By: Ryan Bosworth | Follow me on Twitter/X @RyanJBosworth
The Boston Bruins were back on TD Garden ice today for a 1:00 game, hosting the visiting Florida Panthers. The game was just the second Atlantic Division matchup for the Bruins, and the first of a four-game homestand.
As anticipated, and as things usually go between these two clubs, the game started off with quite the bang. Jeremy Swayman got the start between the pipes, facing off against the Panthers’ Jacob Markstrom in the opposing crease.
Boston had a record of 12-4-1 coming into today’s game, and sat atop the Atlantic Division. Florida held the second Eastern Conference wild card spot, with a record of 9-6-2. The tension certainly was there as the game crept nearer, but the fireworks really exploded the second the puck hit the ice.
Setting the Tone
The opening draw was met with the fireworks I previously mentioned, as Nikita Zadorov and Brady Tkachuk wasted no time in dropping the mitts and exchanging pleasantries with one another. Lasting about 60 seconds total, it was rather back-and-forth tilt until Nikita Zadorov had the finishing takedown. The cheers and yells erupted from the TD Garden crowd as the two heavyweights made their way into the penalty box.
The Bruins would open the scoring before Zadorov and Tkachuk even left the box, though it was after a lengthy video review from the officials to determine if Elias Lindholm’s shot really crossed the line or not. The officials would rule in Boston’s favor, and they’d go up 1-0 over the Panthers early in the opening frame.
Shortly after, before the in-arena announcer was even able to finish announcing Elias Lindholm’s goal, Mikey Eyssimont pushed the puck through a crowded Panthers crease to notch his first of the National Hockey league season in his season debut. Eyssimont has been lighting it up in the American Hockey League (13-3-16 through 8 games), and he got called up due to an injured James Hagens.
Morgan Geekie would go on to add a third, keeping his scoring streak going up to four games (4-1-5 in 4 games), and the period would close would with a score of 3-1, as Florida’s Carter Verhaeghe scored late in the opening frame to pull Florida within two.
Settling in
The second period wasn’t quite as action-packed, or long, as the first period, but it certainly wasn’t without it’s action. Despite all the action, Boston was able to remain in control of much of the play.
There weren’t any goals scored in the middle frame, but things started to flare up as the period wound down. Nikita Zadorov was assessed a 10-minute misconduct of the game, as was Brady Tkachuk. Postgame, Zadorov didn’t have much to say about the officiating, considering he had 17 penalty minutes in today’s matchup.
Strong Finish
The Bruins would go on to add one more goal to their lead, and the game would finish with a score of 4-1. JJ Peterka would add the final tally, after a failed attempt from Pavel Zacha was picked up by David Pastrnak, who fed it to Peterka standing in the far circle, who was able to zip it past Markstrom.
It was pretty back and forth as the final period concluded, but things came to a head with the last five-or-so minutes in the game, as we saw ejections from several players on both teams — as Mark Kastelic, Brady Tkachuk, and Matthew Tkachuk all got the boot from today’s game.
The final score of today’s game out stick at 4-1, as Jeremy Swayman made an impressive total of 40 saves on the Panthers, often times facing some impressive chances — especially on the power play. That was arguably the only time Florida was able to generate any chances, as Boston carried all of the momentum when things were five-on-five or if they were up on the man-advantage.
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