These Boston Bruins have not been familiar with dropping streaks.
They tore during the NHL right through the common season, successful 65 video games, a single-season document; claiming the Presidents’ Trophy with a league-high 135 issues, 22 issues transparent of each and every different group; and outscoring their warring parties by way of 128 aims.
But in spite of everything that successful, a three-game dropping streak, simply their moment of the season, got here at an inopportune time. The Florida Panthers defeated the Bruins, 4-3, in additional time of Game 7 in their first-round playoff sequence on Sunday night time in Boston to finish a unprecedented comeback from a 3-1 sequence deficit. And they did so opposed to one of the crucial maximum ambitious opposition within the league’s 106-year historical past: The Bruins had 43 extra issues than the Panthers did within the common season.
Boston were so dominant that on Saturday night time, after Toronto beat Tampa Bay to win a postseason sequence for the primary time since 2004, some lovers of the Maple Leafs accumulated outdoor the group’s area and chanted, “We want Florida.”
They were given their want.
Carter Verhaeghe, a member of Tampa Bay’s 2020 championship group, clinched the sequence with a left-handed shot from the precise face-off dot via a display screen by way of Matthew Tkachuk.
The Panthers constructed a 2-0 lead early in the second one duration, inciting a smattering of boos from an antsy Boston crowd. The Bruins scored 3 consecutive aims and seemed poised to advance, however defenseman Brandon Montour pressured additional time by way of scoring his moment function of the sport with not up to a minute left, and goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky used to be despatched to the bench for an additional attacker.
By dropping within the first around, the Bruins had been dealt the similar destiny because the 2018–19 Lightning, who had shared the former document for single-season wins with the 1995–96 Detroit Red Wings. That Tampa Bay group crashed out in a four-game sweep to Columbus, inspiring an apology to the lovers on social media. Of the 4 groups to win a minimum of 60 video games in a season, just one, the star-laden 1976–77 Montreal Canadiens, went directly to win the Stanley Cup.
This 12 months’s Bruins, beneath their first-year trainer, Jim Montgomery, additionally had ability all over their roster. Five avid gamers had a minimum of 20 aims, and 5 had a minimum of 40 assists. David Pastrnak, the megastar winger who signed an eight-year contract extension remaining month, led each the ones classes with profession highs of 61 aims and 52 assists.
In internet, Linus Ullmark’s league-leading save share and goals-against moderate had situated him as a favourite to win the Vezina Trophy. And when Ullmark wasn’t in between the pipes, Jeremy Swayman used to be posting stellar numbers, too.
This 12 months, Boston was the quickest group ever to succeed in 50 wins. By the tip, despite the fact that, lovers on the TD Garden had been trudging towards the exits after the Bruins was the twenty eighth NHL group to lose a playoff sequence after main by way of 3–1.
Boston will now input an low season with necessary questions to respond to. The group does now not have a lot wage cap house, and its unrestricted loose brokers come with two contributors of its most up-to-date championship group — Patrice Bergeron, the 37-year-old captain and a most sensible defensive ahead; and David Krejci, who had a function and two assists on Sunday. The group had rallied round the ones veterans to take a look at to ship them yet another identify.
The Bruins additionally should not have high-end draft alternatives to be had. They should not have a first- or second-round select this 12 months and, as a result of a previous business, they won’t have a ramification within the 2024 draft till the fourth around.
The Panthers were soundly crushed in Game 4 and had been one additional time function clear of their season being over within the subsequent recreation. Instead, improbably, they are going to play on.