By: Ryan Jainchill | Follow me on Twitter / X @Jainchill_Ryan
In their first game of the 2024-25 NHL season, the Boston Bruins were defeated 6-4 by the Florida Panthers. Despite the four goals scored, Boston was outplayed for most of the game. After a delayed start due to the Panthers raising their 2024 Stanley Cup Championship banner, the Bruins came out of the gate flat and found themselves down 4-1 after the first period.
In his Bruins’ debut, Joonas Korpisalo stopped 29 of 35 shots. Pavel Zacha, Charlie McAvoy, Trent Frederic, and David Pastrnak all found the back of the net in this one, with the latter two coming in the final five minutes of the third period. Elias Lindholm also recorded his first point in a Bruins sweater, assisting on Zacha’s goal.
Slow First Period
The Bruins found themselves down 4-1 after the first period to Florida, and it certainly could have been more, with the shots favoring the reigning Stanley Cup champions 17-12. The team struggled to clear Panther sticks in front of Korpisalo’s crease, losing battles to the likes of Sam Bennett and Eetu Luostarinen. The former would break the ice for Florida with a rebound goal at 6:27 of the first frame after Korpisalo failed to track a puck that popped straight up in the air. Just over a minute later, Luostarinen would beat Trent Frederic to the front of the net and tap home a shot-pass from Reinhart.
While on the power play, the puck squeaked past McAvoy on the right wall and into a striding Sam Reinhart. McAvoy looked to cut off the angle, but Reinhart perfectly placed a shot off the shoulder of Korpisalo and into the top corner to make it 3-1.
The microcosm of the Bruins’ first-period struggles came on Bennett’s second goal of the game at the 19:34 mark. After the power play expired, all three Bruins’ forwards were caught below the circles, leading to a 3-2 rush. Ex-Bruin A.J. Greer’s original shot was blocked, but Andrew Peeke could not get position on Bennett, who would bang home the rebound to make it 4-1. A poor first period would end up sinking Boston tonight.
Penalty Kill Looked Strong
Despite allowing six goals, the Bruins went a perfect six for six on the penalty kill. Korpisalo stood tall while a man down, making key saves in the middle of the first period to keep the score at 2-0. The penalty killers were strong on the walls, winning battles and clearing the puck down the ice. In particular, Peeke stood out with some big clears on loose pucks around Korpisalo’s crease.
The Bruins were rewarded for their strong killing efforts with Zacha’s shorthanded tally at the 15:33 mark of the first period. After a fortunate bounce of Aleksander Barkov, Lindholm would slide the puck to Zacha at the left dot. The Czech native would fire one over the shoulder of Sergei Bobrovsky and just under the bar to score the Bruins’ first goal of the season.
Defensive Struggles
A common issue for the Bruins’ tonight was their defense struggles and lapses. Ever the opportunistic bunch, the Panthers capitalized on miscues all night, using their speed to score off the rush and find open lanes in the Bruins defensive zone. The last four Panthers’ goals came off the rush, with Reinhart and Evan Rodrigues beating Korpisalo cleanly.
The pairing of Mason Lohrei and Brandon Carlo struggled tonight, finishing with a combined plus/minus of minus five. Lohrei was caught on the half wall for the first goal, leaving Carlo to tie up Bennett in front of the net. But after the puck popped into the air, Bennett snuck around Carlo and tapped it home.
On Jonah Gadjovich’s goal, the fifth of the night for the Panthers, Carlo was caught up the ice after a turnover at the red line, and Lohrei found himself defending a three-on-one. Luostarinen’s goal saw Frederic and Peeke fail to pick up their men in front of the net, allowing Reinhart’s shot pass to hit a stick and go past Korpisalo. This was a recurring trend for the Bruins all night, and at times, they were fortunate that the chances were saved or went wide.
The Bruins host the Montreal Canadiens in their home opener on Thursday, October 10th, with puck drop set for 7 p.m. This kicks off a three-game homestand for Boston that sees get a rematch with the Panthers on October 14th.
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