Florida Panthers claw way to comeback win over Boston Bruins

The Florida Panthers won a wild game at the TD Garden on Tuesday.

It is safe to say that the Comeback Cats have lived up to their nickname. The Florida Panthers went toe-to-toe with the Boston Bruins in a wild game at TD Garden on Tuesday night. The good guys came out on the winning edge of things after the situation looked very bleak.

Before they got the victory, the Florida Panthers had to weather the storm.

Goals by David Pasternak, Joakim Nordstrom, Anders Bjork, and Zdeno Chara in the second period led to goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky being pulled from the game at the start of the third period. Down four goals, something had to change for the Florida Panthers. The winds of change were certainly present as Sam Montembeault began the start of the third frame. It was almost as if something clicked for the Florida Panthers. It wasn’t that they were slacking off all night. If anything, they were playing their game for the entirety of the contest.

They just kept plugging away. They weren’t doing anything special, they were just firing shots at Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask. If there is one thing this team has proved so far this season, it is that they never give up. That was certainly the case Tuesday night.

The Florida Panthers get things going at the right time

Aaron Ekblad got the party going for the Panthers just 50 seconds into the third period. He hammered a beautiful pass from Keith Yandle just outside the left circle to make it a 4-1 game. Shooting from the left side, Rask had no chance at seeing it.

Jonathan Huberdeau  contributed to the next goal which was scored by Frank Vatrano. Huberdeau dished a nice pass to Vatrano who ripped a shot by a screened Rask to make it 4-2. You could definitely sense that the tone of the game was changing. The Panthers got their skating legs back and they were able to put forth a much better effort than they had in the first two periods.

Mike Hoffman was the beneficiary of a Bruins powerplay as he scored the next goal for Florida at the 9:43 mark. You could see Rask beginning to melt down a bit, and the Bruins almost played a bit scared in the third frame. That was definitely evident when the game was tied courtesy of a Keith Yandle goal, and somehow, the Panthers  managed to come back from four goals down. It was almost as if the Panthers were destined to win this game. Yandle’s goal was no small feat. With 1:39 left in the third period, traffic at the net forced the puck to bounce around for a bit. Yandle was the right place at the right time to pick it up.

As a result, a shootout ensued, and Hoffman was there to tally the game-winner. Charlie Coyle managed to record a goal for Boston, but it wasn’t enough as Vincent Trocheck gave the Panthers an early cushion. This led to Hoffman being able to seal the deal, as the Florida Panthers won a game for the second night in a row.

These Florida Panthers never give up

This has been a hallmark of the Florida Panthers all season. They play a gritty style of hockey. They don’t divert away from the game plan, they just keep plugging away. That was evident on Tuesday night. They just kept plugging away and shot pucks at the net. Especially in the third frame, their passes were crisp and they remained focused. There is this old hockey cliché that states “if you shoot pucks at the net, good things will happen.” The Panthers certainly lived by that adage Tuesday.

This team is a lot of fun to watch. Their wins may not always be pretty, and they may have some rough games. However, they will always compete and play hard. As a fan, that’s I can ask for.