SUNRISE, Fla. — Linus Ullmark left the ice with a couple of minutes left to play, which ordinarily isn’t a fantastic factor for hockey goaltenders.
In this case, it solely made the Boston Bruins recognize him extra.
Ullmark stopped 41 pictures earlier than leaving the sport with 3:11 remaining after drawing a misconduct penalty – he needed to combat Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk because the spotlight of a late-game scrum – and the Bruins beat the Panthers 6-2 on Sunday to maneuver one recreation away from the second spherical of the playoffs.
“I love it,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery stated of his goalie. “He’s all in.”
Taylor Hall had two targets and two assists, Jake DeBrusk scored twice, and the Bruins took a 3-1 lead within the Eastern Conference first-round collection – with an opportunity to advance coming in Boston on Wednesday.
Brad Marchand and Tyler Bertuzzi additionally had targets for the Bruins, who obtained a second consecutive win on Florida ice. Hall’s targets got here within the ultimate 3:36, the second an empty-netter.
But the discuss of the locker room was Ullmark, for good purpose.
“Tkachuk’s kind of doing a lot of things to try and get under our skin but for the most part, we’re doing a great job of keeping it between the whistles, and I’m proud of our group for doing so,” Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo stated. “But at times, you’ve got to show a little passion and push back.”
Tkachuk and Sam Bennett had targets for Florida, whereas Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 25 pictures for the Panthers.
Hall put it away with 3:36 left, getting behind Florida’s protection and beating Bobrovsky simply for a 5-2 edge that despatched Panthers followers to the exits – presumably for the final time this season.
“I liked the way we started. Certainly didn’t like the end result,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice stated. “But we’ll go into Boston feeling free.”
All Boston must do now could be keep away from a three-game shedding streak as a way to attain the second spherical for the fifth time up to now six seasons.
The Bruins dropped three in a row solely as soon as all season, on their option to having the perfect regular-season mark in NHL historical past – 65-12-5. Sunday’s win was Boston’s 68th of the season; solely 10 groups, together with playoffs, have ever gained extra in a single season.
Both of DeBrusk’s targets put Boston on high by two – the primary a power-play rating 1:52 into the second for a 2-0 lead, the opposite when he merely needed to swipe a puck that popped out of Bobrovsky’s glove into the online for a 4-2 edge with 11:55 remaining.
Boston improved to 39-1-1 this season when main after the primary interval, 50-1-2 when main after two intervals, and 52-1-1 in video games the place it led by two or extra targets at any time.
“We don’t have to think about 3-1 or what’s going on,” Bobrovsky stated. “We just have to take the approach of one shift at a time, and keep grinding.”
The Panthers had two notable lineup modifications – Bobrovsky was in, Aaron Ekblad was out.
Alex Lyon’s run of 11 consecutive video games as Florida’s beginning goalie ended, with Bobrovsky getting the decision there. Ekblad was listed as a game-time resolution after leaving Game 3 early with an undisclosed harm; he wound up sitting out and Casey Fitzgerald performed as an alternative.
AROUND THE RINK
The Bruins went with their identical lineup as Game 3, that means Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci remained out Sunday. Montgomery stated if both or each can play Wednesday, they may, and stated he thinks Bergeron has a greater probability to return. … Ullmark stopped a shot from Bennett within the first interval with the highest of his helmet. … The Panthers had one different lineup change from Game 3 – Anthony Duclair was out, Zac Dalpe was in. … Boston defenseman Dmitry Orlov (0-5-5) has had an help in all 4 video games of the collection. … Pavel Zacha had two assists for Boston.
CHASING HISTORY
Boston is now 4 wins away from matching the file for many in a season, together with playoffs. The 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens, 1983-84 Edmonton Oilers, 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings and final season’s Colorado Avalanche all gained 72 video games.
UP NEXT
Game 5 is Wednesday in Boston.
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