3 things that went wrong for the Boston Bruins against the Florida Panthers in Game 3

By Ryan Gagne

Modified May 11, 2024 18:50 GMT

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The Boston Bruins rode the momentum from a thrilling Game 7 overtime win in the opening round against the Toronto Maple Leafs to thump the Florida Panthers 5-1 in Game 1 of the second round.

However, the tide turned in Game 2, when the Panthers got physical and ran up the score on a relatively unflappable Jeremy Swayman, evening the series at 1-1 with a 6-1 victory.

Surprisingly, Florida continued to dominate, scoring another six goals (two empty-net ones) in another convincing 6-2 win in Game 3 to go up by a game in their best-of-seven series.

The Bruins have dropped two straight to the Panthers after earning a 4-0-0 in the regular season and a Game 1 victory. What has gone wrong in the last six periods of hockey for Boston?

3 reasons Bruins suffered in Game 3 vs. Panthers

#1. Brad Marchand got hurt

Against the Maple Leafs, Bruins captain Brad Marchand was a pest. Whether he was trying to get under his opponent's skin or creating space with the puck to set up his teammates, his name was consistently involved in the play.

After the wrestling match that was Game 2, the Bruins came home to the TD Garden faithful, and instead of using their festy fans to their advantage, Boston gave them almost nothing to cheer about, especially after Marchand got hurt in the first period.

Out of everyone in the lineup, the captain only played 10:51, which was second to last behind Jakob Lauko (10:17). Even though Game 3 did not have the shenanigans from the previous contest, missing Marchand, who averages 18:04, was a significant blow to the game plan that unraveled from the first period on.

#2. Penalties forced the Bruins to chase the game

In Game 1, the Panthers didn't connect on three powerplay opportunities, finishing the evening going 0-for-3. Even though the two teams combined for 148 penalty minutes in Game 2, Florida scored once in six man-advantage opportunities, while the Bruins finished 0-for-3, stretching their series slump to 0-for-5.

However, things got worse in Game 3, as Boston couldn't stay out of the box, giving the visiting Florida team six powerplay opportunities and allowing them to score on four. Meanwhile, the Bruins have yet to score on the man advantage, extending their slump to 0-for-7.

In the series with the Maple Leafs, Boston gave up one powerplay goal in seven games, and in the last two contests against the Panthers, they have already surrendered five goals in just six periods. Special teams have become a focal point in the series since the Bruins continue to deviate from their game plan and play undisciplined hockey.

#3. Boston's scary trend of low shot totals

With a 6-1 loss in Game 2, Boston set a franchise record for the largest defeat (five goals) in a playoff game with the least shots, 15. Since 1959-60, when the NHL started to track shots on goal, no other playoff game in 65 years was as bad.

In nine periods against Florida in this second-round series, the only period they have reached double digits in shots came in the first period of Game 1. Since then, here are their totals:

	First Period	Second Period	Third Period	Totals
Game 1	14	7	8	29
Game 2	6	6	3	15
Game 3	3	5	9	17

Unfortunately, in the past two games, they have combined for 32 shots, just three more shots than they had in Game 1. However, Boston (25.4) isn't dead last in shots on goal in the playoffs, an honor that belongs to the Vancouver Canucks (20.5).

Heading into Game 4, Boston has to win to keep the series competitive or risk falling behind 3-1. Getting shots on Sergei Bobrovsky is critical to prolonging the series, as is staying out of the box. If Florida continues to dominate, this series will be over quicker than many expected.