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Jim Montgomery hints at 3 major changes for Game 7.

The Boston Bruins are in an unexpected position heading into Sunday’s Game 7, facing the threat of an early elimination in the Stanley Cup playoffs after the most dominant regular season in National Hockey League history and after taking a commanding 3-1 lead over the Florida Panthers in this series.

It’s hard to believe but it feels like all of the pressure is now on the Bruins to close out the deal, and it seems as though head coach Jim Montgomery may be making the changes he feels necessary to deal with the toughest hurdle his team has faced all season.

Although Montgomery would not disclose any changes he made to his lineup on Sunday, there are some things we can infer based on how the Bruins behaved during their morning skate. The biggest of these changes appears to be a much anticipated change in goal, with backup goaltender Jeremy Swayman being the first off the ice during the skate on Saturday. This is usually an indication of who the starter will be, although things could change at a moments notice during the playoffs.

Montgomery also appeared to swap out a pair of skaters on Sunday, with Nick Foligno and Conor Clifton remaining on the ice late into practice, an indication that they will both be scratched tonight. Bruins insider Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe believes that this means we will see Trent Frederic and Matt Grzelcyk step into the lineup tonight to replace those two aforementioned Bruins.

A first round exit would be incredibly disappointing after the season the Bruins had, and it will be very interesting to see how they react to that pressure tonight.

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Jim Montgomery addresses the goaltending controversy in Boston.

In what has been a stunning turn of events for many, the Bruins are now staring down the possibility of being eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs after a dominant regular season. Making matters even worse, the Bruins are doing so after taking a commanding 3-1 lead in their opening round series over the Florida Panthers and there is now a serious controversy when it comes to the Bruins lineup.

Many have questioned the performance of Bruins starting goaltender Linus Ullmark in these playoffs, a performance that has been uncharacteristically shaky after Ullmark had such a strong campaign in the regular season. In fact many believe that Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery has erred in his decision to keep going back to Ullmark, especially after how Game 6 came to an end.

On Saturday, Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery was asked about his goaltending situation and was questioned about who would get the start in Game 7, but the Bruins bench boss refused to give a straight answer. Montgomery did add that he had “no regrets” about his decision to go with Ullmark for 6 straight games to start this series, something that I find very hard to believe at this point in the series.

When pressed on the issue of a potential swap by Bruins reporter Jimmy Murphy, Montgomery admitted that if he did make a change in goal for Game 7 that the blame for such a decision would fall on the shoulders of Ullmark himself.

“Linus hasn’t stopped enough pucks,” admitted Montgomery. “Plain and simple.”

A big part of the reason Montgomery’s decision to stick with Ullmark has been questioned is due to the fact that the Bruins have a solid backup in Jeremy Swayman. Swayman had a strong regular season with a 2.27 goals against average and a .920 save percentage, and it sounds like there is at least a chance he may get to showcase his abilities in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

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Brad Marchand calls out the NHL after Game 4 on Sunday.

Sergei Belski/USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Bruins earned a huge win on Sunday when they took Game 4 over the Florida Panthers, securing a commanding 3-1 lead in the opening round series between the two Stanley Cup hopefulls.

While you might think that would have put the Bruins in a good mood, Bruins forward Brad Marchand clearly had a bone to pick after the game. Some of the antics that occurred during the game, including all hell breaking loose late in the third period, might lead you to believe that Marchand had a bone to pick with the Panthers, but instead the Bruins agitator’s issues were with the National Hockey League itself.

Following the conclusion of Game 4, Marchand was asked about controversial comments made by Matthew Tkachuk earlier in the series.

Again you might have expected Marchand to use the opportunity to roast Tkachuk for some pretty ugly comments that were caught on a hot mic, but this is where Marchand chose to call out the NHL instead. The Bruins agitator chastised the league, and their media partners, for allowing the comments from Tkachuk to be caught on a mic in the first place.

“I think the NHL and the media outlets have crossed the line to allow those mics …” said an infuriated Marchand.

According to Matt Porter of the Boston Globe, Marchand would go even one step further and called the entire situation “very disrespectful” to the agreement between the NHL and NHLPA.

It certainly sounds like there may be some fallout here, although much of that is likely to occur behind closed doors and away from the prying eyes of fans.

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Tkachuk goes after Ullmark and all hell breaks loose in Game 4!

The Boston Bruins and the Florida Panthers are not done with their first round Stanley Cup playoff series just yet, and facing elimination the Florida Panthers attempted to send a message late in the third period of Game 4.

All hell broke loose when Panthers agitator Matthew Tkachuk invaded the Bruins crease and drew the ire of Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark, eventually leading to a dogpile on Tkachuk and then a larger brawl between the Panthers and the Bruins on the ice as neither team was willing to give ground.

Tkachuk would attempt to get at Ullmark during all of the chaos and the Bruins goaltender appeared eager to throw fists with the Panthers forward, but the National Hockey League officials on the ice were having none of it.

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Sam Bennett hits a downed Garnet Hathaway in the nether region.

A controversial incident at the end of the first period of Game 4 between the Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers on Sunday afternoon may have become even more controversial thanks to a sharp-eyed fan.

During the first period of today’s game, Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk delivered a cross-check to the back of Bruins forward Garnet Hathaway after the first period had just come to an end.

What everyone seems to have missed however was an extra cheap shot courtesy of Panthers forward Sam Bennett, everyone except a fan that identifies themselves simply as ‘Dale’ on social media. Dale noticed that while Hathaway was down on the ice, Bennett skated over and used the opportunity to give Hathaway a little something extra by giving him a cup check with his stick.

If you pay attention closely, there’s absolutely no doubt about the fact that Bennett hits Hathaway in the groin, and does so quite deliberately as well.

It comes as even less of a surprise now that Hathaway needed a few moments to gather himself before eventually rising back to his feat at the end of the first period.

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Garnet Hathaway injured by cross-check from Matthew Tkachuk Game 4.

Boston Bruins forward Garnet Hathaway appears to have been injured in the first period of Game 4 between the Bruins and Florida Panthers, and the Bruins aren’t going to be happy about this one.

Hathaway went down, and stayed down, after a cross-check from Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk struck him in the back where he has very little protection. A scrum ensued around Hathaway and players pushed and shoved, but as all of this went down, Hathaway remained flat on the ice.

Tkachuk was awarded a 2 minute penalty on the play, but that will be little consolation for the Bruins if Hathaway is unable to continue in this contest.

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Matthew Tkachuk accuses Garnet Hathaway of taking a dive.

The Stanley Cup playoffs really appeared to step up in intensity over the course of the weekend, with several teams bringing a new level of physicality to bear against their opponents. That is to be expected as series between two teams wear on and players get more familiar, and more annoyed, with one another… and that is also true of the mind games that go on.

One player that was definitely playing up both of those aspects over the weekend was Florida Panthers forward, and notorious agitator, Matthew Tkachuk. Although his team failed to secure a win over the Boston Bruins, and fell to a 1-3 deficit in the series. Tkachuk was a factor through Game 4 and perhaps none felt the brunt of that more than Bruins forward Garnet Hathaway.

At the end of the first frame on Sunday, Tkachuk delivered a stiff looking cross-check to Hathaway’s lower back. Tkachuk’s stick appeared to strike Hathaway where he has no protection from such a blow, and the Bruins forward would collapse to the ice and remain there for several moments.

Tkachuk though isn’t buying the act from Hathaway and he took the opportunity to say as much when asked about the incident at the end of the first period.

“It’s kinda one of those pretty chippy games.” said Tkachuk. “If you get cross-checked go down, try to draw a penalty. It seems that’s the way this game is kinda going.”

Hathaway would remain in the game but he appeared to be laboring when he came out in the second period, so if he was selling the injury he was pretty committed to his role. That being said these comments from Tkachuk were no doubt designed to get under the skin of his opposition, as is much of what he does, and we’ll have to wait until Game 5 to see what impact, if any, his comments have made.

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NHL Player Safety comes down on Matthew Tkachuk after Game 4.

The National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety(DOPS) has come down on Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk, and I suspect he’s not going to be too happy about it.

On Monday, the DOPS announced that Tkachuk would be fined $5,0000, the maximum allowable amount under the terms of the collective bargaining agreement, for a cross-check he delivered to Boston Bruins forward Garnet Hathaway.

The cross-check was fairly egregious with Tkachuk striking Hathaway from behind, striking him in an unprotected area of his lower back, and doing so after the final horn had sounded for the end of the first period. I suspect that a combination of all of these factors are why the league felt additional discipline was warranted in this instance.

Tkachuk was awarded a 2 minute minor penalty at the time of the incident and he wasn’t happy about that to begin with, indicating during an interview that he felt Hathaway had taken a dive on the play.

“It’s kinda one of those pretty chippy games.” said Tkachuk. “If you get cross-checked go down, try to draw a penalty. It seems that’s the way this game is kinda going.”

He likely will be even less happy now that he has been fined for the same incident.

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Key updates on Bergeron, Ullmark, and Krejci ahead of Game 4.

The Boston Bruins have taken a 2-1 series lead over the Florida Panthers in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, and it sounds like that lead may have granted Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery some luxuries when it comes to his lineup.

On Saturday, Montgomery hinted at 2 possible changes to the Bruins lineup ahead of Game 4 when he provided updates on both goaltender Linus Ullmark and veteran forward David Krejci.

In the case of Ullmark, Montgomery admitted that he had given some thought to the idea of swapping in goaltender Jeremy Swayman for Game 4 in order to give Ullmark, who is dealing with a minor injury, some additional time to rest in the middle of the series.

“Yeah there is thoughts of going with Jeremy,” admitted Montgomery on Saturday. “Just because, one, Jeremy’s excellent, and two after tomorrow’s game there’s three days between the next one… game’s 4 and 5.”

Montgomery also indicated that David Krejci, who missed Game 3 of the series, could possibly return for Game 4 but he did not have any more to say regarding the status of the veteran Bruins forward.

“Krejci no,” responded Montgomery when asked if Krejci would skate on Saturday. “There’s no real update, I would just say he’s questionable for tomorrow.”

Montgomery was also able to confirm that Bergeron remained on track to return, not for Sunday’s Game 4, but for Game 5 this coming Wednesday.

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Jim Montgomery names his goalie for Game 4

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The Boston Bruins are set to face off against the Florida Panthers on Sunday afternoon and based on the decision made by Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery it seems safe to suggest that he is hoping to see his team take a stranglehold on this series.

On Saturday, Montgomery hinted at the possibility that we could see backup goaltender Jeremy Swayman make an appearance in Game 4 but that will not be the case after all. Montgomery confirmed on Sunday that it will be Linus Ullmark who once again gets the start for the Bruins.

Here is the rest of your Boston Bruins lineup for Game 4:

Forwards:

Brad Marchand-Charlie Coyle-Jake DeBrusk
Tyler Bertuzzi-Pavel Zacha-David Pastrnak
Nick Foligno-Trent Frederic-Taylor Hall
Jakub Lauko–Tomas Nosek–Garnet Hathaway
Defensemen:

Matt Grzelcyk-Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm-Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort-Dmitry Orlov