Game 5 takeaways: McAvoy advances as Bruins beat Panthers to force Game 6 originally appeared in NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Bruins avoided elimination with a hard-fought victory in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference second-round playoff series against the Florida Panthers.
A great start, a much better penalty kill and another strong net performance from Jeremy Swayman helped propel the Bruins to a 2-1 victory on Tuesday night at Amerant Bank Arena.
The Bruins entered the third period of Game 4 with a 2-1 lead but failed to finish the job with a 3-2 defeat. The same thing happened in Game 5, and this time Boston closed out.
The Panthers made a strong push in the final three minutes of the third period, with their goaltender pulled and their extra forward on the ice. The Bruins blocked six shots during that crucial stretch, and Swayman made an excellent save in the final seconds.
The Bruins have never won a playoff series while trailing 3-1 (0-25 all-time), but they only need two more wins to change that. The series now moves to Game 6 in Boston. But before we look at that matchup, here are three takeaways from Bruins-Panthers Game 5.
Strong start for Bruins
Mark Messier, on the ESPN broadcast, called the first 20 minutes of the game the best stretch of the Bruins’ series, and he might be right.
The Bruins put 12 shots on net — their highest total in one period since the first 20 minutes of Game 1. They had a 21-10 edge in shot attempts and a 12-4 edge in shots, despite the Panthers having the only power play in the period.
Boston opened the scoring at 4:49 when Morgan Geekie made a beautiful play to beat Florida goalie Sergei Bobrovsky for his second goal of the series. Jake DeBrusk received the primary assist after making a nice pass from behind the goal line.
The Bruins were also much more effective at avoiding the Panthers’ aggressive offense, making quick, accurate passes out of the defensive zone. From a defensive standpoint, the B’s didn’t allow any high-danger chances after giving up eight in the first period of Game 4.
Not only did the Bruins lead after the period, but they also tilted the ice in their favor for most of the first 20 minutes. They played with the right combination of poise and desperation.
Charlie McAvoy hasn’t played his best hockey in the playoffs thus far, but he stood out in Game 5 with a strong performance.
After not recording a single shot on net in the first four games of the series, McAvoy registered four on Tuesday night. One of them went past Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky in the second period, putting Boston ahead 2-1. It was a big goal for the B’s because the Panthers had tied the score just four minutes earlier.
This goal ended a 28-game playoff drought for McAvoy. The last time he scored a postseason goal was in Game 1 of the 2021 second-round series against the New York Islanders.
McAvoy also assisted on Geekie’s goal for his first point in eight games. The veteran defenseman scored three shots in the first period after not taking any in the first four games of the series.
McAvoy finished with one goal, one assist, six shots, four shot blocks and three hits in 23:26 of ice time. His last multi-point performance was in Game 1 of the first round against the Leafs.
Bruins penalty kill shows big improvement
The Bruins’ penalty kill was 3 for 3 in Game 1 of the series, but the next three matchups saw a sharp decline in their ability to not only stay out of the box but also defend the Panthers’ power play.
The Bruins gave up six power play goals in Games 2, 3 and 4 combined. Boston’s penalty kill fared much better in Game 5, with a perfect 4-for-4 showing.
The biggest penalty death occurred in the third period, when the Bruins took the sixth (!) man too many on the ice penalty. The Panthers got some good looks on net on that power play, but the Bruins’ penalty did just enough to preserve the one-goal lead.
