The injured Andrew Peeke (out since Game 2 vs. Toronto) and Danton Heinen (out since Game 5 against the Maple Leafs) were both full participants in Monday’s morning skate and are “getting close,” per Montgomery.
“They’re taking steps. Not there yet. Ruled out for tonight,” said Montgomery.
When it comes to who will get the start between the pipes, Montgomery said the Bruins will stick to their plan.
“We always said that we had a plan in place,” said Montgomery. “That continues for this series, the same plan we had. There’s something to consider is the number of games we’re playing and the fact that neither of our goalies played that many games in such a short amount of time. And then you have the added adrenaline and excitement of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It all factors into our decision-making.”
Opposing View
Projected Florida Lineup (per FloridaPanthers.com):
FORWARDS
Carter Verhaeghe – Aleksander Barkov – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sam Reinhart
Evan Rodrigues – Kevin Stenlund – Vladimir Tarasenko
Nick Cousins – Steven Lorentz – Kyle Okposo
DEFENSEMEN
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Brandon Montour
Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Dmitry Kulikov
GOALIES
Sergei Bobrovsky
Anthony Stolarz
Coach Paul Maurice said the injured Sam Bennet – sidelined since April 23 – will remain out for Game 1 and is considered day-to-day.
The Panthers have 13 players – same as the Bruins – that participated in last spring’s first-round showdown. Florida ranked 11th in the league in scoring this season (3.23 goals per game), three spots ahead of the Bruins (3.21). They were eighth on the power play (23.5%) and tied with the Bruins for sixth on the penalty kill (82.5%).
Defensively, Florida was tied with the Winnipeg Jets for the lowest goals against per game (2.41) this season.
“I think we’ve got to create more offense, but we’re playing the No. 1 defensive team 5-on-5,” said Montgomery. “So, it’s not gonna be easier but we’ve got to be harder offensively, I think a lot of Game 3 [against Toronto], the way we played offensively. I thought we were more determined in the hard areas. I think that’s gonna be really important.”
Sam Reinhart led the Panthers – and ranked second in the league behind Toronto Auston Matthews – with a career-high 57 goals to go along with 94 points, while Matthew Tkachuk (26-62—88) and Aleksander Barkov (23-57—80 ) also hit the 80-point plateau. Carter Verhaeghe was second on the Panthers with 34 goals and fourth with 72 points.
Barkov was recently named a finalist for the Selke Trophy for third time in the last four seasons. He won the award in 2021.
“He’s a hell of a player. Maybe if Patrice hadn’t been playing, he’d have won [more] by now,” said Bruins general manager Don Sweeney. “But it’s a credit to him as a hockey player. He’s a leader for their hockey club and we have to respect the opponent…a really good hockey player and a catalyst for their team, so we’re gonna have to be aware of him and what he brings to the table.”
Six other players registered double-digit goals: Sam Bennett, 20; Anton Lundell, 13; Eetu Luostarinen, 12; Evan Rodrigues, 12; Kevin Stenlund, 11; and Gustsav Forsling, 10.
In Florida’s five-game, first-round series win over Tampa, Verhaeghe paced the Panthers with five goals and nine points. Tkachuk (three goals, six assists) also had nine points in the series.
Vezina finalist Sergei Bobrovsky was 36-17-4 with a .915 save percentage and 2.37 goals against average in 58 games in 2023-24. Backup Anthony Stolarz was 16-7-2 with a .925 and 2.03 GAA. In the first round, Bobrovsky played in all five games (4-1) and allowed 14 goals on 135 shots (.896 save percentage; 2.78 GAA).
“Very similar team, their depth is there,” said Sweeney. “They play the right way, they don’t give up a lot of scoring chances. The series should be tight. Power play is good. Bobrovsky’s played well, Stolarz has played well. It’s a hell of an opponent and I think we know each other pretty well and what our strengths are. It’s just gonna come down to winning the small areas of the game that generally translate throughout a series and hopefully we find a way to persevere this year.”
