Columbus leading Montreal by one point for the eighth spot in the East, and Arizona trying to hold off Minnesota and Colorado for the eighth spot in the West.
How do all 31 teams stack up in Joe Haggerty's NHL Power Rankings? Click here to find out.
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The Boston Bruins know there's an extremely high chance they'll play the rival Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round of the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs for the second year in a row, but there's still a lot for them to figure out before the postseason begins in April.
The Bruins need a few struggling players to bust out of their slumps, the team needs to get healthier, and the scoring depth that was a major weakness in last season's playoffs needs to improve.
Boston has nine games remaining to develop good habits and address any issues with their performance entering the playoffs. With that in mind, let's take a look at five Bruins storylines to watch before the postseason arrives.
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