Bruins Notes: Jeremy Swayman ‘Backbone’ Of Boston’s Game 1 Win

Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery believed the outcome could have been much different for Boston in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

But the Bruins got the result they wanted against the Florida Panthers due to stellar goaltending once again from Jeremy Swayman.

Swayman stayed red-hot between the pipes and shut down the Panthers attack by stopping 38-of-39 shots in a 5-1 win for the Bruins at Amerant Bank Arena on Monday night.

“We made a lot of mistakes and if it’s not for Jeremy Swayman that would have been a lot closer game and maybe they come out on top,” Montgomery told reporters, as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “We didn’t have enough scoring chances. The score is not indicative of the way the game went.”

Swayman is making the decision of putting him back in the net, despite the heavy workload, easy on Montgomery and the Bruins. Montgomery said the possibility of Linus Ullmark starting for Game 1 was discussed, but the Bruins couldn’t turn away from the hot hand.

It was a good thing they didn’t as Swayman became the eighth goaltender in NHL history to allow two or fewer goals in each of his first seven starts of a single postseason.

“We talked about it as a staff and because of the emotional high of Game 7 and the travel, we contemplated going with Ullmark because we have so much confidence in him, too,” Montgomery said. “But when a guy is playing that way, it’s like don’t outsmart yourself.”

Swayman kept the Panthers at bay from the get-go, making a couple of tremendous first-period saves. He also shrugged off a second-period tally from Matthew Tkachuck that allowed the Bruins to rattle off five unanswered goals.

And in the third period when the Panthers ramped up the pressure, Swayman was at his best. He came away with 16 saves in the final frame — his most of any period — to ensure that Florida didn’t gain any momentum and that his brilliant postseason continued.

“The guy is always dialed in. We’re never worried about that,” Bruins defenseman Mason Lohrei told reporters, as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “He’s unbelievable and the backbone of this team. So, we’re lucky to have him and obviously one of the best goalies in the league.”

Here are more notes from Game 1 between the Bruins and Panthers:

— Brandon Carlo almost didn’t make it to Sunrise, Fla., on time for the game due to the birth of his son, Crew, in the early hours of Monday morning. But the veteran defenseman arrived two hours before puck drop and played a key role in the win. Carlo scored with 21 seconds left in the second period and finished with a plus-two rating.

“Definitely a 24 hours I won’t forget,” Carlo told reporters, as seen on NESN postgame coverage.

— Boston’s penalty kill continued to be dynamite, denying all three of Florida’s power-play opportunities. The Bruins have now killed 23-of-24 penalties in the postseason.

— Montgomery made two lineup changes as he inserted Derek Forbort in for Kevin Shattenkirk and Patrick Brown centered the fourth line in place of Jesper Boqvist. It was the first game for Forbort, whose season looked over after underdoing two surgeries, since March 2 and he logged 18:03 of ice time and recorded six hits.

Brown was recalled on an emergency basis prior to the series and he received 8:27 of playing time and also brought a physical presence by doling out seven hits.

“Forbort looked really confident,” Montgomery said. “He was moving really well. The best we’ve seen him move probably before his leg injury last January. That was a pleasant surprise and really happy for the young man because he’s worked really hard and he’s wanted to get back to wear the spoked-B and help us in this playoff run.

“Brown was good. He fits our identity of being physical and being hard. He did his job.”

— Lohrei scored his first career postseason goal in the win, but he wasn’t the only member of the Bruins to notch the feat. Justin Brazeau did the same with a nice backhanded tally midway through the third period.

— The Bruins and Panthers take the ice for Game 2 on Wednesday. Puck drop from Amerant Bank Arena is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be televised on ESPN. An hour of pre- and postgame coverage can be found on NESN+.