When the Bruins were finally able to end their road losing streak last Saturday, with their shootout victory over the Washington Capitals, many took a deep breath of relief. Now the situation coming to the forefront is: Could this road win show signs of the start of a winning streak – on the road? If the Bruins expect to keep their head above water in the tight Eastern Conference race, and hold a playoff spot, then the answer is…they will have to. Their loss on Monday to the New Jersey Devils put a stop to that hope of starting a win streak, although that is something that has now become a necessity to maintain a playoff spot. With eight of the 14 games left on the regular season schedule taking place on the road, winning on the road will obviously be a major factor in determining the Bruins’ playoff hopes. More importantly those eight road games are all against Eastern Conference teams. The schedule contains road games versus the Detroit Red Wings, Buffalo Sabres, two very important matches with the Columbus Blue Jackets who continue to keep pace with Boston as they also look to gain a wild card spot, the Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Philadelphia Flyers, and the Carolina Hurricanes. The oft mentioned – every point is important at this time of the season, is a fact when you look at the Eastern Conference standings. The difference between a third place slot in the Atlantic Division and a wild card spot fluctuates between 2-3 points. The remedy needed right now are, offensive contributions, strong efforts from the defense, and continued solid goaltending from Jeremy Swayman. Also badly needed, is a step up in their power play effort, which has been poor over their last dozen games. The Bruins go into tonight’s game having come out of recent games with just a single point in previous games, they will have to find a way to pick up the much needed two points in order to enhance their playoff position. Tonight’s game with the Winnipeg Jets (7:00pm) will be on TD Garden ice, followed by three games against Atlantic Division teams: the Detroit Red Wings who have been battling neck-and-neck with the Bruins for a wild card spot, will host the locals on Saturday 8:00pm. Tuesday will have the Bs hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs at 7:00pm, before they head back out on the road again, for the second game of a back-to-back series, taking on the Atlantic Division-leading Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday at 7:00pm. This week’s schedule will make a definitive mark on Boston’s playoff position, and if they play, as they say – the ‘right way’ – they will come out with a much better position in the playoff standings!