Bruins close in on playoff spot

In Boston, the Bruins regained control and breathing room in their race for the fourth spot in the East.

Well, it is so much a race as a painted waiting game as you watch the New York Rangers’ coaching staff manage to defuse their own club.

While the Rangers were getting shutout by the Islanders, Charlie Coyle  snapped a 2-2 tie in the third period with the Buffalo Sabres in a 5-2 Boston win.

The win gives the Bruins a six-point lead with two games in hand and the Rangers with only 10 points on the table.

“Well, it was obviously the difference in the game,” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. “We gave up an early one in the third … and he gave us the boost back, obviously. His type of goal, where he took it to the net, is something we’ve been encouraging him to do a lot more of late. Hopefully he builds off that.”

Tuukka Rask made 29 saves in the win.

After Coyle made it 3-2, Taylor Hall and Brad Marchand pushed the lead to the 5-2 final.

“I don’t go into every game saying ‘Hey, I’ve got to score, I’ve got to score.’ It’s just about me bringing what I’m capable of bringing, what I need for the team to play well,” Coyle said. “And they need a lot more than scoring goals. Is scoring goals great? Yeah, it is, and I want to do more. But that’s not something that was weighing on me because then that’s about me, and it’s not just about me, it’s about the team.”

Casey Mittelstadt and Sam Reinhart had the Sabres goals.

“It’s always hard playing from behind, but we’re a young team, we’re learning, guys are getting a lot of experience,” Buffalo’s Drake Caggiula said. “We believe we’re in the games. There’s plenty of opportunities where we could’ve turned this into our favor. That’s sometimes the way hockey goes, but I think we can learn a lot from that.”

David Pastrnak and David Krejci  also scored for the Bruins.

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 35 saves  in the loss.

“For lots and lots of that game we were dictating against a [darn] good hockey team,” Sabres head coach Don Granato said. “We all know that they’re a great hockey team with a lot of great players and accomplished players. There was a lot of that game that our guys initiated, were able to dictate flow of the game and play.”