In Boston, the Florida Panthers seized the opportunity on their power play, scoring two goals during a double-minor penalty against the Bruins, and in total scoring four power-play goals to take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series.
During a power play, Vladimir Tarasenko and Carter Verhaeghe scored goals just 1 minute apart, while Sergei Bobrovsky blocked 14 shots to lead the Panthers to a 6-2 win over the Bruins on Friday. The game marked Florida’s second consecutive six-goal game, aided by Mason Lohrei's high stick that injured Panthers forward Steven Lorentz.
Florida center Sam Bennett, who had been absent due to an undisclosed injury, stated that it was a significant opportunity for the team, and they took full advantage of it. He emphasized the difficulty of scoring power-play goals in the playoffs and praised their power play for coming through at a crucial moment in the game.
Scoring power-play goals against Boston has been particularly challenging, as they successfully defended against 27 of their first 28 penalties in this year’s postseason. However, the Panthers have now managed to score in five of their last seven power-play opportunities in the series.
Florida coach Paul Maurice expressed his confidence in the team's power play despite the statistics not reflecting their efforts. He highlighted the importance of consistency and perseverance, stating that their hard work eventually paid off.
The Panthers' Evan Rodrigues scored two goals, and Brandon Montour also scored, leading the team to back-to-back victories following their initial loss at home. After a 6-1 win on Wednesday, Florida dominated with 10 consecutive goals before Jakub Lauko narrowed the lead to 4-1 early in the third period, and Jake DeBrusk scored to make it a two-goal game.
Although Boston played the last 20 minutes without captain Brad Marchand, they were unable to close the gap before Sam Reinhart scored an empty-net goal with 1:24 remaining. Rodrigues scored again, marking the Panthers' fourth power-play goal of the game, in the final minute.
Now, the Bruins must secure a win at home on Sunday night to avoid falling to a 3-1 deficit before heading back to Florida for Game 5.
Bruins coach Jim Montgomery acknowledged Florida's strong performance and emphasized the need to focus on the upcoming game.
Jeremy Swayman made 27 saves for Boston, but they struggled, particularly in the first period where they were outshot 13-3. The situation worsened when Brad Marchand did not return for the third period following a hit by Sam Bennett in the first.
However, that turned out to be the only competitive period for the Bruins.
Montgomery credited the team's response to the absence of their captain, expressing that players like David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy elevated their performance in Marchand's absence.
After winning one game each on their home ice, the Panthers took a 1-0 lead eight minutes into the game when Rodrigues hit a puck out of the air and past Swayman. The score stayed the same until late in the second period when Lohrei accidentally hit Lorentz in the mouth with his stick.
With 23 seconds remaining in the first half of the penalty, Tarasenko scored against Swayman with a wrist shot from the left circle — with help from Sam Bennett, who returned to the lineup for the first time since Game 2 of the first-round series against Tampa Bay. Verhaeghe scored a minute later to make it 3-0.
In the early part of the third period, Lauko was penalized for interfering with the goalie. The Bruins argued that he was pushed into Bobrovsky by Aaron Ekblad, and fans threw water bottles and giveaway towels onto the ice, causing a brief delay in the game.
After the debris was cleared, Montour scored, giving Florida a 4-0 lead.
