Bruins Wrap: Boston Falters On Home Ice In Game 3 Loss To Panthers

BOSTON — The Bruins fell flat against the Florida Panthers on Friday night and were dealt a deflating 6-2 loss in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals at TD Garden.

The Panthers seized control of the best-of-seven series with a 2-1 lead.

Check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
The way Game 2 ended, especially with David Pastrnak getting in a rare fight with Matthew Tkachuck, it seemed to energize the Bruins.

But that energy was nowhere to be found through two periods in Game 3 as the Bruins delivered an uninspiring performance to put themselves in a hole in the series.

Boston struggled mightily on the offensive end against the Panthers. The Bruins put only three harmless shots on Sergei Bobrovsky in the first period and it wasn’t much better in the second frame with Boston totaling just five shots on net in the frame.

But the turning point of the game came in the final minutes of the second period. The Bruins finally generated momentum with a couple of sustained offensive rushes and Morgan Geekie nearly leveled the score twice, including having a tip-in slide narrowly wide of the post.

That momentum was lost though when Mason Lohrei was whistled for a high-sticking double minor moments later and the Panthers scored twice on the ensuing power play — the goals came one minute a part — to take a commanding three-goal lead.

The Bruins fought back with two goals in the final frame, but it was too little too late. It certainly will be back to the drawing board for the Bruins after Game 3 as they need to find a way to get more consistent offense.

STARS OF THE GAME
— Evan Rodrigues opened the scoring with 11:56 left in the first period. The Panthers winger parked himself in front of the net, which allowed him to bat in the puck for a 1-0 lead. He also scored the final tally of the game — it was one of four power-play goals for the Panthers.

— Tkachuk came through with a strong showing and was a catalyst in Florida’s offense. Tkachuk recorded three assists in the win.

— Jake DeBrusk gave the Bruins an offensive lift in the third period. He assisted on Jakub Lauko’s first career playoff goal and then found the back of the net himself midway through the third period. It was DeBrusk’s fifth goal of the playoffs.

UP NEXT
The Bruins and Panthers continue their series with Game 4 on Sunday. Puck drop from TD Garden is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET. The game will air on TBS with NESN carrying an hour of pre- and postgame coverage.