The final resting place for the 2024-25 Bruins is still undetermined, but we all know it’s not going to be the playoffs.

They do, however, have seven games left in this miserable season and, while losing may be the best thing for them, how they lose still matters.

It was a lot easier to feel better about the team after they gave the Eastern Conference-leading Washington Capitals a game, punching back after being down 2-0 in the first period, than it was after the back-to-back blowout losses in Los Angeles and Anaheim last week.

The B’s will lose more games, to be sure. They are two losses away from tying the franchise record for consecutive defeats of 11 set by the inaugural Bruins team in 1924-25. With a visit to Montreal on Thursday and a home game against Carolina on Saturday, it seems likely they will equal that mark. In fact, the roster is pretty much designed to lose right now.

But for the men who pull on the Bruins sweater, a few of whom will be part of the plan moving forward, the acceptance of losing cannot be tolerated.

That’s why Jeffrey Viel can be an important piece for the Bruins as they try to maintain some semblance of the culture that had been built here over the past two decades, whether or not the 28-year-old Viel (341 AHL games, 54 NHL games) is part of the long-term plans.

In the 4-3 loss to the Caps, Viel brought a touch of the old school to the proceedings, dropping the gloves with Washington’s Dylan McIlrath. Viel gave up three inches and nearly 30 pounds, but he and McIlrath pounded away at each other for nearly a full minute, getting the Garden crowd that seemed content to simply cheer on Alex Ovechkin’s chase for Wayne Gretzky’s goal record back on the Bruins’ side.

“Yeah, it was a long one. My arm was dead after that,” said a grinning Viel after Wednesday’s practice at Warrior Ice Arena.

It doesn’t always work out like this, but less than three minutes after the fight, the B’s tied the game. They were in the battle until the end and wound up losing on a fluke goal.

But Viel took pride in that he’d done his job to the best of his ability.

“It’s what you want. It’s part of my job, just bring the energy and getting the crowd into it, too. It brings everybody up. Yeah, it’s what I do,” said Viel, who grew up about 20 minutes outside of Montreal’s downtown.

Interim coach Joe Sacco said the usage of Viel going forward will depend on the matchup. He got in the lineup on Tuesday because of the heaviness in the Caps’ lineup. It’s fair to question whether prospect Fabian Lysell should have been the one to come out, but it’s hard to deny the positive impact  Viel had.

“To do what he does against a very formidable opponent there in their player, it creates energy on the bench, it creates energy in the building,” said Sacco. “But it also lets the opposition know that we’re here, we’re going to be physical, too, right? We’re not going to be pushed out of our own building, and that wasn’t the case (Tuesday) night. But it was good on him to do what he did. It depends on who we’re playing, teams we’re facing and what they have in their lineup.”

This could be as good a chance as Viel will have to show B’s management what he can do. After spending most of his career in the San Jose organization (he had 153 PIMs in 54 games with the Sharks), he signed a two-year deal with the B’s last July 1 on a deal that has a $775,000 NHL cap hit.

The B’s have a lot of shopping to do in the offseason, and if they’re serious about this just being a retool, they will have to spend a good amount of their $25 million-plus cap space in the higher end of the market. That money goes pretty quickly.

Viel has the opportunity to show he can hold down a fourth line role, and at the league minimum.

“Every time you get a chance up here, it’s always about making the most of it and I’m very grateful about being here,” said Viel. “It’s about being consistent and doing what I do, playing my role and to my strengths. Every time I’m up here, I make the most of it.”

Casey’s chance

Casey Mittelstadt has seemed somewhat ill-fitting since he came here in the trade for Charlie Coyle. He’s got two goals and two assists in 11 games and his brief pairing with David Pastrnak produced a disastrous minus-5 for both players in Anaheim.

But while he didn’t pick up any points in the loss to Washington, he played his most impactful game as a Bruin. He did a good job of sealing the wall that created Vinni Lettieri’s goal and, on the power play, he made a great play to keep the puck in at the blue line on Pastrnak’s first goal.

Where he fits with the B’s will be determined by what pieces are placed around him after GM Don Sweeney goes shopping this summer. But Sacco would like to see him make some things happen on his own as well.

“I thought that line, especially in the second period, they were buzzing,” said Sacco of Mittelstadt’s line with Lettieri and Marat Khusnutdinov. “They had zone time, their cycle games was good, they connected, especially in the offensive zone. They had good spacings. A lot of that had to do with (Mittelstadt). All three guys looked like they were in sync (Tuesday) night. We’re hoping that’s something (Mittelstadt) can continue to build off his game. He’s a pass-first guy. I’ve talked about him maybe putting the puck to the net at times more … we need scoring from other people on your team. You can’t rely on certain people all the time. It’s a good opportunity for him.”

Montreal visit

This will be Boston’s one and only trip to Montreal, which does not seem right to anybody who grew up watching this rivalry that’s been dormant for a number of years.

“Very odd,” said the Medford-raised Sacco. “We don’t control the schedule but that’s a team I feel like we should be playing four times, two at home and two on the road. For us, it’s a good opportunity to make their chances of progressing into the playoffs a little harder, playing spoiler against them.”

After sweeping the Panthers, the Habs have a two-point lead over the Blue Jackets and Rangers for the final Eastern Conference wild card spot.