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Boston Bruins

Goaltending made all the difference in the world for the Bruins in Game 1

By Matt Dolloff
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 17: Linus Ullmark #35 of the Boston Bruins stands in the crease as the fans celebrate the Bruins third goal against the Florida Panthers during the second period of Game One of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the TD Garden on April 17, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Rich Gagnon/Getty Images)

It’s about time we stop worrying about Linus Ullmark.

The Boston Bruins’ No. 1 goaltender came into the start of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs with concerns about a mysterious injury, but it turns out that head coach Jim Montgomery was right to downplay it. Ullmark, arguably the Bruins’ MVP of the regular season, was the MVP of Game 1 against the Florida Panthers on Monday night at TD Garden, stopping 31 of 32 shots in a 3-1 victory.

At the other end, Panthers netminder Alex Lyon allowed a softy to Brad Marchand that proved to be the eventual game-winning goal. So, as it often could throughout this playoff run, goaltending made a massive difference for the Bruins.

  • Ullmark’s return to the net and stellar performance could not have been better-timed. The Bruins were without Patrice Bergeron, forcing them to move Pavel Zacha up to No. 1 center, and they often felt No. 37’s absence with the way they looked in their own end. But Ullmark was the ultimate backup.

    On a night that the Bruins were missing their captain, and several others ostensibly playing while recovering from acute illnesses, Ullmark was the stabilizing presence they desperately needed to pull off Game 1.

    “I thought he was excellent. I thought he was cool, calm, just real confident, seeing the puck really well, steering rebounds,” Montgomery said after the game. “It looked like there was a lot of chaos at our net, they took a lot of shots at bad angles, and he’s just great at steering pucks to bad areas or smothering them up.

    “It really provides us a lot of confidence, allows us to control the chaos, so to speak.”

  • BOSTON, MA - APRIL 17: Linus Ullmark #35 of the Boston Bruins makes a save against the Florida Panthers during the second period of Game One of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the TD Garden on April 17, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Bruins won 3-1. (Photo by Rich Gagnon/Getty Images)

    BOSTON, MA – APRIL 17: Linus Ullmark #35 of the Boston Bruins makes a save against the Florida Panthers during the second period of Game One of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the TD Garden on April 17, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Bruins won 3-1. (Photo by Rich Gagnon/Getty Images)

  • Ullmark in his postgame media scrum was as nonchalant as he looked stopping pucks.

    “Felt good,” Ullmark said. “Felt terrific this morning, and once we did that, it was showtime.”

    The lone goal Ullmark allowed came off a brutal turnover by defenseman Dmitry Orlov and a dynamic play on the doorstep by the Panthers’ Matthew Tkachuk. It was as bang-bang as it gets and a tough save for any goaltender to make.

    As he did frequently during the regular season, Ullmark came up big in the first period when the Bruins were slow to get their feet under them. Ullmark made 15 saves in the opening 20 minutes, and faced 15 high-danger chances overall. Florida also made it easy for him at times with low-percentage shots from the perimeter, but Ullmark has made an entire season out of making things look easy.

  • BOSTON, MA - APRIL 17: Linus Ullmark #35 of the Boston Bruins tends goal against the Florida Panthers during the second period of Game One of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the TD Garden on April 17, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Bruins won 3-1. (Rich Gagnon/Getty Images)

    BOSTON, MA – APRIL 17: Linus Ullmark #35 of the Boston Bruins tends goal against the Florida Panthers during the second period of Game One of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the TD Garden on April 17, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Bruins won 3-1. (Photo by Rich Gagnon/Getty Images)

  • If the Bruins can look as shaky as they did in front of Ullmark, and still win by two, almost three goals, then this could be a short series. The B’s seemed to finally find their pace in the third period, in which they out-shot the Panthers 13-8 despite holding a two-goal lead.

    But Monday night proved that, even on one of their sloppiest nights, they still have Ullmark and his calming influence as the last line of defense. They just need to take it one game at a time.

    “It was nice,” Ullmark said. “Now we’ve just got to get 15 more.”

  • Click here for complete Boston Bruins coverage at 985TheSportsHub.com.

    Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Yell at him on Twitter @mattdolloff and follow him on Instagram @realmattdolloff. Check out all of Matt’s content here.

NEXT: Bruins Grind Out Playoff Win Without Patrice Bergeron

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