Game 2 of the best of 7 series between the Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers will take place on Wednesday. The Boston Bruins won the opening game of the series, and lead 1-0. This is a best of 7 series, with the winner heading to the Eastern Conference Finals. The winner will take on either the New York Rangers or Carolina Hurricanes.
Boston was great in Game 1, winning the game 5-1. The Bruins were coming into the game fresh off an overtime thriller Saturday night over Toronto. That win cliched the best of 7 first round series against the Maple Leafs. Boston went 47-20-15 during the regular season, to finish second in the Atlantic Division.
For the Florida Panthers, they wrapped up a 52-24-6 record. The Panthers won the Atlantic Division over Boston by a single point. The Panthers won their final four games of the regular season. In the first round, Florida eliminated Tampa Bay in five games.
The Florida Panthers are at home, and favorites in this game. The Panthers are -175, and the total sits at 5.5 goals.
Boston Looked Great in Game 1
Jeremy Swayman was fantastic in the Game 1 win. He turned away 38 shots, allowing just a second period goal. After that goal, it was all Boston. The Bruins scored five straight goals and ran away with the win. The scoring got started by Morgan Geekie, who netted his third of the postseason.
Jake DeBrusk scored his fourth of the postseason in eight games. David Pastrnak, one of the best offensive players in the league, has recorded a point in all but two games so far in the postseason. The same cannot be said from Brad Marchand. Marchand has 3 goals and 6 assists so far in 8 games.
Swayman will be in between the pipes again in this game. During the regular season he started 43 games, and finished with a 25-10-8 record. He has three shut-outs on the season. Boston is fifth in all of the league in goals allowed, at 2.7 per game.
Florida Needs Bounce Back
Matthew Tkachuk was the lone Florida Panthers player to score in Game 1. It was his fourth goal of the season. Alexander Barkov recorded the assist. Sam Reinhart was the top scorer for Florida in the regular season. So far in the postseason, he has three goals, but yet to dish out an assist in the postseason.
Florida finished the regular season 11th in the league in scoring. The Panthers scored 3.23 goals per game. Florida also was second in the league with 33.7 shots per game. The defense finished as the best in the league, allowing just 2.41 goals per game.
Sergiei Bobrovsky was not great, as he allowed 4 goals on 28 shots on the night. He will be back between the pipes in Game 2. During the regular season he recorded 36 wins in 58 starts.
Panthers Even Series
The Florida Panthers are going to get back on track and win this game. It will be close. It will be tight. It will be low scoring, but we like Florida to win. The series heads to Boston tied at 1 each.
Our final bet for this game is the Florida Panthers -175 over the Boston Bruins. Enjoy all the National Hockey League and best of luck with all your bets!
