There’s a possibility that Bruins fans will be getting a nice gift just three days before Christmas. With a Canadiens loss to the Wild and a Bruins win over the Blues tonight, the Black and Gold will take over first place in the Atlantic Division entering the NHL’s holiday break.

The Blues come into Boston having blown a 3-0 lead last night in their 4-3 loss to the Flyers. That loss snapped a three-game win streak for St. Louis as they roll into TD Garden looking to avenge their outcome in the second game of their back to back on the road.

The Bruins will be without Max Talbot after the NHL Department of Player Safety handed him a two-game suspension for his late hit on the Devils’ Jiri Tlusty in Sunday’s 2-1 victory. Zac Rinaldo, who missed the three games due to an upper-body injury, was removed from injured reserved and will fill the void in the B’s fourth line tonight.

Despite the Blues’ setback last night, the Black and Gold will need another well-rounded performance to get two points and a chance to take over first place in the Atlantic.

Gametime: 7:00 p.m.
TV/Radio: NESN/98.5 The Sports Hub
Records: Bruins 19-9-4 (42 points), Blues 20-11-4 (44 points)
Location: TD Garden

Bruins projected lines

Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-Brett Connolly
Matt Beleskey-David Krejci-Loui Eriksson
Frank Vatrano-Ryan Spooner-Jimmy Hayes
Zac Rinaldo-Landon Ferraro-Tyler Randell

Zdeno Chara-Adam McQuaid
Dennis Seidenberg-Colin Miller
Torey Krug-Kevan Miller

Tuukka Rask
Jonas Gustavsson

Blues projected lines

Alex Steen-Paul Stastny-Vladimir Tarasenko
Magnus Paajarvi-David Backes-Troy Brouwer
Robby Fabbri-Jori Lehtera-Dmitrij Jaskin
Scottie Upshall-Scott Gomez-Jordan Caron

Jay Bouwmeester-Alex Pietrangelo
Joel Edmundson-Kevin Shattenkirk
Carl Gunnerson-Colton Parayko

Jake Allen
Brian Elliott

Matchup to watch: Special teams

Torey Krug and the Bruins league-leading power play will face a tough test against the Blues penalty kill that is second in the league. (Photo by Joe Makarski, Bruins Daily)

An interesting trend coming into tonight’s matchup is how the teams are looking on special teams.

The league-leading Bruins power play (29.4 percent) have had the second fewest opportunities with the man advantage (90). But as the adage says, quality over quantity, and I’m sure the Bruins will take that given their success on the PP this year. They’ll have a tough task tonight as the Blues come in with the second-best penalty kill in the league (87.3 percent).

Speaking of quality penalty kill’s, the Bruins PK units have been stellar. Since the loss to San Jose on November 17th where they allowed two power play goals, the B’s have killed off 51 of their last 54 shorthanded opportunities that also includes killing 21 straight penalties. We’ll see if the Black and Gold PK can continue their success against a Blues team that boasts the best power-play percentage on the road at 28.4 percent. St. Louis comes in sixth in overall power play percentage at 21.4 percent.

Storyline to watch: Bruins depth at center

Landon Ferraro will likely handle fourth line center duties the next two games. (Photo by Joe Makarski, Bruins Daily)

With Talbot watching from the press box the next two games and the injury to Joonas Kemppainen, Ferraro will likely slot in the fourth line center role. The good news is that Ferraro’s versatility gives Claude Julien options of putting anywhere in the lineup. On the other hand, the B’s coach may have his hands full if he has to make in-game adjustments as seen on Sunday when he swapped Ferraro with Brett Connolly on the Bergeron line during the second period.

For a team that usually has a few centerman at wing, the depth will be a little thin the next two days. It will be up to the Bruins to keep Julien from having to make in-game adjustments and not have to move Ferraro, or any other center, around in the lineup.