The Bruins let a chance to end the series slip away with a 4-3 overtime loss in Game 5, but still maintain a 3-2 series lead going into Friday’s action. 

The Bruins return to Florida perched as -187 road favourites in Friday night’s matchup. The Panthers sport lengthy +152 odds of evening the series, and the total is listed at 6.0, with -118 odds favouring the OVER.

Bruins vs. Panthers NHL Playoff Betting Odds

The Panthers extended the trend favouring the away team in this series with Wednesday’s victory in Boston. The road team has now emerged victorious in four of the first five games of this series, with three of those victories coming by multi-goal margins. These clubs have also combined to score at least 6.0 total goals in each of the past four games, fueling a steady run for the OVER, which has paid out in seven of their past nine overall clashes. 

While the Panthers seized the momentum with Wednesday’s thrilling victory, it is the Bruins who have gained ground on the NHL playoff series prices, vaulting to -833 chalk while the Panthers have faded to +638 longshots to complete the upset.  

Boston Bruins

The Bruins entered Game 5 looking to dominate Florida, but struggled to convert on no shortage of opportunities while outshooting the Panthers by a massive 47-25 margin. However, the club’s top shooters to continued to produce, lead by Brad Marchand, who scored once and added an assist, both on the power play. Marchand has now picked up at least a point in each game of the series to date and has potted five goals and 10 points during a seven-game point streak. Patrice Bergeron also had an immediate impact in his first appearance of the series. Sidelined by both injury and illness since the last week of the regular season, Bergeron dominated the faceoff circle in his return, winning 69% of draws taken, and scored his first goal while recording six shots on the night. Linus Ullmark had an off night, allowing four goals on 25 shots, raising concerns about his health and whether the team will go with Jeremy Swayman in net on Friday.

Florida Panthers

In the wake of a dismal performance in Florida’s 6-2 loss, Sergei Bobrovsky stood tall in the Panthers crease on Wednesday night, turning aside 44 of 47 shots faced to the steal the victory. Forced to watch from the bench as Alex Lyon seized the starter’s role late in the regular season, Bobrovsky flashed vintage form in Game 5, burying growing worries over the team’s goaltending controversy. In addition to extending the series, Bobrovsky earned his first win in seven playoff appearances with his Game 5 performance. However, he still has work to do to rewrite a losing narrative on home ice, where he has surrendered 4.33 goals per game over his past six starts. In addition to another standout performance from Matthew Tkachuk, who picked up two points include the game winner in overtime, the Panthers welcomed both Aaron Ekblad back to the lineup. Anthony Duclair picked up his first point of the series by opening the scoring while Ekblad showed little signs of his recent injury while compiling 27:29 of ice time.

Game 6 Prediction: Who Will Win Bruins vs. Panthers?

BRUINS

Away

2

PANTHERS

Home

3

Score
Predictions

Matchup

With the Panthers’ gritty performance in Game 5, cracks have finally appeared in the armour of this record-setting Bruins squad. Now enjoying the benefit of fresh legs in the crease while matching the Bruins’ physical play, the time to stop dismissing the Panther is now, and get in on their positive odds to force a seventh and deciding game in this entertaining series.