The Boston Bruins extended their season with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres in Game 5, cutting the series deficit to 3-2 and forcing a return to TD Garden on Friday.
Boston made the postseason with 100 points and a 45-27-10 record compared to the Sabres' 109 points and 50-23-9 record, thus pitting them against the second-best team in the Eastern Conference.
The teams split the first two games of the series in Buffalo, but Boston dropped both Game 3 and Game 4 at home.
Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images
As Boston prepares for their second elimination game in a row, head coach Marco Sturm addressed the status of winger Viktor Arvidsson, who missed Game 5 with an upper-body injury.
“It’s going to be hard,” Sturm said about Arvidsson's availability for Game 6. “We’ll see where he’s at tomorrow. He’s definitely day-to-day, but it’s going to be hard.”
Sturm also acknowledged the winger’s desire to return quickly as the Bruins fight to extend the series.
“He always wants to play. He’s very frustrated. He wants to be a big part of it,” Sturm said.
On Thursday morning, NESN's Bridgette Proulx reported that Arvidsson missed the Bruins' practice.
Arvidsson has two goals on 11 shots in this series, along with three blocked shots.
Game 6 is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET in Boston on Friday.
