NHL · Stanley Cup Playoffs
Bruins eliminated by Sabres in first round of NHL playoffs
Boston’s 2026 postseason ended in six games against Buffalo. The Sabres advance to face Montreal in Round 2.
BOSTON — The Boston Bruins are out of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs after a six-game first-round loss to the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres clinched the series with a 4-1 win in Game 6 and advance to a second-round matchup with the Montreal Canadiens.
The series was tighter than the games-played count suggests — three of the six games were decided by a single goal — but Buffalo controlled tempo in the games it needed to, and Boston could not solve the Sabres at five-on-five through long stretches of the series.
The series, game by game
- Game 1: Sabres 4, Bruins 3
- Game 2: Bruins 4, Sabres 2
- Game 3: Sabres 3, Bruins 1
- Game 4: Sabres 6, Bruins 1
- Game 5: Bruins 2, Sabres 1 (OT)
- Game 6: Sabres 4, Bruins 1
The Game 5 overtime win briefly extended the series and gave Boston a chance to force a seventh game on home ice. The Sabres responded in Game 6 with a complete-game effort: an early lead, a controlled middle period, and a clinical close-out in the third.
Where Boston goes from here
The Bruins now turn to a long offseason and a real conversation about roster shape. The team’s playoff exit comes a year after another early postseason departure, and the pressure on the front office to deliver something more than incremental change is going to be real all summer. Boston’s offensive depth was a problem all series; the team’s ability to generate and finish high-danger chances in the games that mattered did not match the regular-season metrics.
What this means for Worcester sports fans
Worcester, like all of central Massachusetts, follows the Bruins closely — TD Garden is roughly an hour drive from the Heart of the Commonwealth — and another short playoff run hits the city as much as it hits Boston. The good news for the local sports calendar: the Celtics and Bruins exits leave the WooSox at Polar Park as the city’s daily live option, with a long minor-league summer stretching out ahead.