Game 2 Takeaways: Defensive Breakdowns Cost the Bruins a Brutal 6-1 Defeat originally appeared in NBC Sports Boston
The good news for the Boston Bruins is that they will leave Florida with a split of the first two Eastern Conference second-round games against the Panthers.
The bad news for the Bruins is that it’s hard to feel good about their game right now after a dismal performance in Game 2 at Amerant Bank Arena on Wednesday night.
The Bruins used a three-goal second period in Game 1 to build them up for a series-opening victory. The opposite happened in Game 2, as the Panthers scored three times in the second period. They scored three more goals in the final 20 minutes to wrap up a dominant 6-1 victory and level the series.
The game got out of hand in the third period, when these teams combined for 136 penalty minutes. The craziest moment was David Pastrnak fighting Matthew Tkachuk. A total of 12 players committed misconduct in the final 10 minutes of the period.
The Panthers have now won five of the last six Game 2s. They also beat the Bruins in Game 2 of the first round last season. The B’s have lost five straight Game 2 games since 2021.
The series will move to Boston for Game 3 on Friday night. But before we look at that matchup, here are three takeaways from Bruins-Panthers Game 2.
Costly mistakes doom Bruins
The Panthers are tough to beat when you execute at a high level. When you make silly mistakes, this task becomes much more difficult.
The Bruins had a communication error on the Panthers’ first goal. Florida forward Steven Lorentz managed to skate to the front of the net without any resistance and connected with a shot from Jeremy Swayman.
The Panthers’ second goal came after John Beecher and Charlie McAvoy both shot the puck and failed to clear the zone. McAvoy also lost his stick and as a result wasn’t able to defend much.
The Panthers’ third goal was scored with 0.3 seconds remaining in the second period. McAvoy and Brad Marchand protected Swayman in front of the net, making it difficult for the B’s goalie to locate the shot from the point.
The Bruins also suffered too many men on ice penalties in the second period. It was the fifth time they had taken this penalty in the playoffs so far. That’s one more than the other 15 playoff teams combined! Too many men on ice penalties in a playoff run is bad enough. Five is completely inexcusable.
The Panthers scored a lot of turnovers, bad penalties and defensive mistakes from the Bruins in last season’s first-round series, and they used the same playbook in Game 2. This is a very aggressive and opportunistic team. If you don’t take care of the puck in your zone, the Panthers will make you pay.
Special teams play a factor
The Bruins started the playoffs hot on the power play. They scored a power play goal in each of their first four games against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round. They were 6 of 13 overall during that span. They haven’t scored a goal with the man advantage since.
The Bruins are 0 of 9 on the power play in their last five games, including zero goals in five opportunities in the second round. Not only are the B’s failing to score on the power play, but they also aren’t drawing many penalties.
The penalty was a different (and much better) story for the Bruins. They have the best PK in the playoffs. This unit is 28 out of 30 (96.4%), including a 19 out of 20 success rate on the road. The Panthers could have made the final score even more lopsided in Game 2 if they had taken advantage of more than one of their six power play opportunities.
Special teams often play a large role in the outcome of individual games and series as a whole. The Bruins need to figure out a way to improve their power play because they aren’t scoring enough points at 5-on-5 to offset these struggles with the man advantage.
Jeremy Swayman gave up more than two goals for the first time in the playoffs, but it’s hard to fault him for any of the four he allowed. The Bruins had too many breakdowns in their own zone in Game 2, making Swayman’s job much more difficult than necessary.
Swayman faced 10 high-danger scoring chances in 41:28 of ice time. That’s a pretty high number for just over two periods of action. Bruins coach Jim Montgomery pulled Swayman after the Panthers increased their lead to 4-1 just 88 seconds into the third period.
Linus Ullmark made his first appearance since Game 2 of the first round and stopped eight of the 10 shots he faced.
Game 2 was Swayman’s seventh consecutive start. He had never started so many consecutive games during his NHL career. But it wasn’t fatigue that caused the 25-year-old goalkeeper to give up four goals. It was the Bruins’ sloppy play with him.
Swayman was by far the Bruins’ best player in the postseason. He entered Game 2 with a league-leading .955 save percentage. There’s no reason to sit him until he starts allowing bad goals on a consistent basis. Swayman gives the Bruins the best chance to win, and it would be a mistake not to go back to him in Game 3. The fact that he got some rest after being taken out of Game 2 early is a bonus.
