Boston Bruins vs Nashville Predators Picks and Predictions March 4th 2025

Bruins, Predators Share Offensive Struggles Ahead of Matchup

With the regular season winding down, every point matters for the Boston Bruins, who host the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night looking to regain their offensive spark.

Boston (18-10-5 at home) returns to TD Garden for the first of just four home games in March, hoping to capitalize on a struggling Nashville team that has lost six straight road games and sits third-to-last in the Western Conference.

Both teams are coming off shutout losses, highlighting their shared offensive struggles.

Boston Seeks Answers After Pastrnak’s Point Streak Ends

The Bruins were blanked 1-0 by the Minnesota Wild on Sunday, marking their sixth shutout loss this season. The game also snapped David Pastrnak’s league-leading 17-game point streak, despite the star winger putting five shots on goal.

“I think there’s always some games like that where you just can’t buy one,” Bruins forward Mark Kastelic said. “I think we played pretty well defensively, and it’s tough when you only give up one.”

Boston’s offensive struggles have put them in a tough position in the Eastern Conference playoff race. They are two points out of the final wild-card spot, with three teams ahead of them.

With time running out, interim coach Joe Sacco knows his team needs to find the net more consistently.

“We have to find a way to put the puck in, whether it’s creating more traffic at the net, having more of a shot mindset, playing off the shot more, creating some more two-for-ones,” Sacco said.

Adding to the Bruins’ concerns, captain Brad Marchand may miss his second straight game after suffering an upper-body injury in Saturday’s 3-2 win over Pittsburgh.

“You just hope he’s feeling well and doing well,” forward Charlie Coyle said. “You hate to see guys go down, but hopefully we’ll see him soon enough.”

Nashville’s Road Struggles Continue

Like Boston, the Predators are struggling offensively, having been shut out nine times this season, including Sunday’s 4-0 loss to the New York Rangers.

Despite 34 shots on goal, Nashville failed to convert and allowed three goals in a four-minute span early in the second period.

“Too many penalties at times, put a lot of pressure on our kill and lost a little momentum early,” head coach Andrew Brunette said. “I think overall, as a group, it’s been like this all year, especially the last stretch.”

Nashville’s biggest issue remains goal scoring.

“We’ve got to score a goal,” forward Filip Forsberg said. “It sounds silly, but I don’t know how many times we’ve said this … but we’ve got to start there and see what happens.”

Saturday’s 7-4 loss to the New York Islanders was another rough outing, marking the third time this season the Predators have allowed seven goals in a game. One bright spot was Marc Del Gaizo, who scored his first NHL goal after being recalled from the AHL Milwaukee Admirals.

“He’s come up and played really well,” Brunette said. “He’s hungry. He wants it. From the back end, he was our best guy by far (on Saturday).”

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History Favors Nashville, But Bruins Need the Points

In their only previous meeting this season, the Predators shut out Boston 4-0 at home on Oct. 22, with Juuse Saros making 33 saves and Ryan O’Reilly scoring the game-winner.

While Nashville is struggling, Boston can’t afford to overlook them. The Bruins need to capitalize on a favorable home matchup if they want to stay in the playoff race.

With both teams desperate for offense, this game could come down to who can break through first and capitalize on their scoring opportunities.