Bruins Notes: Boston Keeps Fight Rolling, Extends Panthers Series

The Boston Bruins had their “best game of the series” in the eyes of head coach Jim Montgomery, keeping their season alive with a 2-1 Game 5 win over the Florida Panthers.

Playing with confidence in the face of adversity helped Boston stay alive. That stems from an internal belief that the Bruins possess. Jeremy Swayman led that charge, as he has all postseason, after the Game 4 loss. He asserted that the Bruins would take care of business and return to Boston to continue the series. That trust paid off in Florida on Tuesday night.

“So grateful for the opportunities and how the games present themselves,” Swayman told reporters, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “I just embrace everything with open arms and a smile. I’m just so proud of the guys in front of me with the way they battled. Played the systems well. Communication. Everything. It showed tonight that we had an edge. We weren’t taking ‘no’ for an answer.”

Adversity calls upon leaders to deliver for their team, something that Montgomery saw across the board from those who drive the Bruins internally.

“I think it’s the quality people in our dressing room,” Montgomery told reporters, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “It starts with our captain. Then, we have our two assistants. We have our subgroup underneath that. We have a goaltender that’s extremely confident. His swagger gives confidence. People read his quotes and we know he believes it.”

Here are more notes from Tuesday’s Game 5 between the Bruins and Panthers:

— Charlie McAvoy tallied his first postseason goal for the Bruins since 2021. The goal came to decide the game and turn the tides on the veteran’s playoff outlook this time around.

McAvoy’s goal also saw the Bruins benefit from a similar scenario that shifted momentum to the Panthers during Game 4.

— Brad Marchand missed his second consecutive game with an upper-body injury. That didn’t stop him from empowering his teammates and lending his spirit to the Bruins to push through and take the victory in an elimination game.

— Jim Montgomery’s reaction to a Boston penalty went viral during the game. Montgomery later explained his animated response and detailed the landscape of an ongoing pattern around the NHL.

— Swayman made 28 saves on the night, with none bigger than the final stop on a shot from Florida’s Sam Reinhart that sealed the game in the pressure-filled final seconds.

— Boston’s power play went 0-for-3 on the night, which pushed Montgomery to advocate for a specific meeting about the Bruins’ special teams.

— The Bruins won their first game of the series after scoring the first goal and moved to 3-3 in the playoffs when doing so.

— The Bruins and Panthers head back to Boston for Game 6 on Friday night at TD Garden.