BOSTON -- It's been a while since the Penguins have lost three games in a row. It's been two months and 15 days to be exact.
But that's what they could be facing with another loss tonight against a Bruins team that has won 14 of its last 19 and sits third in the Eastern Conference, eight points ahead of sixth-place Pittsburgh.
For both teams, this is a measuring stick game.
"I think so, but I think all these games are right now," said Olli Maatta. "Every game feels like a playoff game. Division is so tight, every point is important."
1. Got to be better defensively.
There has been one common thread between the Penguins' last two losses: Poor goaltending.
First, it was Tristan Jarry getting yanked midway through the second period in Florida on Saturday after giving up four goals on 16 Panthers shots. On Tuesday, it was Casey DeSmith's turn. Though DeSmith made 35 saves, two of the three goals he surrendered in Tuesday's home loss to the Devils were of the soft variety.
On Wednesday, Mike Sullivan walked back what was perceived criticism of DeSmith's performance against New Jersey.
"Casey gave us an opportunity to win (Tuesday)," Sullivan said. "He made some high-quality saves. We gave up some high-quality chances, too many in order to win at this time of year."
With Matt Murray out indefinitely with a concussion sustained in practice, there's a very real opportunity for Jarry or DeSmith to take a stranglehold of the No. 2 job. Sullivan won't announce his starter until Thursday morning but the guess is that Jarry will get the nod.
He can't be much worse than his last outing against Boston. On Jan. 7 at PPG Paints Arena, Jarry was replaced by Murray after giving up five goals on 19 shots, including this Brad Marchand goal right off the faceoff win (see item No. 2):
The Penguins don't alter their game because of who's in net, but they have to do a much better job of not being too aggressive on the forecheck and limiting odd-man breaks. Those have been backbreakers for the Penguins in each of their last two losses.
"We believe in the the guys that we have," Sullivan said. "I think we have to become a stingier team away from the puck and better defensively than we have the last couple games."
2. Got to win the draws.
Puck possession starts at the faceoff circle and few teams are better at the dots than Boston (see above).
The Bruins are seventh in faceoff win percentage at 51.4 (50.1 in the offensive zone, 50.6 defensive and 53.6 neutral), while the Penguins are a distant 15th at 50.3 (49.7 offensive, 50.8 defensive and 50.5 neutral).
The good news for the Penguins is that the Bruins will be without star center Patrice Bergeron (56.9 percent), widely recognized as one of the game's very best in the faceoff department. "He's unbelievable," Riley Sheahan was saying.
Bergeron will miss his second straight game with a foot fracture that is expected to keep him out two weeks minimum. The 32-year-old has 34 points (24 assists) in 42 career regular-season games against Pittsburgh. He's been replaced by the recently-acquired Rick Nash on the top line between Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak.
And the Bruins still have David Krejci and Tommy Wingels, who are winning 53.9 and 60.0 percent of their even-strength faceoffs. Nash is winning 61.9 percent of his power play draws.
In a game between two conference heavyweights, every small detail counts and the Penguins need to get to their game, starting with possessing the puck.
3. Full speed ahead, again.
When the Penguins won the Cup in 2016, it ushered in a new era that placed a premium on team speed and a quick transition game. But with the NHL being a copycat league, almost everyone is now trying to beat the Penguins at their own game. The Bruins are no exception.
"Obviously when you win two Cups, it helps," Patric Hornqvist said. "The other teams look what they can do better and we've been successful, but we still have to stay on top of it and try and get better every game."
Save for 40-year-old captain Zdeno Chara, the Bruins can skate. Part of that lies in their youth. Boston has received enormous contributions from rookie left wings Danton Heinen and Jake DeBrusk, who have scored 39 and 32 points respectively. First-year defenseman Charlie McAvoy has 30 points. The Bruins and the Devils -- yes, those guys again -- are the only teams with two players in the top 11 rookie scorers.
Boston might not have a Michael Grabner-type burner but the Penguins have to do a better job than they did against the Devils.
"They've got some young guys contributing pretty well," said Sheahan. "They're just a responsible group. They backcheck hard and play a sound game. They're hard to play against. They don't give you much room."