Bruins Wrap: Boston Exacts Revenge On Panthers In Overtime Thriller

BOSTON -- The Bruins and the Panthers met for the first time since Florida upset Boston in the first round of the playoffs and ended their historic season prematurely.

The game would not be decided in regulation, it took overtime with the Bruins defeating the Panthers 3-2 at TD Garden on Monday night.

With the win, the Bruins improved to 8-0-1 on the season while the Panthers dropped to 4-3-1.

Check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
Pavel Zacha was the hero for Boston when he sealed the win for the Bruins at 3:36 in overtime.

The Bruins were down a defenseman in the first period when Matt Grzelyck left the game with an undisclosed upper-body injury and the Panthers capitalized while Boston had to double-shift the remaining five skaters.

The Bruins bounced back from a sloppy first period where the Panthers not only took the 2-0 lead into the intermission but also outshot Boston 16-6.

Boston tilted the ice in the second period and cut the lead in half when Brad Marchand scored his second of the season while driving to the net.

Charlie McAvoy tied the game at two but was ejected from the game with a match penalty when he hit Oliver Ekman-Larsson in the head. The Bruins were able to kill off the penalty and send the game into overtime and steal the victory.

STARS OF THE GAME
-- Zacha secured the win for Boston with his third goal of the season in overtime.

ZACHAAAAA @Pavel_Zacha | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/4JXsOhFAks

— NESN (@NESN) October 31, 2023

-- Marchand scored his fifth goal of the season in the second period to put the Bruins on the board.

Brad gets us on the board. pic.twitter.com/DWK31yqSze

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) October 31, 2023

-- Linus Ullmark earned his fourth win of the season making 35 saves in the game including seven saves on McAvoy's five-minute major penalty late in the third period to keep the game knotted at two.

WAGER WATCH
FanDuel Sportsbook set the odds of Marchand lighting the lamp at +180. The Bruins captain cleared those odds with his fifth goal of the season. A $100 wager on Marchand would've netted a $280 payout.

UP NEX ON NESN
The Bruins host the Toronto Maple Leafs in an Original Six matchup on Thursday night. Puck drop from TD Garden is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and will air on ESPN+. The Bruins will return to NESN on Nov. 6 when they face off against the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center.