Bruins shake off slow start to tame Panthers 2-1

The Bruins were able to survive a slow start to the game and shake off some early rust to beat the Florida Panthers 2-1 in Sunrise, Florida on Sunday night. The B's got goals from Michael Ryder and Marco Sturm, while Tim Thomas turned aside 25 shots in the 2-1 win.

The Panthers jumped out to an early lead when Dominic Moore's one-timer from a near-impossible angle along the goal line on the right wing side beat Tim Thomas 5-hole for the early 1-0 Florida lead.

The Bruins tied up at 1-1 with 3:58 when Michael Ryder deflected Andrew Ference's blast from the point past Scott Clemmensen for his 10th goal of the season.

Marco Sturm put the Bruins up 2-1 at 4:39 of the third period when he skated into the slot and beat Clemmensen for his team-leading 11th goal of the season.

The Panthers were handed a golden opportunity to tie the game in the closing seconds when Derek Morris turned the puck over in his own zone, forcing Tim Thomas to make to two consecutive saves from point blank range.

Notes:

- Bruins looked very flat in the first period, but came out strong in the second period and were able to hold on for the 2-1 win.

- Former BC goalie Scott Clemmensen got the start for the Panthers and turned aside 26 of 28 shots.

- The Bruins struggled at the face-off dot. The Bruins won 39% of the draws (18-28). The usually dominant centerman Patrice Bergeron went just 4-10 (29%) at the dot.

- Matt Hunwick played in his 100th career NHL game.

- The Bruins rolled all 3 D-Pairs pretty evenly. All 6 defensemen logged between 16:17 and 23:43 of ice time.

- The Bruins are back at it tomorrow night when they take on the Tampa Bay Lightning.

- For more on the game from a Panthers fan perspective, check out Litter Box Cats