The set-up: The 35-12-8 Boston Bruins have won 20 of its last 25 overall (20-2-3) to move within three points of the Lightning (Tampa Bay has 81 points and Boston 78), with three games in hand. Boston begins a rugged stretch when they open a five-game road trip at the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night but playing away from home has not been an issue for the surging Bruins, who have won seven straight on the road as part of a 13-game road point streak (11-0-2 since their last regulation road loss on Dec. 4 at Nashville). The Vancouver Canucks are next-to-last in the Western Conference at 22-30-6 (50 points).

Boston: The Bruins are challenging for top spot overall in the NHL and have clearly revived their fortunes after a series of strong draft picks and trades as well as a coaching change. Boston is on a roll, winning eight of its last 10. The latest victory was a 5-2 decision at home over Calgary on Wednesday, when the Bruins overcame a 2-1 deficit with four straight goals. Center David Krejci wants to get his game going again, as he has been held to one point -- a goal -- in his past five games. For most of the season, he has gone no more than two games without generating points. He is looking for his line as a whole, which includes speedy wingers Ryan Spooner and Jake DeBrusk, to produce more offensively. The trio has combined for 80 points this season, but was blanked against Calgary. Patrice Bergeron is closing in on his fourth 30-goal campaign, scoring seven times in seven games this month to boost his team-high total to 27. "Bergeron would fit in with any club," former Boston coach and current Canadian broadcaster Don Cherry said. "When you talk about MVP, it's not the best player, it's the guy who is most valuable to your team and I can't see anybody in the league more valuable than him."

Vancouver: The Bruins come town the same week that Canucks general manager Jim Benning, a former Boston executive who helped build the 2011 champion squad, signed a contract extension to mixed reviews. Forward Sven Baertschi collected a pair of assists in Wednesday's 4-3 loss to Florida, but was out of the lineup 24 hours later. "I haven't been thrilled with his game as of late," head coach Travis Green said of scratching Baertschi. However, Baertschi likely will return to Vancouver's lineup Saturday

The pick: The youthful Canucks have lost seven of their past eight games, mixing a lopsided road win over Dallas, which was playing its third game in four days, with one-sided losses and close calls. Vancouver gave up four first-period goals in a 6-3 loss at Boston back on Oct. 19, in the teams' first meeting of the season. Boston goalie Tuukka Rask is 20-1-2 in his last 23 decisions but is just 3-4-1 lifetime against Vancouver. Make the Over a 10* play.