Bruins vs Hurricanes Picks & Props

The teams meet Thursday night in Raleigh, N.C., with Friday's trade deadline looming.

"You can't let that affect you on the ice," Boston forward David Pastrnak said. "We have to go out there the last 19 games and definitely perform better and try to win some hockey games."

The Bruins are already coping with the impact of a deal this week. Physical forward Trent Frederic was traded to the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday.

"You do the best to block those things out," Bruins center Morgan Geekie said. "It's a business kind of thing. I think a lot of people forget we're human, too. It's tough to see one of your good friends go."

Despite a season that hasn't gone by design, Boston remains in contention for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. That's something the players don't want to overlook even as more roster adjustments could be in the works.

"The way our season has gone up and down like this, there is no surprise," Boston center Charlie Coyle said. "We just have to go out and do our job. You can't stress on that stuff."

The Hurricanes have won back-to-back games for the first time since late January. The 2-1 victory Tuesday night at Detroit came with numerous positives in coach Rod Brind'Amour's opinion.

"I thought all three periods there was no letdown. We just kept at it," he said. "We didn't give up a heck of a lot. It was a really good effort, top to bottom."

Now it's a matter of sustaining that kind of performance as they begin a four-game homestand.

"Whenever we get rolling, you can see that it's shift after shift and we had a couple of big stretches in that game where it was just nonstop," Carolina winger Jordan Martinook said. "When you're changing in the offensive zone, it's a lot of fun. ... We've just got to keep the momentum going."

The Bruins have been scuffling as they've dropped seven of their last eight games, including two in a row. They're coming off Tuesday night's 6-3 home loss to the Nashville Predators.

Boston has won one of its last six road games.

"We still have to make sure we're focused," Boston coach Joe Sacco said. "We have a job to do."

The Bruins began the week without captain Brad Marchand. His status is considered week-to-week after suffering an upper-body injury Saturday at Pittsburgh.

For the Hurricanes, it should be Pyotr Kochetkov's turn in net as he has been rotating with Frederik Andersen. On Sunday, Kochetkov became the second-fastest goalie in Carolina franchise history to reach 60 wins -- doing so in 106 games. Only Andersen, who needed 91 games, reached the mark faster.

The Hurricanes have received key boosts in several recent games. On Tuesday, Jesperi Kotkaniemi won seven of his eight faceoffs.

The Hurricanes beat the Bruins 8-2 on Oct. 31 in Boston's first visit of the season. Carolina had three power-play goals in that game, two from Andrei Svechnikov. Jack Roslovic also had two goals for the Hurricanes.

--Field Level Media