It must have felt like Groundhog Day for the Boston Bruins.
Friday’s tilt with the Buffalo Sabres completed a rare instance of facing the same opponent three straight times. They entered the evening without Patrice Bergeron (lower-body) after the Bruins scratched him from the lineup before puck drop.
In the middle of their jam-packed end-of-season slate, the Bruins succumbed to mental and physical fatigue. Their execution in all three zones looked off all night.
The lowly but opportunistic Sabres pounced. Sam Reinhart started a stretch of five straight goals for the Sabres following his first-period equalizer.