Bruins vow to 'get it done' despite 3-1 playoff hole vs. Panthers

May 13 (UPI) -- Boston Bruins players remain confident and say they can still "get it done" despite facing a 3-1 deficit in their Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Florida Panthers.

The latest meeting, a 3-2 Panthers comeback win in Game 4 on Sunday in Boston, pushed the Bruins to within a loss of elimination in the best-of-seven game series.

"The reality is that we're going to go to Florida, we're going to play the same game, and we're going to get it done," Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman told reporters.

"I have no doubt in this group, and we have a lot of confidence and a lot of motivation to bring it back to Boston because our fans deserve a lot better, and we're excited to do that."

The Panthers trailed 2-0 through through nearly 35 minutes before their rampant comeback, which included three-unanswered scores. Forwards Anton Lundell, Sam Bennett and Aleksander Barkov netted the Panthers goals.

"They had a good start and scored a couple goals," Barkov, who scored the game-winner, told reporters. "This is a tough building to play in, but we just stick with it. ... We just kept going, kept pushing and getting better."

Forward David Pastrnak and defenseman Brandon Carlo started the scoring. Forwards James van Riemsdyk and Jake DeBrusk assisted Pastrnak for first blood off a power play 8:53 into the game. Carlo then beat Panthers net minder Sergei Bobrovsky with an unassisted wrist shot with 4:48 remaining in the period for a 2-0 Bruins lead.

Neither team scored through the majority of the second period. Lundell finally cut into the deficit when he beat Swayman with 5:12 remaining in the frame.

Defenseman Aaron Ekblad set up that sequence by roping a pass behind the net and along the boards, finding Lundell near the left circle. Lundell then fired a quick pass back to fellow forward Evan Rodriguez, who sent the puck right back to him. Lundell finished the play with a rapid snapshot, which squeaked by Swayman's stick side and found the net.

Lundell and Rodrigues then assisted Bennett on a power play just 3:41 into the final period, tying the score. The Bruins denied an initial attempt by forward Vladimir Tarasenko to start that sequence.

Rodriguez collected the rebound and found Lundell near the right post. He swiped the puck toward the goal before Bennett shoved Bruins forward Charlie Coyle into Swayman, collected the puck and finished the play with a quick wrist shot between the pipes.

The Bruins were then unsuccessful in challenging the score, alleging that Bennett committed goaltender interference.

Barkov beat Swayman with an epic go-ahead score less than four minutes later. That play started deep in Panthers territory. Tarasenko bolted up the left flank before just getting off a pass to forward Kyle Okposo, who flicked the puck onto Barkov.

The Panthers star dragged the puck from left to right and weaved between the circles before rifling a wrist shot past Swayman.

"It's hard to score in the playoffs," Lundell said. "But we just stuck with it, got some more chances and it finally went in."

Swayman finished the night with 38 saves, compared to 16 for Bobrovsky. The Panthers edged the Bruins 41-18 in shots on goal.

Bruins coach Jim Montgomery later expanded on his thoughts about the Panthers' controversial game-tying score when he met with reporters.

"Toronto ruled that it was a good goal," Montgomery said of the NHL's replay center ruling. "[They ruled] that the play did not interfere with the goal. That's the explanation I got. We thought Coyle was on top of our goaltender. If Coyle was able to stand his ground, he could have cleared the puck. That inhibited our goaltender from being able to react to playing the puck."

The Panthers will host the Bruins in Game 5 at 7 p.m. EDT Tuesday in Sunrise, Fla. Game 6, if necessary, will be Friday in Boston. If the Bruins win both games, Game 7 would be Sunday in Sunrise.

A total of 28 teams have overcome a 3-1 deficit in the NHL playoffs, including the Panthers, who beat the Bruins in the first round of a seven-game series last postseason.