Bruins vs. Panthers Game 3 lineup: Projected lines, pairings, goalies originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Bruins and Panthers both earned lopsided victories over the first two games of their Eastern Conference second-round playoff series in Florida. Now each team has an opportunity to take control of the series entering the pivotal Game 3 at TD Garden on Friday night.
The Panthers won three of four games in Boston during last season’s first-round series, including overtime victories in both Game 5 and 7. They should have plenty of confidence playing in this building.
The Bruins power play was red hot to begin the first round and scored six goals on 13 opportunities through the first four games against the Toronto Maple Leafs. But that unit has really struggled with zero goals and just seven shots with the man advantage over the last five games. Boston’s power play is 0-for-5 over the first two games of the second round. This unit needs to get going for the Bruins to keep pace with a high-powered Panthers offense.
No major lineup changes are expected for the Bruins in Game 3, but it’s possible we could see Jakub Lauko play somewhere in the bottom six. The 24-year-old forward hasn’t played since Game 2 of the first round, but he plays with the kind of physicality and speed the Bruins could use more of in this series. He’s also good at drawing penalties.
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters after Friday’s morning skate that Danton Heinen (undisclosed injury) is still day-to-day. Montgomery also noted that defenseman Andrew Peeke is available for Game 3. It’s unknown whether Peeke will come back into the lineup Friday, but his physicality and penalty killing would be valuable on the third pairing. Peeke suffered an injury in Game 2 versus the Leafs and hasn’t played since.
Montgomery did not reveal which goalie will start Game 3. Jeremy Swayman would be the best choice, though.
Even though he allowed four goals in Game 2, none of them were his fault, and the score would have been far more lopsided if he didn’t make a couple huge saves in the first period. Montgomery pulled Swayman after the Panthers increased their lead to 4-1 early in the third period Wednesday, so fatigue shouldn’t be a huge factor with the 25-year-old netminder.
Swayman has a .942 save percentage entering Friday, which ranks No. 1 in the playoffs among all goalies who have played four or more games.
Panthers head coach Paul Maurice told reporters after his team’s morning…