What Added To David Pastrnak’s Frustration About Game 4 Controversy

The Bruins dropped their third straight loss Sunday night, and they were pushed to the brink of elimination in very frustrating fashion.

Boston surrendered three unanswered goals after netting the first two in its Game 4 loss to Florida at TD Garden. The Panthers’ game-tying goal nearly four minutes into the third period was drenched in controversy, as Jeremy Swayman appeared to be the victim of goaltender interference while he watched the puck find the back of the net. Boston challenged the play armed with pretty damning evidence, but the decision-makers in Toronto deemed it a good goal.

The main actor involved made the situation even more infuriating for the Bruins and their fans. The controversial goal was scored by Sam Bennett, whose high hit on Brad Marchand prevented the Bruins captain from playing Sunday night.

After Boston’s 3-2 loss, David Pastrnak was asked if the Bennett element of the game-changing sequence made it sting even more.

“Yeah, 100%,” Pastrnak told reporters, per a video from ABC6’s Ian Steele. “We saw that it was obviously, clearly intentional with our look with the cam footage we got. These are the cards we have to deal with and we have to make sure to regroup and get ready for the next game.”

Bennett on Sunday night insisted he did not intend to hurt Marchand when he hit the Bruins star high Friday. The Panthers center also unsurprisingly did not believe he got away with one when officials elected not to overturn his Game 4 goal.

But as Pastrnak mentioned, Boston now needs to shift its focus to preparing for a do-or-die matchup Tuesday night. The Bruins and the Panthers will drop the puck for Game 5 at Amerant Bank Arena at 7 p.m. ET.