Florida put up a good fight and had some confrontations, but the Panthers were satisfied with the outcome.
Aleksander Barkov scored two goals and assisted twice, and Sam Reinhart added four helpers as the Panthers trounced the Boston Bruins 6-1 on Wednesday, tying the second-round series at one game apiece. Brandon Montour, Steven Lorentz, Gustav Forsling, and Eetu Luostarinen also scored goals for Florida.
After scoring four straight goals, the Panthers forced Bruins goalkeeper Jeremy Swayman to leave the game early in the third period, and then added two more against Linus Ullmark later on. Sergei Bobrovsky made 14 saves for the Panthers.
The Panthers’ five-goal advantage matched their greatest margin of victory in a playoff game, which came against Tampa Bay on April 29.
Charlie Coyle scored the Bruins’ only goal, as they lost to Florida for the first time in six games this season. The third and fourth games of the series will now be played in Boston on Friday and Sunday, respectively.
The intensity increased in the third period, resulting in 146 penalty minutes and many altercations, laying the groundwork for Friday’s contest. One highlight was Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk engaged in a physical brawl with Boston’s David Pastrnak, which added to the series’ excitement.
