2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Panthers vs. Bruins Eastern 2nd Round preview

The second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs features eight teams in four best-of-7 series, which started Sunday. Today, NHL.com previews the Eastern Conference Second Round between the Florida Panthers and Boston Bruins.

(1A) Florida Panthers vs. (2A) Boston Bruins

Panthers: 52-24-6, 110 points; defeated Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 in the first round

Bruins: 47-20-15, 109 points; defeated Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in the first round

Season series: BOS 4-0-0; FLA 0-2-2

Game 1: Monday (8 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN, TVAS, CBC)

It's a rematch.

The Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers played an epic first-round series in 2023, with the Panthers prevailing in a stunning Game 7. This season, they're meeting in the second round in a series sure to feature bad blood and revenge as narratives in a matchup that's quickly becoming a rivalry.

To get here, the Panthers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games. The Bruins went to seven games against the Toronto Maple Leafs, ending in Boston on Saturday with a 2-1 overtime win on a goal by David Pastrnak that provided a quick turnaround to their next opponent.

The Bruins have defeated the Panthers four times this season, twice in overtime. But the games that really mattered came last spring, when Boston went in as the prohibitive favorites after setting regular-season records for wins (65) and points (135), only to fall to Florida after leading the best-of-7 series 3-1.

"There are no secrets," Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. "We're divisional rivals. We played each other four times. And seven (in the playoffs last season). We've played each other enough. We understand each other."

There's no question the Bruins are looking for a different outcome this time.

"We have a real tough test coming ahead and we know that," coach Jim Montgomery said. "We haven't won anything yet. We've just earned the right to play in the second round."

Meanwhile, the Panthers have their eyes set on a return trip to the Stanley Cup Final, where they were propelled after the series win against the Bruins in 2023.

Does that make them the favorite?

"I think it's more for you to decide," Florida captain Aleksander Barkov said. "We just play our game. We know how to play, we know how to play hard and that's what we're going to do. We have the same mindset as last year. We want to outcompete every team we play, so it doesn't matter who we play. We want to be at our best in every game, so it's not our decision to decide who's favored and who's not."

Game breakers

Panthers: Though the Panthers have some dangerous weapons in Barkov, Sam Reinhart and Matthew Tkachuk, Carter Verhaeghe is who the Bruins have to worry about the most. He led Florida with five goals in the first round and his nine points tied Tkachuk for the team lead. Verhaeghe scored in overtime to win Game 2. Over the past two postseasons he has five game-winning goals, three in OT including Game 7 against the Bruins last season. When the game is tight, keep an eye on Verhaeghe.

Bruins: Brad Marchand proved his mettle leading the Bruins to their first-round win against the Maple Leafs. He took over in Games 3 and 4 with three goals and two assists and finished the series with eight points (three goals, five assists). It's not just his ability to produce. The Bruins feed off the emotion and fire of their captain, making his understanding of the gamesmanship in the playoffs just as important as the points he's producing.

Goaltending

Panthers: Sergei Bobrovsky didn't get a ton of work against the Lightning, facing 135 shots on goal (27.0 percent per game). His .896 save percentage wasn't great, but he made the big saves when he needed to, including a stunning stop on Mathew Dumba in Game 2. Bobrovsky was never under a constant barrage with the Panthers defense going long stretches without allowing a shot on the goal, especially in the first two games. He allowed only 14 goals, six coming in a Game 4 loss. He didn't start the first two against the Bruins last year, came on in relief in Game 3 and then helped Florida rally from down 3-1, so Boston knows how dangerous he can be.

Bruins: The Bruins started the playoffs with a strict rotation through the first three games of the first round, but since then it has been Jeremy Swayman's net. Swayman went 4-2 against Toronto with a 1.49 goals-against average and .950 save percentage. Linus Ullmark started Game 2 and allowed three goals on 34 shots in a 3-2 loss, and started six games last year before Swayman took over in Game 7. Ullmark went 3-0-0 with a 1.62 GAA and .947 save percentage against the Panthers in the regular season. Swayman won his only start, allowing three goals on 21 shots.

Numbers to know

Panthers: Since losing their first two home playoff games to the Bruins last season, they're 8-2 at Amerant Bank Arena, the two losses coming in the Stanley Cup Final. They are averaging 3.30 goals per game in that stretch and allowing 2.20 per game. They have home-ice advantage against the Bruins this year, and that could be a huge difference.

Bruins: One. The Bruins allowed just one power-play goal against the Maple Leafs, slamming the door shut on a man-advantage that ranked seventh in the regular season (24.0 percent). Their penalty killing in the first round, through a combination of excellent defense and even better goaltending, held the Maple Leafs to that single goal on 21 power-play opportunities. It was tied with the Panthers for sixth (82.5 percent) in the regular season.

X-factors

Panthers: Anton Lundell was elevated in the lineup after the injury to center Sam Bennett (upper body) during the first round and tied for second on the Panthers with four assists behind Tkachuk's six. Lundell had assists in four straight games from Game 2 to the series-clinching Game 5 against the Lightning and will be relied upon heavily in the top-nine forward group at center or wing in the second round, regardless of when Bennett returns. He scored a goal and had 13 shots on goal in four games against the Bruins in the regular season. -- Pete Jensen

Bruins: Hampus Lindholm had a clutch performance in Game 7 with the game-tying goal in the third period, the primary assist on Pastrnak's OT goal and six shots on goal. He will need to be more efficient on both ends of the ice against a dominant possession team like the Panthers after being held to no points in seven games against them last postseason. He then had a big dip in points per game this season (0.36) compared to 2022-23 (0.66; NHL career-high 53 points). Stopping Reinhart (second in NHL with 57 regular-season goals; three in five games during first round of playoffs) will be the top priority for one of Charlie McAvoy or Lindholm. The other defenseman will likely be on a separate pair trying to contain Tkachuk, a physical forward. Tough assignment either way. -- Pete Jensen

They said it

"They definitely got us in the regular season. I don't know. If you ask them, they're probably using that for confidence going into this series and we're like, 'The regular season doesn't matter. We got them in the playoffs.' We've got to use our playoff experience and use that as confidence. They did take it to us, but they were all close games. … I'm expecting a very good series. They're such an unbelievable team in every aspect of the game. They touch everything. They're really good at special teams. Their 5-on-5 is great. Their goaltending is amazing. Their team defense is really good. They've got some star players. I think it's a lot like our team, so it should be a great series." -- Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk

"We're feeling really good about our game. We're playing well, so it's great to be able to jump into another series quickly. I'd say the toughest part about this game and the transition between this game and the next series is that we're obviously riding a big high and we have to completely forget about it starting [Sunday] morning. But the great thing about the playoffs is we earned another four games." -- Bruins forward Brad Marchand

Will win if ...

Panthers: They play the same way they did against the Lightning in the first round. All five skaters played tight defense, limiting Tampa Bay's shots on goal. If Boston had trouble scoring against Toronto, it may be close to impossible against Florida if it plays its game.

Bruins: They need what they brought against the Maple Leafs, excellence in net. They will be facing Bobrovsky, a finalist for the Vezina Trophy given to the top goalie in the NHL. All the Bruins goalies have to do is better him. No pressure.

How they look

Panthers projected lineup

Vladimir Tarasenko -- Aleksander Barkov -- Sam Reinhart

Carter Verhaeghe -- Anton Lundell -- Matthew Tkachuk

Eetu Luostarinen -- Kevin Stenlund -- Evan Rodrigues

Nick Cousins -- Steven Lorentz -- Kyle Okposo

Gustav Forsling -- Aaron Ekblad

Niko Mikkola -- Brandon Montour

Oliver Ekman-Larsson -- Dmitry Kulikov

Sergei Bobrovsky

Anthony Stolarz

Scratched: Tobias Bjornfot, Uvis Balinskis, Josh Mahura, Jonah Gadjovich, Evan Cormier

Injured: Sam Bennett (upper body), Ryan Lomberg (illness)

Bruins projected lineup

Brad Marchand -- Charlie Coyle -- Morgan Geekie

Jake DeBrusk -- Pavel Zacha -- David Pastrnak

James van Riemsdyk -- Trent Frederic -- Justin Brazeau

Johnny Beecher -- Jesper Boqvist -- Pat Maroon

Mason Lohrei -- Charlie McAvoy

Hampus Lindholm -- Brandon Carlo

Parker Wotherspoon -- Kevin Shattenkirk

Jeremy Swayman

Linus Ullmark

Scratched: Jakub Lauko, Matt Grzelcyk

Injured: Danton Heinen (undisclosed), Derek Forbort (undisclosed), Matthew Poitras (shoulder)