At long last, we finally have Bruins games etched on the calendar for 2021.
The NHL announced its full schedule for the upcoming 2021 season on Wednesday afternoon, including the Bruins' full 56-game slate of games — starting with a season opener against the New Jersey Devils on Jan. 14.
Here is the Bruins' full schedule for the 2020-21 season.
BOSTON BRUINS 2020-21 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE:
JANUARY
Thursday, January 14 @ New Jersey
Saturday, January 16 @ New Jersey
Monday, January 18 @ N.Y. Islanders
Thursday, January 21 vs. Philadelphia
Saturday, January 23 vs. Philadelphia
Tuesday, January 26 vs. Pittsburgh
Thursday, January 28 vs. Pittsburgh
Saturday, January 30 @ Washington
FEBRUARY
Monday, February 1 @ Washington
Wednesday, February 3 @ Philadelphia
Friday, February 5 @ Philadelphia
Saturday, February 6 vs. Buffalo
Monday, February 8 vs. Buffalo
Wednesday, February 10 @ N.Y. Rangers
Friday, February 12 @ N.Y. Rangers
Saturday, February 13 @ N.Y. Islanders
Monday, February 15 vs. New Jersey
Thursday, February 18 vs. New Jersey
Sunday, February 21 vs. Philadelphia
Thursday, February 25 @ N.Y. Islanders
Friday, February 26 @ N.Y. Rangers
Sunday, February 28 @ N.Y. Rangers
MARCH
Wednesday, March 3 vs. Washington
Friday, March 5 vs. Washington
Saturday, March 7 vs. Philadelphia
Tuesday, March 9 @ N.Y. Islanders
Thursday, March 11 vs. N.Y. Rangers
Saturday, March 13 vs. N.Y. Rangers
Monday, March 15 @ Pittsburgh
Tuesday, March 16 @ Pittsburgh
Thursday, March 18 @ Buffalo
Saturday, March 20 @ Buffalo
Thursday, March 25 vs. N.Y. Islanders
Saturday, March 27 vs. N.Y. Islanders
Sunday, March 28 vs. New Jersey
Tuesday, March 30 vs. New Jersey
APRIL
Thursday, April 1 vs. Pittsburgh
Saturday, April 3 vs. Pittsburgh
Monday, April 5 @ Philadelphia
Tuesday, April 6 @ Philadelphia
Thursday, April 8 @ Washington
Sunday, April 11 @ Washington
Tuesday, April 13 vs. N.Y. Islanders
Friday, April 16 vs. N.Y. Islanders
Sunday, April 18 vs. Washington
Tuesday, April 20 vs. Washington
Thursday, April 22 @ Buffalo
Friday, April 23 @ Buffalo
Sunday, April 25 @ Pittsburgh
Tuesday, April 27 @ Pittsburgh
Thursday, April 29 vs. Buffalo
MAY
Saturday, May 1 vs. Buffalo
Monday, May 3 @ New Jersey
Tuesday, May 4 @ New Jersey
Thursday, May 6 vs. N.Y. Rangers
Saturday, May 8 vs. N.Y. Rangers
Game times, as well as regional and national broadcast information will be released at a later date. As expected, the Bruins will only play against opponents in what is a revamped, regional-based "East Division" — which also features the Sabres, Devils, Rangers, Islanders, Capitals, Flyers and Penguins. The Bruins will face each of these seven opponents eight times during the regular season. The top four teams from each division will qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and the first two rounds will feature intra-divisional play. Once a single team advances from each division, the four qualifying teams will be re-seeded for the final two rounds to determine a Stanley Cup Champion.
Here are a few takeaways from Boston's upcoming 2021 slate as the B's plan ahead to the start of training camp on Jan. 3.
Baseball-style series reign supreme
While the NHL's decision to realign its divisions for the 2021 season was a byproduct of a still-closed border between the U.S. and Canada — coupled with the reduced travel that comes with only regional-based matchups — it's evident that the league is also taking additional measures towards maximizing teams' travel by scheduling a number of consecutive games against one opponent during the 2021 season.
Much like the NBA this season, it appears that the NHL is taking a page of the MLB's scheduling playbook in terms of scheduling these consecutive matchups against one opponent in one location, allowing a team like Boston to knock a number of games off of their docket during one road trip — rather than having to make multiple trips down to, say, Washington or Pittsburgh over the next couple of months.
For example, the Bruins open the new campaign with two consecutive matchups down in New Jersey (1/14, 1/16) and then knocking out a road game against the nearby Islanders (1/18) before finally returning to the friendly (albeit empty) confines of TD Garden on Jan. 21 against the Flyers (before playing Philly again on 1/23). In total, the Bruins will have 25 instances of these two-game sets against one opponent during the 2021 season.
"Yeah, I don't think it will take long to get those rivalries built up," Cam Neely said on Monday. "Obviously, there's history between Boston and the Rangers for years. When they play here, we play there, there's a lot of fans of both teams. I think the recent history we've had with Philly in the playoffs, that will spark some rivalry. Playing these teams that many times, guys will be sick of each other in a hurry."
Missing old rivals
Even though playing a number of talented Eastern Conference clubs like the Flyers, Penguins and Capitals in consecutive outings will brew plenty of bad blood throughout this compressed season, it will pain many hockey purists that there stands a chance Boston will not face off against longtime foes such as the Maple Leafs and Canadiens at all during the 2021 season (unless they were to meet in the final two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs).
The 2021 season will stand as the first time the Bruins play a division-only schedule since the 1966-67 expansion — although Boston did only play Eastern Conference opponents during the lockout-delayed 1994-95 and 2012-13 seasons. Excluding the lockout season of 2004-05, this will be the first season in franchise history in which the B's will not play a regular season game against the Canadiens. Also, excluding a lockout-shortened 1994-95 season when Toronto was placed in the Western Conference, this will also be the first season in franchise history where the Bruins will not play any regular season games against the Maple Leafs.
Bruins not swamped with back-to-backs
Given that the NHL is attempting to fit 56 games in just 116 days, many feared that a Bruins team already anchored by a core of veteran players like 35-year-old Patrice Bergeron, 34-year-old David Krejci, 33-year-old Tuukka Rask (and potentially 43-year-old Zdeno Chara) would be at the mercy of a schedule crammed with a number of back-to-back matchups. However, all things considered, the Bruins seem to have made out pretty well — with only eight back-to-backs listed on the schedule.
Couple in the fact that the B's longest road trip will only be four games (albeit they will have four total four-game road trips) and a six-game homestand from March 25 - April 3, and the Bruins seem to have dodged a bullet when it comes to taxing some of the key cogs on this roster over the course of this season. However, when factoring in the rest of incoming opponents, the Bruins will have four instances in which they will be playing a "rested" opponent after coming off a game the day/night prior.
