BOSTON — The Boston Bruins’ last four games have all needed extra time to determine a winner.

The Bruins have split their two games decided in the five-minute overtime and split their two shootouts over that span. But on the season their shootout record is just 3-5. That’s why they’d be wise today against the New York Rangers at TD Banknorth Garden to avoid the post-overtime spectacle. The Rangers lead the league with eight shootout victories this season (against just two losses).

Boston found out the hard way how tough the Rangers are in a shootout the first time these two teams met, as the Rangers won the shootout, 1-0, on a goal by Chris Drury. Drury is 2-for-4 in shootouts this season, while his teammates have some even more impressive numbers. Nikolai Zherdev (5-for-10), Markus Naslund (3-for-6) and Fredrik Sjostrom (3-for-7) are all downright lethal in shootouts.

Season series: That Rangers’ shootout win in November was even more dramatic because the Blueshirts came back from 2-0 down in the third period to push the game into extra time. The Bruins and Rangers will meet twice more after this afternoon’s tilt.

What they’re writing: Jay Greenberg of the NY Post writes that the Rangers are counting on newly acquired Eric Reitz to bolster their blue-line corps. Also in the Post, Larry Brooks tells us which other four Rangers should have their number in the rafters after Adam Graves’ goes up.

NY Player to Watch: It’s been almost two years since Belmont, Mass., native Paul Mara’s half-season stint with the Bruins ended with a trade to New York. Mara’s fit in nicely with the Rangers. This season, he’s posted 4-11-15 totals and — most impressively — he’s actually a plus-1. Today he’ll be looking to bounce back after a point-less, minus-2 performance against Pittsburgh Wednesday.