The Boston Bruins clinched their fifth consecutive appearance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season.
Boston cemented its spot as the No. 3 seed in the East Division with an overtime win against the New York Islanders on Monday. They will face the No. 2 seed Washington Capitals in the first round beginning on Saturday.
Here is all the information you need as the Bruins gear up for the postseason.
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What is the format for the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs?
The NHL is using a divisional playoff format for the 2020-21 season similar to what it used before 1993-94 when the Smythe, Norris, Patrick and Adams divisions were in place.
The top four teams in each division earn a playoff berth.
The first round of the playoffs will feature the No. 1 seed having home ice advantage versus the No. 4 seed, and the same for the No. 2 seed against the No. 3 seed. The winner of those Round 1 series will square off in what is essentially the division final.
Boston Bruins
The four second round winners will advance to the league semifinals, where each team will be re-seeded based on regular season total points in a No. 1 vs. No. 4 and No. 2 vs. No. 3 bracket. The two semifinal winners will meet in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final.
Where are the Bruins in the East Division standings?
The Bruins locked in the third spot in the East Division. The Pittsburgh Penguins came out on top in a tightly contested race for the division title with 77 points.
Here are how things finished up following Tuesday's regular-season finale:
| East Division | GP | W-L-OTL | PTS | ROW |
| 1. Pittsburgh Penguins | 56 | 37-16-3 | 77 | 34 |
| 2. Washington Capitals | 56 | 36-15-5 | 77 | 33 |
| 3. Boston Bruins | 56 | 33-16-7 | 73 | 29 |
| 4. New York Islanders | 56 | 32-17-7 | 71 | 28 |
| 5. New York Rangers | 56 | 27-23-6 | 60 | 26 |
| 6. Philadelphia Flyers | 56 | 25-23-8 | 58 | 22 |
| 7. New Jersey Devils | 56 | 19-30-7 | 45 | 19 |
| 8. Buffalo Sabres | 56 | 15-34-7 | 37 | 11 |
Who will the Bruins play in the first round?
The Bruins will start their playoff run against the Capitals.
Boston went 4-2-2 against Washington in the regular season, which concluded with a road loss to the Capitals on Tuesday in which most of the Bruins' best players did not take the ice.
Here are the East playoff matchups:
| No. 1 Pittsburgh Penguins | No. 4 New York Islanders |
| No. 2 Washington Capitals | No. 3 Boston Bruins |
What is the Bruins' upcoming schedule?
The Bruins will again be the visitors in Washington as the Caps host Game 1 of their first-round series on Saturday. The NHL has only released the time for Game 1 of the series so far.
Here is the Bruins' upcoming schedule:
| Saturday, May 15 | at Capitals (Game 1) |
What are the Bruins' championship odds?
The Bruins’ odds to win the Stanley Cup are currently +1100 (odds provided by our partner, PointsBet), which are the best out of all four East Division playoff teams.
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