Bruins drop season opener to Panthers by 6-4 final
The Boston Bruins got off to a clunky start in the 2024-25 season on Tuesday night, dropping a 6-4 decision to the Florida Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena, on the night that the defending champions raised their first Stanley Cup championship banner.
Bruins starting goaltender Joonas Korpisalo stopped just 29-of-35 shots on the night in his Bruins debut. Jeremy Swayman was available, just two days after he finally signed his big extension with the B’s, but Korpisalo played the whole game.
The game unraveled early for the Bruins. Out-shot 10-1 in the opening eight minutes, the B’s couldn’t keep the Panthers’ barrage off the scoreboard, as Sam Bennett opened the scoring with a rebound goal at the doorstep.
Just 1:04 later, Panthers defenseman Eetu Luostarinen banged in another juicy rebound through traffic in front, as the Bruins struggled to clear the net-front and Korpisalo had trouble handling his rebounds.
The Bruins briefly got back in the game late in the first period, thanks to their biggest off-season addition making an early impact. During a Panthers power play, center Elias Lindholm pounced on an errant breakout attempt and passed it off to Pavel Zacha, who ripped it past the Panthers’ Sergei Bobrovsky to make it 2-1.
Unfortunately, any hope was short-lived, as the Panthers made it 3-1 after Bobrovsky stopped Brad Marchand on a power play opportunity. Sam Reinhart streaked down the left side and made a nifty move to shoot it with the Bruins’ Charlie McAvoy on top of him, and lift it over Korpisalo’s left shoulder.
Exactly one minute later, Bennett scored his second of the night when he whacked in yet another rebound from the slot, this time past Korpisalo’s pads, to make it a 4-1 game.
The Bruins very nearly had a wraparound goal in the second period, but Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues stopped Justin Brazeau right at the goal line. Mere seconds later, Jonah Gadjovich finished a powerful rush and a slick pass by Jesper Boqvist to increase the Panthers’ lead to 5-1.
Later in the second period, McAvoy grabbed his first goal of the season after Bobrovsky couldn’t handle a rebound off his glove. McAvoy finished with the goal and an assist, plus two shots, three hits, and a blocked shot.
Things boiled over during the third period, but unfortunately for the Bruins, it came as the Panthers scored their sixth goal off the stick of Evan Rodrigues. Bennett ran Korpisalo through the crease, which is typically a bridge too far in the NHL. It resulted in a wild scrum, and a power play for the Bruins after the Panthers took the bulk of the penalties.
Trent Frederic scored his first goal of the season off a centering pass from Brazeau with 3:09 left in regulation, then David Pastrnak got his first goal on a fortuitous bounce to make it 6-4 with 1:45 left. But the damage was certainly done at that point.
The Bruins will now regroup and head back to Boston for their home opener, which takes place Thursday night at TD Garden against the Montreal Canadiens. But for the Panthers, it’s another dominating night for a team that still has the Bruins’ number.
Matt Dolloff is a writer and digital content producer for 98.5 The Sports Hub. Read all of his articles here.
Bruins announce Opening Night roster
May 8, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) looks on against the Florida Panthers during the third period in Game 2 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro/USA TODAY Sports)
Beginning at the top of their roster, the Bruins are going to roll with a first line that slots Lindholm between Pavel Zacha on the left wing and David Pastrnak at right wing. If Lindholm can help stabilize the center position and give that line yet another threat, Pastrnak could and should get back in the Hart Trophy conversation as a legitimate contender to those outside of Boston. And that’s a scary thought considering that he was arguably more important to the Bruins’ success last year than he was in 2022-23 when he was an actual finalist for the honor awarded to the player judged to be the most valuable player to their team.
You can expect that line to get a ton of offensive-zone minutes out of the gate.
And just below that top line, the Bruins will roll with a second line that slots Morgan Geekie to the right of Brad Marchand and Charlie Coyle in what projects to be a do-it-all line for Jim Montgomery’s squad.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – APRIL 11: Trent Frederic #11 of the Boston Bruins looks on during the third period against the Washington Capitals at TD Garden on April 11, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Down the lineup, the Bruins are projected to open up their season with a third line that features Max Jones at left wing, Justin Brazeau at right wing, and Trent Frederic at center. Their fourth line, meanwhile, will feature Johnny Beecher, Mark Kastelic, and Cole Koepke to begin the season.
Koepke is perhaps the lone surprise of this group based on offseason projections, but Koepke certainly earned the gig out of camp, as he was a constant factor whenever deployed during the preseason.
The group will also have Riley Tufte hanging around as the proverbial 13th forward.
Apr 4, 2024; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Hampus Lindholm (27) is congratulated by defenseman Charlie McAvoy (73) center Charlie Coyle (13) and left wing Brad Marchand (63) after his empty net goal. (James Guillory/USA TODAY Sports)
On the backend, which is the absolute and undeniable strength of this club, the Bruins are going for a supercharged top pairing that’ll reunite Hampus Lindholm with Charlie McAvoy.
Over the last three seasons, the Lindholm-McAvoy pairing has been one hell of a weapon for the Bruins, with the duo on the ice for a 39-20 scoring edge and a plus-125 shot differential at five-on-five play.
That’ll align Mason Lohrei and Brandon Carlo as Boston’s second pairing, while Nikita Zadorov will skate with Andrew Peeke to give the Black and Gold an absolutely punishing third-pairing look.
Parker Wotherspoon, meanwhile, will round out the group as their seventh blue liner.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – APRIL 06: Jeremy Swayman #1 of the Boston Bruins looks on during the second period against the Toronto Maple Leafs at TD Garden on April 06, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
In goal, the Bruins will indeed have the tandem of Joonas Korpisalo and Jeremy Swayman ready to go.
Korpisalo, who is coming off an absolutely miserable season in Ottawa, was named the Opening Night starter last week, but it’s worth wondering if that’s changed with Swayman signed and practicing with the club. Speaking with reporters on Monday, Montgomery acknowledged Swayman starting as a possibility for the club.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – OCTOBER 30: Matthew Poitras #51 of the Boston Bruins looks on during the second period against the Florida Panthers at TD Garden on October 30, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
And when it comes to some ‘extras’ hanging around, it’s worth noting that the Bruins designated forward Matt Poitras, along with defensemen Ian Mitchell and Alec Regula, as ‘Injured Non-Roster’ players.
Poitras and Mitchell did practice with the club on Monday, but it’s worth noting that Poitras was skating in a non-contact jersey (and remains ‘day-to-day’ according to the team) and that Mitchell may have suffered his injury during practice. Regula, meanwhile, has not practiced with the team at all this camp due to injury.
