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Bruins clinch Atlantic crown

REUTERS

Garnet Hathaway scored the deciding goal with 2:28 left in the second period, and the Boston Bruins held on for a 2-1 victory over the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning to clinch the Atlantic Division title on Saturday afternoon.

The Bruins (56-11-5, 117 points) have won six consecutive games. They are also a virtual lock to win the President’s Trophy as the best regular-season team in the entire league as they held a 15-point advantage over the next best team (the Carolina Hurricanes) after Saturday’s action, with 10 games left to go on Boston’s schedule before the Stanley Cup playoffs begin.

Hathaway has scored three goals since joining the Bruins in late February, two of which have been go-ahead tallies.

Patrice Bergeron netted Boston’s first goal, extending his season-long point streak to five games. The Bruins captain has eight points in that span.

Linus Ullmark made 11 of his 26 saves in the third period, improving to 11-1-0 in his last 12 starts.

“That’ll get you excited for playoff hockey, yeah,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said.

SPORTS

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2023-03-27T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-03-27T07:00:00.0000000Z

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