Boston Bruins (A1) vs Florida Panthers (WC2) - | Series Tied 3-3

[BB79]

Win or lose boston is coming out of this series bruised.

Likely, and it probably would have been better to draw the Islanders as the injury bug has bit them pretty hard

 

[Brobust]

I think there’s going to be one game where everything will click for the Panthers and they’ll get away with that game.

Boston in 5.

I’m expecting relatively close games, but Boston will be too much to handle for the cats.

Really best chance here is for Lomberg and Tkachuk to draw a reaction, but for it to go their way unlike the COVID series against the lightning.

 

[Brobust]

I still think about that game 1 between the Panthers and Lightning during the covid season. Just one smart play and it might be the Panthers who have this unbeatable aura about them.

 

[LV426]

If the Cats can pull this off wouldn't it be the the biggest series upset in playoff history? 43 point diff.

I can't see it happening. How can you bet against a team with a season like that?

Bruins in 6.

 

[BMOK33]

If the Cats can pull this off wouldn't it be the the biggest series upset in playoff history? 43 point diff.

I can't see it happening. How can you bet against a team with a season like that?

Bruins in 6.

Point wise maybe but probably not talent wise. We have seen some fairly big upsets point wise over the years but some of those there is more to the story. I still think DET losing to SJ in 94 is the biggest R1 upset the last 30 years even though many cases exist of bigger point spread upsets. FLA has an experienced coach, was basically the top seed just last year, and has tons of offensive talent and BOS while good probably is realistically not a 60 plus win team...we can all agree the 95-96 Wings and the recent Bolts teams were probably on paper way way WAY better than this BOS team is...they just had one of those years.

 

[BlackFrancis]

and BOS while good probably is realistically not a 60 plus win team

That's certainly one point of view.

Someone should ask the 31 teams they beat which game(s) they feel they were cheated out of.

 

[RiverbottomChuck]

Gonna be a tough series for the B’s. Panthers played them just as good as anyone else this season and all it takes in the playoffs is one swing in momentum on one shift to start building a complex. My heart says Bruins in 4-5 but I wouldn’t be shocked if it was tight.

 

[Gonzothe7thDman]

As a Bruins fan I'm not worried in the least.

Should be an easy series and from what I've seen a lot of other Bruins fans agree. You have some that want to pretend the matchup is closer than it appears because fans hate being viewed as the favored team but the only way Boston loses barring catastrophic injuries is if they choke.

With the historic season they just had the 1st round is just a formality.

And obviously the NHL would prefer a market/fanbase like Boston to go deeper than Florida so there should be some help in the officiating department.

I'd be shocked if this series goes more than 5.

 

[Captain Fantastic]

So happy to get to watch a Tkachuk/Marchand battle. I hope they beat the crap out of each other.

This is must watch tv. This will be a series of chaos. Boston in 6 and Tkachuk will be the most hated player in that town if he isn't already.

 

[Honey Bear]

Point wise maybe but probably not talent wise. We have seen some fairly big upsets point wise over the years but some of those there is more to the story. I still think DET losing to SJ in 94 is the biggest R1 upset the last 30 years even though many cases exist of bigger point spread upsets. FLA has an experienced coach, was basically the top seed just last year, and has tons of offensive talent and BOS while good probably is realistically not a 60 plus win team...we can all agree the 95-96 Wings and the recent Bolts teams were probably on paper way way WAY better than this BOS team is...they just had one of those years.

What a shitty take. With a Stanley Cup this might be the greatest team of all time in the history of the NHL. It doesn't matter what your opinion is of grading talent. A team with all the talent in the world isn't going to beat a well oiled machine. The greatest teams of all time in this sport aren't necessarily the most talented. People think for some reason that has to be mutually exclusive.

Also - the Bruins are very much a 60 plus win team. That's why they won 65 games. They destroyed the rest of the league. No matter what you say or choose to believe those are the facts. You can't change it.

 

[Artorius Horus T]

Bruins 4-0
but i think that's all she writes

 

[BB79]

team...we can all agree the 95-96 Wings and the recent Bolts teams were probably on paper way way WAY better than this BOS team is...they just had one of those years

On paper LOL imagine a team winning 65 of 82 games and discounting them because they don't look as good on paper? The 2004 Avs looked great on paper. Sakic, Forsberg, Selanne, Kariya, Blake, Hejduk, Tanguay, amongst others. They won 40 games and lost in the 2nd round. But they looked nice on paper. I wipe my butt with paper. That's about all it means in the end.

Side note- The Red Wings were a different era, so I'm not even going to attempt to compare them to the Bruins or Lightning. They accomplished the same feat in their time. I still maintain that trying to compare teams or players from different eras is stupid and unproductive as there are far too many differences between their environments

 

[Johnny HFBOARDS]

PoMo works his magic and gets the upset.

 

[K2MyEverest]

I wanted Brady Tkachuk vs Boston in the first round. Just because I know it would have been a wild one but I got the older brother Matthew instead. Florida are coming into playoffs on a really hot streak. They could do damages and Im sure Boston would have prefered Pittsburgh but when you look at Boston lineup. They're better at every position and it feels like they're on a mission for Bergy and Krejci. It might get rough but Boston in 6.

 

[danpantz]

If florida is hot coming into the playoffs then what are the Bruins?

What’s hotter than hot.

 

[ShiftyNifty16]

my heart says panthers in 7

See a cardiologist.

 

[Maelmoor]

No matter how you twist and turn things, this should be a comfortable win for the Bruins, if not a sweep (Panthers might take the first game), then 4-1.

 

[Dabeast]

Luck has a funny way of regressing to the mean at the worst possible times. Just ask the undefeated in one score game Vikings or even last years Panthers. For as good as Boston is, and I’m not taking anything away from them, they’ve been far and away the luckiest team in the league, while Florida has been among the unluckiest.

Panthers in 6

 

[NDiesel]

I wanted Brady Tkachuk vs Boston in the first round. Just because I know it would have been a wild one but I got the older brother Matthew instead. Florida are coming into playoffs on a really hot streak. They could do damages and Im sure Boston would have prefered Pittsburgh but when you look at Boston lineup. They're better at every position and it feels like they're on a mission for Bergy and Krejci. It might get rough but Boston in 6.

Florida's "really hot streak" is 6-3-1 where they only beat 1 playoff team and lost to 3.

Bruins are entering the playoffs 15-1 in their last 16...

 

[BMOK33]

Luck has a funny way of regressing to the mean at the worst possible times. Just ask the undefeated in one score game Vikings or even last years Panthers. For as good as Boston is, and I’m not taking anything away from them, they’ve been far and away the luckiest team in the league, while Florida has been among the unluckiest.

Panthers in 6

Not sure I’d say it’s luck. Panthers much like the Isles had to adjust to grossly different coaching styles and it took both teams a half season or more to do it. One went from 1995-2004 Devils to 2008-2011 Caps and the other went from 2008-2011 Caps to playing normal defense and both struggled to figure it out. I think the Panthers have a decent chance to push this 6 or 7 but that’s about it

 

[Dabeast]

Not sure I’d say it’s luck. Panthers much like the Isles had to adjust to grossly different coaching styles and it took both teams a half season or more to do it. One went from 1995-2004 Devils to 2008-2011 Caps and the other went from 2008-2011 Caps to playing normal defense and both struggled to figure it out. I think the Panthers have a decent chance to push this 6 or 7 but that’s about it

When I say luck I pretty much just mean finishing and goaltending which are both the most important things in hockey and also the least predictable. Bruins havent had a problem turning any shot they take into goals and every shot against them has been saved, been the opposite with the Panthers. Very well could hold up over this series but there’s a larger chance than most realize that it doesn’t. That post was mostly shooting my shot and if you want a genuine gun to my head prediction I’d take Boston in 6, but either way it’s gonna be a lot tighter than people think.

 

[b in vancouver]

Bruins are too consistent shift to shift to give Florida much of a chance.
Are 41-1-3 when scoring first as they get better as the game goes on.
The worst possible players Boston can ice at one time are Frederic- Nosek- Hathaway- Grz- Clifton - Swayman. (Foligno, Greer, Forbert in the press box) would be a solid 3rd line, 2nd pairing, starting goalie on most teams in the league.
There's just no holes on this team.

 

[jimmysheva]

If any division champion are going to get upset, it's this one. Florida in 7.

 

[b in vancouver]

Seattle made the playoffs because they play a sound responsible Team game where the collective is better than the individual.
Boston is similar. Except that half their team are star players.

 

[BMOK33]

When I say luck I pretty much just mean finishing and goaltending which are both the most important things in hockey and also the least predictable. Bruins havent had a problem turning any shot they take into goals and every shot against them has been saved, been the opposite with the Panthers. Very well could hold up over this series but there’s a larger chance than most realize that it doesn’t. That post was mostly shooting my shot and if you want a genuine gun to my head prediction I’d take Boston in 6, but either way it’s gonna be a lot tighter than people think.

My main concern with Boston is can they flip the switch to suddenly play wildly meaningful and competitive games. Often times in the past when a top seed in the NFL MLB or NHL has had things locked for awhile they can sometimes struggle in the playoffs. Fortunately in the NHL they have 7 games to figure it out vs 1 or 5 but that’s why I think a 6 game series win is more likely than a 4 or 5.