In Pittsburgh, the Penguins’ Tristan Jarry made 30 saves in a 1-0 shutout of the Boston Bruins in a Sunday matinee.
“They’ve been awesome,” Jarry said of his teammates. “The last couple games, they’ve done a good job of boxing out. Our defense has been leading to offense. We’ve been playing some tight defense and it’s generated scoring chances.”
Jake Guentzel struck for the only goal of the game at 4:03 of the third period.
The Pens are 8-1-1 in their last 10.
“It was a hard-fought game,” Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said. “There wasn’t a lot of space out there. You had to fight for every inch on both sides. From that standpoint, I think it had a playoff feel to it. The [game] was low-scoring. It should’ve been low-scoring. I don’t think there were a ton of scoring chances on either side.
“I think it’s good for our team to get into these types of games. I said to our guys before the game, ‘We’ve got to find a comfort level in playing in a one-goal, low-scoring game. That’s the nature of high-stakes environment hockey.'”
The Bruins have lost three in a row after winning six straight.
“Today, I didn’t mind our work ethic,” Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy said. “People assume, a 1-0 game, you’re not working. Those are good hockey games. Both teams had to work for every inch of ice out there. Trust me, I had the best seat in the house.”
The Bruins have two games in hand on the New York Rangers and a four-point cushion after the night’s outcomes.
“It was a playoff-type game. It was tight-checking all over,” Boston’s Chris Wagner said. “I think we’re probably better at grinding. I don’t think we did enough of that tonight. We were getting pucks back to D. Guys were struggling to get to the net. A couple bounces here and there, but we have another shot on Tuesday to redeem ourselves.”
The Rangers defeated the Buffalo Sabres, 6-3, on Sunday.
“I thought we were good tonight,” Guentzel said. “Games like this are going to be tight-checking. We have to find out ways to come out on top. We have to wait for our chance to get our opportunities.” 
Jeremy Swayman made 28 saves in the loss.
“I think the biggest thing is taking positives from each day,” Swayman said. “I think our leadership does a really good job with that. I think, even when we were down goal, guys were still pushing, ready for that next shift. We’re going to take the positives out of this game and move on forward with it.”

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