Bruins clinch playoff berth with win against Penguins

BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 2-1 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins at TD Garden on Saturday.

Trent Frederic and Erik Haula scored 1:12 apart in the first period, and Jeremy Swayman made 23 saves for the Bruins (46-24-5), who ended a three-game losing streak and trail the Tampa Bay Lightning by three points for third place in the Atlantic Division. They have qualified for the playoffs in six straight seasons and 13 of 15.
"We talked about it in the room that we have a standard here, so we're not going to go out and celebrate that we're going to make the playoffs, but it's still an accomplishment to be proud of," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. "It's not easy to do it year in and year out in this league. Now we can start building our game for the playoffs, which I think we've been doing for the last few months. We've just got to get our habits back and hopefully stay healthy."
Danton Heinen scored for the Penguins (43-23-11), who were 0-for-3 on the power play and have lost seven of their past 10 games (3-6-1). Casey DeSmith made 27 saves.
Pittsburgh is third in the Metropolitan Division, seven points behind the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers.
"I thought the final 58 (minutes), we were competitive," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "I thought we played a solid game, but the first two (minutes) we weren't ready to play. It's hard to spot a team two goals like that in the fashion that we did. It makes it hard to win."
Frederic gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead 49 seconds into the first with a backhand in front of the crease after DeSmith made a save against Craig Smith, and Haula made it 2-0 at 2:01 when his shot from the bottom of the left face-off circle deflected in off Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson.

Frederic was a healthy scratch for a 3-2 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.
"I just wanted to play hard, try to help the team, play disciplined, and obviously try to get a win. Anytime we're winning, that's good," Frederic said. "[Smith] made a good play to put it to the net. When our line's successful, that's what we do. I just got a good bounce so I could put it in the net."
Heinen scored for the third straight game at 5:38 of the second period with a wrist shot from the high slot off a drop pass from Teddy Blueger for the 2-1 final.
"It's really tough (to play from behind)," Blueger said. "They're a good defensive team, you know, very structured, so it's tough to score on them. Obviously when you're chasing the game, I think they're a little more diligent defensively, so we didn't help ourselves."
Swayman made nine saves in the third period.
"It's special. It's a really important win for us, especially as of late, in the fashion that we did it, making the small plays and the simple plays," Swayman said. "Everything was just crisp and on point for us tonight. Just super excited to finally clinch, and to do it at home is the cherry on top."

DeSmith saved the last 25 shots he faced. Sullivan said before the game that goalie Tristan Jarry is week to week because of a lower-body injury.
"I feel for him," DeSmith said. "After the year he has had, he has been fantastic. I hope he comes back, and I wish nothing but the best for him.
"(It's) good for me to going into the playoffs to get more games in. If I have to play in the playoffs, I will be that much more prepared. (I'm) just trying to focus on my game."
NOTES: It's the 75th time Boston has qualified for the playoffs, the second-most in NHL history behind the Montreal Canadiens (85). … Bruins forward David Pastrnak missed his sixth straight game because of an undisclosed injury, and defenseman Hampus Lindholm (upper body) missed his fifth in a row. … Boston defenseman Brandon Carlo had one shot on goal and blocked two shots in 21:13 of ice time after he did not play Thursday because of an undisclosed injury. … The Bruins went 0-for-2 on the power play and are 0-for-25 over the past seven games. … Boston has won 10 of its 12 afternoon games this season. … Heinen scored his 17th goal of the season to set an NHL career high; he had 16 with the Bruins in 2017-18. He has three goals in two games since being traded by Boston to the Anaheim Ducks on Feb. 24, 2020.