BOSTON (AP) — One game after Sam Bennett punched Brad Marchand out of the playoffs, the Panthers forward sent the rest of the Bruins to the brink of elimination with an equally controversial shove to Charlie Coyle’s back.
Already drawing boos in the Garden because of a hit on Marchand that the Bruins are calling a sucker punch, Bennett scored the game-tying goal in Game 4 on Sunday night after sending Coyle tumbling into Boston goalie Jeremy Swayman.
The goal was upheld by the NHL replay center in Toronto, and Aleksander Barkov scored the game-winner four minutes later to lead Florida to a 3-2 victory and a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series.
“I’m putting that puck in before Swayman’s going to be able to get over there, whether Coyle was on him or not. So, I think that’s the reason why it stood,” Bennett said. “And that’s how I saw it, as well.”
A year after Florida knocked out the record-setting Bruins in the first round on its way to the Stanley Cup Final, the Panthers won their third straight to send Boston one game from elimination. Florida rallied from a two-goal deficit and took the lead with 13 minutes left when Barkov slipped through three Bruins defenders for the tiebreaking goal.
