Boston @ Pittsburgh preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 16, 2020 ) Pittsburgh 1, Boston 4

The Boston Bruins had turned in two of their more ragged efforts of the season before responding with a 4-1 victory over Pittsburgh on Thursday in what was tantamount to a statement game. The Atlantic Division-leading Bruins are seeking to repeat that effort and complete a three-game season sweep in a rematch at the Penguins on Sunday afternoon.

Boston allowed only a first-minute goal to Sidney Crosby before clamping down on Pittsburgh the rest of the way in a much-needed, bounce-back performance after blowing a three-goal lead and suffering its first shutout loss in its previous two games. "There are going to be stretches where you need to work harder to get the result," Bruins center Patrice Bergeron told reporters. "So we keep working on it and keep getting better, but the way we competed and the mindset up and down the lineup was great to see." The Penguins rebounded from that defeat with a 2-1 victory at Detroit just 24 hours later as Crosby delivered the decisive tally in overtime for the team's 16th win in 21 games (16-4-1). While Pittsburgh has dropped eight in a row at Boston's TD Garden, it has scored 24 goals during a five-game home winning streak against the Bruins.

TIME: 12:30 p.m. ET. TV: NBC, TVA

ABOUT THE BRUINS (28-9-12): Boston's perfection line of David Pastrnak, Bergeron and Brad Marchand has torched Pittsburgh in the two meetings this season, combining for six goals and as many assists. Bergeron recorded a notable milestone in Thursday's victory with his 20th goal, marking the seventh consecutive season and 11th time in his career that the four-time Selke Trophy winner has reached that number. Marchand's empty-net tally was only his third goal in 24 games but gave him six points in the season series.

ABOUT THE PENGUINS (30-13-5): Despite missing 28 games after undergoing core muscle surgery in November, Crosby has shown no signs of rust by scoring in all three games and collecting six points since his return to the lineup. Speaking of which, teammate Bryan Rust also scored against Detroit to reach 20 goals for the first time. "We use him on the ... first power-play (unit)," coach Mike Sullivan told reporters. "His confidence is at an all-time high, as it should be. He’s playing extremely well. It’s not easy to score 20 goals in this league.”

OVERTIME

1. Penguins C Evgeni Malkin has multiple points in 10 of his last 22 games, amassing 35 points in that span.

2. Bruins C David Krejci (upper body) has been ruled out for Sunday's game.

3. Pittsburgh is 6-for-15 on the power play over the last four games, but was shut down by Boston.

PREDICTION: Penguins 4, Bruins 3