The Florida Panthers will be looking to make it six straight playoff wins at the TD Garden on Friday when they aim to eliminate the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Puck drop for Game 6 is scheduled for 7 PM ET. Florida currently leads the series 3-2 after Boston stayed alive in Game 5 earlier in the week thanks to a phenomenal performance from Jeremy Swayman in net and goals from Morgan Geekie and Charlie McAvoy. This has been a very entertaining series just like last year and Friday should be no different. We’ll dive into the Panthers vs Bruins Game 6 picks below.
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Like most of the series, the Cats are the favorite at -144 for an implied win probability of 59.02%. The Bruins return at +128 and have a 43.86% chance of forcing a Game 7 back in Florida.
Up 3-1 on Tuesday at home, Florida had the chance to close out the series at home. But, they unfortunately fell 2-1 to the Bruins and will now have to head to Beantown to hopefully finish things off. If not, the series shifts back to Sunrise, anyway. The Cats have been a bit inconsistent in this round in terms of scoring. For example, they scored once in Game 1 before scoring 12 times across Games 2 and 3. Even in Game 4, they only scored three times.
That’s not to say Florida didn’t have their fair share of opportunities in Game 5, however. They had 29 shots and four power plays, failing to score on any. Yes, Swayman had a big part to do with the Panthers netting just once, but it’s not really an excuse. The Cats have to be more lethal like they’ve been all season.
Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov have led the way offensively with 13 points apiece. Carter Verhaeghe meanwhile has 10 points, while Sam Reinhart has nine as well. Reinhart’s lack of production is a topic of discussion after his career season, but there’s enough other guys getting it done that it hasn’t really mattered a ton. The Panthers have outscored the Bruins 23-13 across their five straight playoff wins at TD Garden.
You better believe revenge has been on the mind ever since Game 1 for Boston after the Panthers shocked them in the first round last season. The Bruins have put up a good fight despite a couple of lopsided losses earlier in the series. They had a lopsided win of their own though, taking a 1-0 series lead with a 5-1 victory in the opener. And in a win or go home scenario on Tuesday, Jim Montgomery’s squad lived to see another day.
Geekie got the scoring started in the first period to silence the crowd before the Panthers hit back. But, Boston responded shortly after in the second through McAvoy. That proved to be the eventual winner. Swayman was stellar, making 28 saves. The Bruins had 40 hits compared to 32 for the Cats while winning 46.9% of the face-offs. Jake DeBrusk and Brad Marchand have been the main producers in these playoffs for Boston, both registering 10 points. David Pastrnak meanwhile has eight points.
While history is clearly not on the Bruins’ side for Friday’s contest. they will be hungry to rewrite it and make sure last year’s outcome doesn’t happen again. The only difference? They will have to win the series on the road if it goes to Game 7. This matchup is going to be a physical dogfight for all 60 minutes. No doubt.
Sorry Boston, but the Panthers are truly the better team this year. They won’t blow a 3-1 series lead. Florida will advance here.
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