First step puts them on the right path
Step No. 1: separation.
Never able to gain a series lead across seven games last spring against Carolina, the Bruins opened their
2023 playoff run with a 3-1 win over the Panthers Monday night at the Garden.
The Black and Gold, without captain Patrice Bergeron, had trouble generating shot volume (outshot, 3229), but nonetheless took the lead in the best-of-seven series, in part thanks to impressive grinding around the net, timely goals, and a key misread by journeyman Florida goaltender Alex Lyon that led to a Brad Marchand goal for a 2-0 lead.
Observations from the game:
■ Their defensive corps not as stout, adept, or talented as the Bruins’, the Panthers would prefer to defend in Boston’s end. They often did a good job of that, especially in the middle period, when a strong Florida forecheck had the Bruins go without a shot on net for a stretch of 9:01.
Florida might make that an even bigger deal in its own rink, where it can better dictate line matchups. The Panthers landed only three shots during that 9:01 stretch while not allowing the Bruins a look.
“They threw a punch, for sure,” said Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy. “I think we can expect that in every one of these games. That’s how it’s going to go. For us, it’s about bending and not breaking until we could get our game back.”
But keep in mind, some of the Bruins’ struggles in their own end were a product of not having Bergeron in the lineup. Bergeron’s skills are many, but he’s especially good at managing the back end of the ice, be it getting loose pucks for possession or working in concert with his defensemen and wingers to move the puck out.
“We call him Selke for a reason,” added McAvoy. “We understand the challenges without him … and the want to win and play for him.”
Bergeron also is the premier faceoff man in the league. Pavel Zacha and David Krejci, the top two centers with Bergeron sidelined, went a combined 17 for 33, slightly better than break even, on their drops. Possession leads to puck control and puck control dictates where the game is played. The Bruins won 52 percent of the faceoffs overall — the difference coming from Tomas Nosek, who won 10 out of 14.
“I think [Florida’s] forecheck has gotten better throughout the year, and I think they are really committed to it,” said Bruins coach Jim Montgomery. “You know, we didn’t handle that push great, but our goaltender did.”
■ The most visible Bruin in the early going and for much of the night was Tyler Bertuzzi, the ex-Red Wing, finally playing in his first playoff game in his seventh year in the NHL.
“Greaseball,” is coach Jim Montgomery’s nickname for Bertuzzi, who isn’t shy about getting to the tough scoring positions.
One of the Bruins’ major postseason failings in recent years has been the lack of forwards fighting to get into the grinding areas around the opponent’s net. Not enough sandpaper. Bertuzzi, ever since arriving from the Winged Wheels, has shown he thrives in the tough areas.
“When we acquired him, we thought he was a guy made for the playoffs,” said Montgomery. “His first shift, he laid out two huge hits and just kept making plays. The puck seems to follow him and he makes plays and good decisions with it.”
Bertuzzi set up the Dmitry Orlov for the game’s first shot, with a feed from behind the goal line on the Bruins’ first power play. He then made the key pass, off a shot attempt by Zacha, to set up David Pastrnak’s easy putaway for the 1-0 lead. He also put a solid thump on Panthers big boy Radko Gudas along the wall. All in the first period.
Bertuzzi was right in the thick of the fire again when Jake DeBrusk knocked one home for the 3-1 lead late in the second. Bertuzzi, working near the right post, made the first follow off a shot by Charlie McAvoy, and a grinding DeBrusk finished.
■ Keep an eye on left winger Ryan Lomberg, the 5-foot-9-inch Panthers speedster who played two seasons at the University of Maine.
With roughly 10:30 gone in the first, on a faceoff play deep in the Florida end, Lomberg blew the zone, wheeling up the left wing without a care whether the Panthers had possession. They failed to get control immediately, but the play was designed for a home-run pass. Highly likely they’ll try it again.
■ The Bruins, because of the Florida forecheck, didn’t put nearly enough rubber (eight shots) on Lyon in the first period. He had no chance to stop Pastrnak’s shot for the first goal of the series. But otherwise, the Bruins didn’t generate sustained pressure.
The good news: they had some good stretches of possession in the offensive zone. They just didn’t do enough with it.
Lyon’s worst moment was a bad read off Marchand’s shot 3:41 into the second period. The long wrister, with no tip or screen, should have been an easy save for the ex-Yale stopper.
But Lyon clearly misread it, the puck eluding his glove hand, and Marchand had the 50th playoff goal of his career. But worse for the Panthers, they were in a 2-0 deficit.
The Bruins then went 9:01 without a shot, Trent Frederic breaking the drought with his shot off a Taylor Hall pass.
■ Hall, his wheels his No. 1, 2, and 3 assets, blitzed up the right wing for a two-on-one in the first period after chipping the puck by a flat-footed Gustav Forsling around the 14:00 mark of the first. Hall carried into the right-wing circle and slid a nice crosss-lot pass to set up Frederic’s off-the-rush forehander. It was Lyon’s best stop of the period.
■ Bruins fans of some age might see some Steve Penney in Lyon. Like Lyon, Penney was a virtual unknown when he took over the Canadiens net for the 1984 playoffs, going 9-6 after playing only four games in the regular season.
Penney, then 33 (Lyon is 30), played in a dozen playoff games for the Habs the following spring, and that was essentially the end of his career. Patrick Roy handled the job for the next 10-plus seasons.
■ The Garden crowd used the Marchand goal to springboard into chanting mode. They first gave it to Lyon with chants of “Lyyyy-on, .Lyyyyon,” reminiscent of decades ago when they derided Buffalo goalie Daren Puppa with chants of “Poo-pah! Poopah!”