Boston Bruins (51-26-5, fourth in the Atlantic Division) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (54-20-8, first in the Metropolitan Division)
Raleigh, North Carolina; Monday, 7 p.m. EDT
LINE: Hurricanes -122, Bruins +101; over/under is 5.5
NHL PLAYOFFS FIRST ROUND: Hurricanes host series opener
BOTTOM LINE: The Carolina Hurricanes host the Boston Bruins to open the Eastern Conference first round. The teams meet Thursday for the fourth time this season. The Hurricanes went 3-0 against the Bruins in the regular season. In their last regular season meeting on Feb. 10, the Hurricanes won 6-0.
Carolina is 27-8-4 in home games and 54-20-8 overall. The Hurricanes have a 40-3-6 record when scoring at least three goals.
Boston has a 51-26-5 record overall and a 24-11-3 record on the road. The Bruins serve 9.8 penalty minutes per game to rank eighth in NHL play.
TOP PERFORMERS: Sebastian Aho has 37 goals and 44 assists for the Hurricanes. Brady Skjei has one goal and nine assists over the past 10 games.
David Pastrnak has 40 goals and 37 assists for the Bruins. Patrice Bergeron has six goals and four assists over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Hurricanes: 8-2-0, averaging four goals, 6.8 assists, 4.1 penalties and 9.3 penalty minutes while giving up 2.9 goals per game.
Bruins: 6-4-0, averaging 2.8 goals, 4.5 assists, four penalties and 8.2 penalty minutes while giving up 2.3 goals per game.
INJURIES: Hurricanes: Frederik Andersen: out (undisclosed), Jake Gardiner: out (hip/back).
Bruins: Jesper Froden: out (undisclosed), Jakub Zboril: out (lower body).
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