We have a tantalizing Atlantic Division matchup on our hands to begin the week on Monday evening as the Stanley Cup finalist Florida Panthers hit the road to visit the reigning Presidents' Trophy winner Boston Bruins at the TD Garden. The puck is scheduled to drop at 7 PM ET. Florida is only a game above .500 after a slow start but has won two in a row, beating the San Jose Sharks and the Seattle Kraken in back-to-back contests. As for Boston, well, they've yet to lose in regulation and definitely look the part of a contender again despite many people expecting them to take a step back in 2023-24. They just thrashed the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday. Below, find the Panthers vs Bruins picks.
Before we get into the odds and preview, make sure to check out our online sportsbook reviews, and the top NHL betting sites.
Panthers vs Bruins Odds
The Bruins are a slim favorite here, sitting at -155 moneyline odds for an implied win probability of 60.78%. The Panthers come back at +138 and have a 42.2% chance of taking this one. Revenge will surely be on Boston's mind come Monday considering Florida did shock them in seven games in the first round of last year's playoffs, beating the Bruins 4-3 in OT of Game 7 back in April.
Panthers Finding Their Way
Florida exceeded expectations by a mile last season after barely getting into the playoffs and then going on an improbable run to the Cup. That has fans and analysts expecting the Panthers to be a postseason team at the absolute minimum again in 2023-24, but they weren't great off the bat. Paul Maurice's squad lost their first two games of the campaign to the Minnesota Wild and the Winnipeg Jets before getting back on track against the Devils and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Most recently, Florida took down the always-tough Kraken over the weekend by a score of 3-2. Matthew Tkachuk finally opened his account with his second-period goal, while Nick Cousins won it for the Panthers in the third period. Sergei Bobrovsky made 30 saves in between the posts, while Dmitry Kulikov collected his sixth and seventh assists of the season, setting up a pair of goals. Scoring has been a bit of an issue thus far for Florida, netting only 2.86 times per contest.
While Tkachuk only has one goal, he's supplied six assists. Sam Reinhart meanwhile is leading the charge with seven goals and two assists. As per usual though, the blue line is a clear bright spot, allowing under three goals per game. With a couple more additions in the offseason, the Panthers boast a very strong defense. That'll go a long way when the playoffs roll around.
Bruins Firing on All Cylinders
Another Presidents' Trophy for Boston? It's certainly possible. The Bruins are 7-0-1 which is the second-best record in the NHL behind only the Vegas Golden Knights, but they've played one more game. Superstar David Pastrnak is the leading man for this group, already scoring eight goals and tallying five assists in only eight games. He's certainly living up to the big contract he signed last season. Brad Marchand, who was rumored to potentially retire before 2023-24, isn't missing a beat, posting four goals and four assists.
While Boston is finding the back of the net at a respectable rate (3.25 goals per night) it's the blue line that has them at the top of the league. They're allowing a mind-boggling 1.5 goals per game, which is the lowest mark in the NHL. On top of that, the Bruins blue line has a 97.1 penalty-kill percentage. Simply spectacular.
The Bruins stayed solid in front of netminder Jeremy Swayman on Saturday as he faced just 22 shots against the Wings in a 4-1 win. Pastrnak bagged a double while Charlie McAvoy and Pavel Zacha also produced some offense. Jim Montgomery's team took an early 2-0 lead in the first period and never looked back. For what it's worth, Boston's only loss (in OT to the Ducks on Thursday) came at the TD Garden. Florida also ended their season in this rink way back in April. With that in mind, you better believe the Bruins will be as motivated as can be to come out and hammer the Panthers.
Panthers vs Bruins Picks
While one could say Florida has Boston's number, the hosts are just too hot right now to bet against and as previously mentioned, they have a lot of fire to grab a victory here. The Bruins will get it done.
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