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The Boston Bruins visit the Florida Panthers for Game 5 of the NHL Playoffs East Second Round at the Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida. The game, which starts at 7 p.m. ET, will be broadcast on CBC, TVAS, ESPN and SN.
The Panthers are leading the series 3-1 and are on the cusp of securing a spot in the Eastern Conference Final. The Bruins started strong with a win but have found themselves on the back foot and facing elimination.
In Game 4, the Bruins took an early 2-0 lead in the period with goals from David Pastrnak and Brandon Carlo. However, Anton Lundell's goal in the second period put the Panthers on the scoreboard.
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Sam Bennett's power play goal tied the game at two early in the third period. Less than four minutes later, Aleksander Barkov scored to give Florida the lead and the Bruins, despite their efforts couldn't find another goal to tie the game.
It's a must win situation for the Bruins and a potential series clincher for the Panthers, and both teams have a lot at stake in what is expected to be an electrifying Game 5.
Boston Bruins vs Florida Panthers: Game preview
The Boston Bruins began the series on a high with a 5-1 win but have been struggling since then. They were beaten in the second and third games 6-1 and 6-2 respectively.
In game four, they led 2-0 after the first period and 2-1 after the second period, but ended up losing after giving up two goals in the third period. They got only 18 shots on goal and had a 1-4 power play record in the fourth game.
In the postseason, the Bruins have been scoring 2.55 goals per game on average, with a 25% power play success rate and allowing 2.55 goals per game, with an 83.3% penalty kill rate.
Jake DeBrusk has been the top performer for Boston with four goals, four assists for nine points, and 22 shots on goal, while David Pastrnak has contributed with four goals, four assists and 32 shots on goal.
Jeremy Swayman has a 5-5-0 record, having allowed 22 goals on 316 shots with a 2.28 GAA and a SV% of .930.
Meanwhile, the Florida Panthers, with a 3-1 lead in the series, are aiming to elimate Boston. They lost the first game but have since won three games in a row, outscoring the Bruins 15-5.
In the last game, Sam Bennett and Alexander Barkov scored two goals in the third period, helping the Panthers to a win. The Panthers made 41 shots on goal and had a 1-6 power play record in the victory.
They beat Tampa Bay in five games in the first round and have been defensively strong this postseason. The Panthers are scoring an average of 4.00 goals per game, with a 26.5% power play success rate and allowing 2.67 goals per game, with an 83.9% penalty kill rate.
Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov leads the Panthers with a combined nine goals, 17 assists and 13 points each, while Carter Verhaeghe has scored six goals for 10 points with 35 shots on goal in the postseason.
Sergei Bobrovsky, the star goalie, won game 4 for the Panthers after stopping 16-of-18 shots. He has a 7-2-0 record in the playoffs, having allowed 23 goals on 213 shots, with a 2.55 GAA and a SV% of .892.
Boston Bruins vs Florida Panthers: Injury report
For the Panthers, Ryan Lomberg is listed as day-to-day due to an illness.
On the Bruins side, Danton Heinen is also day-to-day with an undisclosed issue, Milan Lucic is out for personal reasons. Matthew Poitras is out due to shoulder injury, while star player Brad Marchand is day-to-day with an upper-body concern.
Boston Bruins vs Florida Panthers: Head-to-head
The Florida Panthers have a all time record of 11-5-0-0 when playing against the Bruins in playoffs. When it comes to faceoffs, the Panthers have a higher success rate of 51.9%, while the Bruins lag behind with a 45% success rate.
Boston Bruins vs Florida Panthers: Spread
The Bruins, being the underdogs, are expected to fall short by 1.5 goals with a -159 chance to cover the spread. Meanwhile, Florida, being the favorites, stand at +132.
Boston Bruins vs Florida Panthers: Over/Under
The total goals are expected to be 5.5, with the odds at -102 for more than 5.5 goals and -120 for less than 5.5 goals.
Boston Bruins vs Florida Panthers: Series Odds and score prediction
The Florida Panthers, being the favorites with odds of -210, stand a 68.8% chance of winning. Meanwhile, Boston, the underdogs with odds of +172, has a 35.7% chance of pulling off a road win.
Score Prediction: Panthers 4-2 Bruins
