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As his teammates look on, Florida Panthers left wing Brad Marchand raises his stick to acknowledge the applause from Boston fans after a tribute to him played during a timeout in the first period against the Boston Bruins (Winslow Townson-Imagn Images)

2 Takeaways From Bruins’ 4-3 Loss to Panthers

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Ryan Ventura | Last updated Oct 22, 2025 9:25 AM ET

The Boston Bruins took on the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night (Oct. 21) at TD Garden in Brad Marchand’s return to Boston. The game was a back-and-forth contest between the Bruins and the shorthanded Panthers, who were missing Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov due to injury. The Bruins tied the game with three third period goals; however, the Panthers were able to find the back of the net with 26 seconds to go to win it. Let’s take a look at a couple takeaways from the contest.

Marchand Welcomed Home

Bigger than anything that happened during the play on the ice was Marchand’s return to the city he called home for 16 years. The Bruins sent their captain to South Florida at the trade deadline last season where he went on to win his second Stanley Cup. Despite it being an emotional night for No. 63, it did not take long for him to make an impact on the ice. He registered a shot on goal in his first shift of the game and assisted on Mackie Samoskevich’s power-play goal just a minute in, and also picked up a second assist on Eetu Luostarinen’s breakaway goal with ten minutes to go in the contest.

The emotional apex of the night came at the ten-minute mark of the first period, when the Bruins played a video tribute for their former captain. Marchand saluted the crowd, who in turn gave him a standing ovation. No. 63 was overcome with emotion, and the tears continued to flow as he headed back to the bench. Though he said in a pregame interview that he had no regrets with how his tenure in Boston ended, it was clear to the Bruins’ faithful how much they, and their city, mean to the Nova Scotia native who spent 16 years wearing black and gold.

Costly Careless Errors

Careless mistakes have been an early-season issue for the Bruins so far in this young campaign. Turnovers in their own zone have given opponents opportunities to score on too many occasions, and this was a large part of the reason that the Bruins were unable to pull through last night. The Panthers’ second two goals of the game both came as a direct result of Mason Lohrei mistakes, both of which were the result of him being weak on his stick.

The first of these hiccups came on a faceoff in the Bruins’ zone; it appeared that the Bruins had won the puck, however, when Lohrei went to take possession, he was loose on his stick. The puck bounced behind him as a result, where former Bruins forward AJ Greer snapped it on net for a goal. The Panthers’ third goal came on another costly Lohrei misplay. Marchand flipped the puck to Luostarinen in transition, and while it looked like the defenseman was in decent position, the Panthers’ forward slipped right through him, leading to a breakaway goal.

The night came to a fitting end when, following a spectacular comeback to tie the game at two and then again at three, Bruins defenseman Andrew Peeke was unable to clear a ricochet. The puck hit off his skate rather than the blade of his stick, bounding up in the air and into the Bruins’ net with 26 seconds to go to ice the game. The Bruins simply do not have the offensive power to be able to weather mistakes like these; if they are going to be competitive in the Eastern Conference this season, they have no choice but to clean up their defensive play.

An Emotional Game

This contest was not your average regular season game in October. Fans of both teams will remember this game for Marchand’s return to Boston far more than the final score or what happened on the ice. It was a special moment for the Bruins’ faithful to be able to welcome Marchand back to the TD Garden, a place where the No. 63 will undoubtedly hang from the rafters one day. The game itself was a disappointing one for the Bruins, with costly errors wiping out an exciting third period which saw them score three goals. They will look to clean up these mistakes on Thursday night and end their five-game skid at home against the Anaheim Ducks.