INJURY UPDATE: 2 more injury crises for Bruins as confirmed by club
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery and goalie Jeremy Swayman discuss the non-call and allowed goal as Charlie Coyle is cross-checked into Swayman
We still don’t know whether Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand will play in Game 5 of the team’s Eastern Conference second-round playoff series versus the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night.
But the veteran left wing will accompany the team down to Sunrise, Fla., per B’s general manager Don Sweeney.
“Brad skated today. He’ll travel with the team,” Sweeney said at a press conference Monday before the team departed for Florida. “He’s still day to day.”
When asked if Marchand is feeling and doing better, Sweeney responded, “Yep.”
Marchand suffered an upper body injury as the result of a controversial hit by Panthers center Sam Bennett in the first period of Game 3.
Replays show that Bennett punched Marchand in the head, but the NHL’s Department of Player Safety didn’t fine or suspend the Panthers star as a result. He also wasn’t penalized in the game.
Marchand played through the end of the second period in Game 3, but did not play in the third period. He also missed Game 4.
The fact that Marchand is well enough to skate and travel is encouraging, but it appears he’s still not healthy enough to play in Game 5.
It’s a must-win game for the Bruins as they trail 3-1 in the series following Sunday night’s 3-2 loss at home in Game 4.
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Talking Point Among Panthers After Game 5 Loss To Bruins
The Boston Bruins got off to a stronger start in Game 5 against the Florida Panthers on Wednesday than they had in their previous second-round matchups.
And following Florida’s 2-1 defeat at Amerant Bank Arena, the Panthers were quick to point to Boston’s opening stretch as a key factor.
“They came out, they were on pucks a little quicker than we are,” Panthers forward Sam Reinhart told reporters, per the team.
Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov added: “They came out of the gate really hard and got going right away.”
The Black and Gold took a 1-0 advantage at 4:49 of the first period after Morgan Geekie slid one past Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. Boston recorded six shots in the opening five minutes of the period and held a 12-4 edge when they entered the dressing room after 20 minutes.
“They came out a little better than us, got the momentum,” Florida forward Kevin Stenlund told reporters. “It’s hard to come back from a start like that. … They just won a little bit more battles than us.”
Panthers head coach Paul Maurice liked the response throughout the second and third periods. But ultimately the Bruins were able to send the best-of-seven series back to Boston after Charlie McAvoy netted the eventual game-winning goal midway through the second period.
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