National Hockey League
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Boston 4, Florida 1
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, March 14, 2013
Where: TD Banknorth Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Referees: Eric Furlatt, Francois St.Laurent
Linesmen: Steve Miller, Tony Sericolo
Attendance: 17565


Bruins 4, Panthers 1: Patrice Bergeron scored his 150th career goal in the first period before adding an empty-net tally as host Boston posted its fourth win in five outings.

Captain Zdeno Chara netted the game's first goal for the second straight contest. Fourth-liner Shawn Thornton also tallied and Tuukka Rask turned aside 29 shots as the Bruins rebounded from their late third-period collapse versus Pittsburgh on Tuesday.

Shawn Matthias scored a short-handed goal and Scott Clemmensen finished with 28 saves for the Panthers, who are winless in five games (0-4-1).

Chara opened the scoring 3:55 into the first period with a blast from just outside the left faceoff circle. Bergeron doubled the advantage just over 11 minutes later, converting Brad Marchand's feed on the doorstep.

Matthias halved the deficit 3:10 into the second period, when he extended his body to secure a loose puck from rookie defenseman Dougie Hamilton before beating Rask with a backhander. Thornton answered with 7:17 remaining in the third by chasing down the loose puck following his initial shot and slapping it home from outside the left post.

GAME NOTEBOOK: With his 246th victory, coach Claude Julien moved past Milt Schmidt for the second-most wins in Boston history. Art Ross leads the Original Six club with 361 victories. ... Florida RW Kris Versteeg will have season-ending knee surgery following a hit from Tampa Bay's Radko Gudas, who was making his NHL debut on Tuesday. ... The Panthers are 0-for-16 on the power play in March after failing on both opportunities Thursday. The Bruins have killed off their last 22 short-handed situations.

Top Game Performances
 
Florida   Boston
Shawn Matthias 1 Points Patrice Bergeron 2
Shawn Matthias 1 Goals Patrice Bergeron 2
Shawn Matthias 0 Assists Brad Marchand 2
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
Shawn Matthias 1 Short Handed Goals N/A
Scott Clemmensen .903 Save Percentage Tuukka Rask .967
Scott Clemmensen 28 Saves Tuukka Rask 29
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Florida 30 1 0-2 2-2 4 17
Boston 32 4 0-2 2-2 4 35
Upcoming Games
  • Boston will play their next game at home against Washington. The Bruins have a W/L % of .706 after a win and .714 after a loss.
  • Florida will play their next game at home against NY Islanders. The Panthers have a W/L % of .143 after a win and .250 after a loss.