Beantown Rundown: How Bruins can get back into series vs. Panthers after crushing Game 4 loss

As Bruins fans have seen first hand over their past few playoff series, a 3-1 series deficit doesn’t exactly mean much. The Panthers rallied from a 3-1 deficit last year to end the B’s season prematurely in the first-round, and just last series, Boston allowed the Toronto Maple Leafs to storm back from a 3-1 deficit to force a Game 7, but the Bruins managed to sneak past them and draw this second-round matchup with the Panthers.

There have been a lot of problems plaguing the Bruins throughout this series. And yet, aside from Game 3, in which they fell behind 4-0 before putting together a decent rally in the third period, Boston has managed to execute their game plan to an extent. They are inviting pressure from an aggressive Florida forecheck, and picking their opportunities to create odd-man rushes for high-danger scoring chances.

Getting outshot the way the Bruins are getting outshot by Florida is not good, and fans were rightfully chanting “Shoot the puck” late in Game 4 after their team squandered a power play without getting a shot on goal. But it’s clear that Boston is OK losing the shot on goal battle so long as they win the goal battle. Through four games, they haven’t done that, though.

Unsurprisingly, the only game where they have successfully done this is Game 1, which was their lone victory. The pivotal period in each of these games has been the second period when the game breaks open a bit. In the series opener, Boston successfully responded to Matthew Tkachuk’s opening goal by taking advantage of the Panthers aggressive pinches by their defenders at the blue line on their forecheck to create favorable rushes. They ended up scoring five unanswered goals to win the game resoundingly.

In Game 2, Boston took a 1-0 lead thanks to Charlie Coyle before allowing six unanswered goals. The problem here was that the B’s had several great opportunities to extend their lead early in the game, but they were simply unable to do so. Brad Marchand and John Beecher both had high-danger scoring chances that they simply could not put home.

In Game 4, it was the same story. Boston wasn’t getting a ton of shots, but they were creating scoring chances. Danton Heinen had a pair of one-on-one chances he couldn’t bury, and Jake DeBrusk successfully went five-hole on Sergei Bobrovsky late in the second period, but the puck ended up just missing the net. Sure enough, Florida’s barrage of shots ended up getting the best of Jeremy Swayman, and they picked up the victory.

Regardless of whether or not you agree with the Bruins strategy, it’s clear that if they are going to play this way, they need to capitalize on their scoring chances when they get them. As simple of an explanation as it may seem, this is the main reason why Boston is in a 3-1 hole rather than finding themselves in a 2-2 tie heading back to Florida.

In Game 5, the season is going to be on the line, so the B’s are going to have to be more aggressive. They have done a good job hitting the Panthers a bunch, but they need to do it in a way that keeps them out of the penalty box, which has been a struggle as of late. And of course, putting pucks on the net is going to be a must. Florida is doing a good job blocking shots, but Boston is not challenging Bobrovsky, who only has an 88.5 save percentage, nearly enough right now.

In order to do this, the Bruins have to be way better in the neutral zone than they have been so far. This is where Florida is winning the series. They are preventing Boston from getting out of their own zone with an aggressive forecheck, but even when they do, they are swarming them in the neutral zone. The B’s need to make a better effort on the backcheck to not just defend the Panthers, but actually get the puck from their own zone to Florida’s zone.

Having the centers drop a bit deeper to help the defenders break out of the zone and provide options is key, but that also plays into the Panthers forechecking game plan. Longer breakout passes from defenders to wingers looking to rush into the Panthers zone can be effective when timed properly, but that’s a lot easier said than done. Mason Lohrei has had a couple of great passes like this throughout the series, though, and it’s a good way to take advantage of the Panthers’ aggressive defenders.

None of this is going to be easy, but that’s to be exppected when you consider the Bruins current situation. They have the ability to win games, it’s really just a matter of whether or not they are going to get out of their own way. The Panthers are playing good hockey (even though they are getting a ton of help from the referees), but it’s not like they are blowing the B’s away, even though that’s what the final scores of Games 2 and 3 indicate happened.

If Boston can come out and play a bit more aggressive all over the ice, while also putting Bobrovsky to work, they can force a Game 5. They responded well when their season was on the line in Game 7 against the Maple Leafs, so there’s reason to believe they can do so again against the Panthers. It’s going to be tough, but Boston has proven they won’t go down without a fight in this series, and it will be interesting to see what their best punch looks like when the puck drops on Tuesday night.