Bruins top Panthers in overtime on Pastrnak’s game-winner
The Boston Bruins grabbed a desperately needed victory over their nemesis on Saturday, as they overcame multiple blown leads to beat the Florida Panthers by a 4-3 final in overtime in a Saturday matinée at Amerant Bank Arena.
David Pastrnak scored the game-winning goal with just 1.2 seconds left in OT, as he got some much-welcome puck luck. Pastrnak’s point shot deflected off the stick of the Panthers’ Sam Reinhart, who also scored two goals in the game, to give the B’s their first win since Dec. 28 over the Blue Jackets.
Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman came up big in the win, stopping 39-of-42 Panthers shots (.929), as Boston topped Florida despite being out-shot 42-18 on the afternoon.
The Panthers dictated play in the first period, which has been a common theme against the Bruins for several years now. But Boston managed to get out of the first period at a 1-1 tie, despite being out-shot 14-6 in the opening frame. And they also scored first, which kept them from having to chase.
Morgan Geekie scored the game’s first goal during a Bruins power play, after handling a puck bounce through Panthers defenseman Miles Mikkola and finishing up high over goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. Geekie added an assist later in the game, and is now up to 15 points in 20 games since the start of December.
The Panthers tied it on a power play of their own late in the first period, on a very similar play to the Geekie goal. Panthers winger Evan Rodrigues gathered a rebound off a shot through traffic and tucked the puck through Swayman at the doorstep to make it 1-1.
The Bruins went back on top early in the second period, off the stick of David Pastrnak. Slipping between two defenders to find good ice in the slot, Pastrnak took a great centering feed from Geekie and redirected the puck past Bobrovsky for his 18th goal of the season, and his 10th in his last 20 games.
Unsurprisingly, the defending Stanley Cup champions would not go away. Just 43 seconds into the third period, the Panthers tied it back up at 2-2 after leading goalscorer Sam Reinhart buried his 24th of the season. Reinhart beat a backchecking Pastrnak to the net-front and finished a centering feed from linemate Aleksander Barkov for the goal.
However, the Bruins still would not fold. They took the lead back again later in the final period, their third go-ahead goal of the game, as newcomer Oliver Wahlstrom gathered a loose puck and finished the rebound for his first as a Bruin. The goal was Wahlstrom’s first point in 10 games for Boston.
After missing multiple open-net opportunities in the closing minutes, including one off the post by Pastrnak, the Panthers tied the game with just 1.8 seconds left in regulation. Reinhart scored his second of the game as the Panthers swarmed the net and created multiple rebound opportunities, and the puck ultimately arced over Swayman’s shoulder and in.
Pastrnak and the B’s would flip the script in overtime, cashing in on a Sam Bennett high-sticking penalty and getting a bounce to go their way in the final seconds.
Up Next: The Bruins will continue a tough, critical stretch of games next Tuesday night, when they return home to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning at TD Garden.
Matt Dolloff is a writer and digital content producer for 98.5 The Sports Hub. Read all of his articles here.
