The Bruins’ game against the Buffalo Sabres is technically not a must-win, not with how far we have to go to the end of the season.

But these are games the B’s need to win to prove to management that it is indeed a viable team and not one whose various parts should be sold off at March 7 trade deadline.

Buffalo is one of the few teams that is just about out of it in the tightly contested Eastern Conference, a whopping 15 points behind the B’s and in dead last in the conference.

The road, however, has not been kind to the B’s. They are 1-4-1 in January away from the friendly confines of the Garden, where they have a 10-1-1 record since December 1.

If the B’s are to be taken seriously by their own management, anything short of two points on Tuesday against the Sabres would be detrimental towards staving off a retool.

In the face of their deficiencies, the B’s need to find a way to establish a better road mentality than the one they’ve had, which has been that of fragility.

“The biggest thing right now is just sticking with it on the road,” said coach Joe Sacco on Monday. “I feel at home, we’ve had a really strong mindset where if we got down a goal or two, we just stayed with it. We’ve had some comebacks here at home in the third period where our guys have really dug in and were pretty determined. So that same focus and that same mindset has to exist on the road as well. If we get down a goal or two, we can’t let it get away from us, and I feel like that’s happening a little bit on the road. We have to make sure we reel it back in, reset, shift our focus. Whatever you want to call it. But understand that we’re still in the hockey game and it gets away from us. Matchups you can’t control on the road but, at some point, that’s irrelevant. You’ve got to find a way to be a stronger road team.”

The B’s could be without Brandon Carlo, who Sacco said was “a little under the weather.” Carlo, who was sporting nasty gash and bruise on his cheekbone courtesy of stray puck in the win over Colorado on Saturday, did practice with the team on Monday and traveled to Buffalo but did not take Tuesday’s morning skate. He’s a game-time decision.

Cole Koepke, out since taking a head shot in the B’s win over the Tampa on January 14, will return to the lineup while Max Jones will come out.