Bruins winger David Pastrnak is not frustrated.

Through five games, Boston’s all-world winger has been targeted by the Panthers every single time he’s within three feet of a puck. Such is life as a 60-goal scorer in the regular season. He’s also been targeted by agitated fans frustrated with his production — Pastrnak has two goals, zero assists, and a minus-2 rating through five games — in a first-round matchup that seemed like a dream for No. 88 to get going early and often. Such is life when you’re as talented a player as Pastrnak.

And that ability to fend off frustration comes back to Pastrnak’s realization with what he’s gotta do to right the ship amid what’s a by-his-standards funk.

“I can shoot the puck more,” Pastrnak said ahead of Friday’s Game 6 in Florida. “Obviously, got a couple of blocked shots and then you try to look for another play to see if somebody else is open better. So, yeah, definitely going with the shooting mindset moving forward.”

• Loading up for a shot hasn’t been the issue for Pastrnak through five games of this showdown with Florida.

  In fact, Pastrnak’s 38 shot attempts are tied for the ninth-most among all forwards this postseason. But as Pastrnak alluded to, getting them to land on goal has been a challenge, with Pastrnak credited with a shot on goal on just 18 of those 38 attempts. It was especially noticeable in Boston’s Game 5 loss, with three of his 11 shot attempts blocked, while four missed Sergei Bobrovsky and the Florida net.

  “You know, you get two shots blocked in a row from the same spot [and] then obviously on the third one you’re trying to to look for a better play, which sometimes it is, sometimes it’s not,” said Pastrnak. “So it’s up to me to to recognize that, and it’s going to be very simple moving forward for me to have shooting mentality.”

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  Apr 9, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) against the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo Center. (Eric Hartline/USA TODAY Sports)

• Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery has remained confident in Pastrnak throughout his struggles, too.

  Talking in between Game 3 and 4, I asked Montgomery if he felt that Pastrnak ‘needed’ that Game 3 goal as much as someone riding a one-game goal drought needed one. He said yes, and that the hope was that Pastrnak would be like a shark and “smell blood.” And speaking after Boston’s Game 5 loss, Montgomery said Pastrnak was ‘too good’ for this series to end without Pastrnak breaking through with another big night.

  Montgomery doubled — or maybe it’s quadrupled — down on that prior to his team’s departure for Sunrise on Thursday afternoon when holding court with reporters in Bedford.

  “I really trust David’s decision making, especially when he has the puck or when he’s offensively without it, because I go to him a lot about what he sees in certain situations and I learn through him,” Montgomery said. “I really liked his habits without the puck [in Game 5]. And I just know that when his habits without the puck are really good, he’s going to get more opportunities, and I thought he had more opportunities [in Game 5] to do things than in Game 4 in Florida. So if he continues along that trend, it’s just a matter of time.

  “In the playoffs, everything gets magnified. And he has two goals in five games, so, I’m not a great mathematician but that’s a 40-goal pace so he’s a 20-goal pace maybe behind but it’s a small sample size. He gets two [goals] next game he’s back at a 60 goal pace, right? And that’s what we expect and that’s what he has shown for us, and he’s not only shown it this year, he shown it for years.”

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  BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – APRIL 26: David Pastrnak #88 of the Boston Bruins battles for the puck against Gustav Forsling #42 and Aaron Ekblad #5 of the Florida Panthers during the first period in Game Five of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden on April 26, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

• That vote of confidence is a boost for any player stuck in the mud.

  But Pastrnak’s self-confidence was also on display prior to his flight, as he by all means called his shot when it comes to the Black and Gold’s Game 6 and with a trip to the second round on the table.

  “I’m getting the chances, I feel like, so it’s just a matter of time [before] it’s going to go in,” Pastrnak said. “And it’s going to be [in Game 6].”

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