Despite the defeat, Florida remains confident that if they play Panthers hockey, they'll be fine

For the second straight playoff series, the Florida Panthers entered a game with a chance to eliminate their opponent, and for the second straight series they came up empty.

Last time it was the Tampa Bay Lightning dodging a sweep and forcing a fifth game in Florida, which the Panthers ultimately won and moved on to round two.

This time it the Bruins avoiding elimination in Game 5 after dropping three straight to Florida, including a pair of games up in Boston.

That’s where the Bruins and Panthers are heading for Game 6 following Boston edging out a 2-1 victory on Tuesday in Sunrise.

Let’s jump right into Tuesday’s takeaways:

Slow start dooms Cats

Despite knowing that Boston would be showing up with their best effort, the Panthers still appeared to be caught off guard by how strongly the Bruins played during the first period.

Boston was all over the Cats, scoring less than five minutes into the game while holding the Panthers to just four shots on goal during the first period, a playoff low for Florida.

The Panthers responded well during the second period and made a strong push late in the game, but losing nearly an entire period-worth of potential offense on a night where Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman was as locked in as he’s been all series was too much for Florida to overcome.

“They came out a little bit better than us and got the momentum,” said Panthers forward Kevin Stenlund. “I think it shifted to our way in the second, but it’s hard to come back from a start like that. We’ve got to be better than that on Friday.”

Power play struggles

While it comes as no surprise that Florida’s penalty kill has remained strong throughout the postseason, there hasn’t been the same kind of consistency from its power play.

Since going 4-for-6 while up a man during Game 3 in Boston, the Panthers have hit a little rut.

Between Game 4 and Game 5, the Panthers have been granted another 10 power play opportunities, but they only cashed in on one of them.

The Cats are still getting good looks and zone time, which lends to the belief that good things will come if they stick with it, as has been the case when the power play has struggled in the past.

“I think just simplify, maybe not look for the perfect play so much,” said Panthers forward Sam Reinhart. “A little bit quicker and a little more decisive with the puck and we’ll be okay.”

No reason to panic

At the end of the day, the Panthers were still a goal post or great save away from tying the game at any number of points during the third period.

Considering how poorly they played at times during the opening period, and that Boston, one of the best teams in the conference, was fighting tooth and hair for their lives, Florida still had a decent shot at stealing this game and ending the series.

That didn’t happen, and now the Panthers have to go back to Boston for Game 6.

Between the success they’ve had in Boston and the confidence that if they show up on time and play their game, the Panthers aren’t making much of their loss on Tuesday.

“We lost a 2-1 game where the shots ended up being even,” said Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice. “We weren't very good in the first (period), but after that we were pretty good. We missed some chances, and that's it. That's how I feel about it.”

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