Heat Getting Playoff Production From Unlikely Sources

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Precisely twelve days ago – or 288 hours to be exact – the Miami Heat were fighting for their season. Squaring off against the Chicago Bulls in a play-in game, the winner would be awarded the eighth and final playoff spot in the East. But a win was no gift. It meant having to face the 58-24 Milwaukee Bucks in the first round, a team predicated on size, talent, and shooting. Lots of shooting. In every way, the Bucks are the antithesis of Miami. A win against the Bulls and an invitation to the playoff ultimately wouldn’t mean much. Or at least we thought.

 

Fast forward to the present, and the Heat finds themselves up 3-1 against the top-seeded “juggernaut”, with an opportunity to send them packing on Wednesday.

 

But how?

 

How can a team so inconsistent and beset by problems find themselves in this position?

 

Two words: Playoff Jimmy.

 

Jimmy Butler’s performance in Game 4 on Monday night was otherworldly. It was the greatest individual performance in Heat playoff history. And that’s saying something when you consider which players have dawned a Heat jersey over the years.

 

His final tally was video-game-like: 56 points and nine rebounds on 78% true shooting. In doing so, he became just the 3rd player in NBA playoff history to score at least 55 points on 75% true shooting or better. Elite stuff.

 

While Butler has single-handedly carried Miami through four games, it would be remiss to recognize a few players who have stepped up in this series. And odds are if not for their level of play, it’s likely Miami isn’t in a position to close this out on Wednesday. Here are a few noteworthy performances that have helped the Heat take command of this series.

 

Kyle Lowry Is Taking And Making Shots

 

Lowry has been the proverbial punching bag among Heat fans for much of this season, and rightfully so. The man is earning $28 million this season and has essentially been unplayable for much of the season. While his production still doesn’t quite match his expensive price tag, he’s making shots and doing all of the little stuff that annoys opposing teams.

 

Through 6 playoff games (two play-in games included), Lowry is hitting nearly 64% of his two’s while shooting 45% from three. More importantly, he’s playing aggressively on offense.

 

Per Cleaning The Glass, he’s taken 43% of his field goal attempts from the mid-range. This was a spot Lowry took advantage of earlier in his career. He was an assassin pulling up around a screen, killing defenses playing drop. This was a big frustration during the regular season, as he only took 21% of his shots from the mid-range.

Now utilizing the mid-range more aggressively, his 43% frequency across six games is a career-high by more than 3%.

 

Lowry’s aggressiveness is uber important to Miami’s offensive flow as Milwaukee is among one of the most drop-heavy teams in the league. And with Bam Adebayo still earning his wings as a shooting threat, Lowry’s willingness to take and make the mid-range pull-up has put Milwaukee’s defense on their heels at times.

 

On top of his offensive aggression, Lowry has continued to do all of the little things that make him annoying to play against. His six deflections rank eighth among players with less than 100 minutes this postseason.

 

He still may not be performing as advertised when Miami inked him to a large deal last offseason, but his play has impacted winning this postseason.

 

Caleb Martin Isn’t Afraid Of The Big Stage

 

If not for Martin, Miami is likely going back to Milwaukee with the series tied. The story of Monday’s fourth quarter was obviously Butler, but Martin gave Miami huge minutes. There was a two-minute span with under five minutes left where Martin had a stretch of the following:

 

Rebound – Drawn Foul – Two Free Throws – Offensive Rebound – Two-Point Jumper (with a DeShawn Stevenson palm-in-face celebration directed at Giannis Antetokounmpo) – Three-Point Jumper

 

All of this occurred from the 4:18 mark down to 2:43 left.

 

Simply put, Miami doesn’t close this game out if it weren’t for Martin. The man literally looked at Giannis in the witching hour of a playoff game and hit him with the DeShawn Stevenson celebration. Do you know how much confidence you have to have to pull that off?

 

This stretch summed up who Martin is as a player. We’re talking about a guy who was on a two-way contract last season contributing to winning basketball in the playoffs. If that’s not the quintessential Miami Heat player, then I don’t know what is.

 

Through six postseason games, he has an eFG of 72% and is hitting 47% of his attempts from three (8-17). Much to the tune of Butler, he is elevating his game when it matters most. All in all, he is outplaying the 3-year, $20 million contract he signed this offseason.

 

Miami Runs On Duncan

 

Arguably the biggest story through the first four games of this series has been the play of Duncan Robinson. Labeled as one of the league’s worst contracts, Robinson has been unplayable for most of the season, with memories of his blazing-hot 2020 breakout season seeming far away.

 

When Tyler Herro broke his hand in the first half of Game 1, Erik Spoelstra was left with no choice. Robinson had to play.

 

Since the moment he checked into Game 1, he’s shot 76% from three. Seventy-six percent. 13-17 from downtown.

 

Not only has this given Miami a jolt in the points department, but the Bucks now need to fear him when he’s on the court. His presence on the floor is a weapon again, just as it was in 2020.

 

Robinson didn’t attempt a single shot in the second half of Game 4. Why? Because a Bucks defender was glued to his hip. As a result, Miami had more driving lanes and opportunities to attack the basket.

 

This is the Robinson that Miami signed to a $90M contract a couple of seasons ago. If he can continue to shoot with this much confidence, Miami’s lackluster offense could quickly turn into a daunting task for teams to slow down.

 

Honorable Mention: Haywood Highsmith Gaining Confidence

 

With injuries to Victor Oladipo and the aforementioned Tyler Herro, Spoelstra has had no choice but to dig deep into his bag of rotations. This included giving Highsmith meaningful minutes in Game 4, along with a big-time task: Slow down Giannis.

 

I mean, the guy was literally playing basketball at a Division II school two years ago and is now guarding a former MVP in the playoffs.

 

So, how did he do?

 

According to NBA.com’s matchup tracker, Highsmith defended Giannis for 13 possessions, held him to 2-6 shooting (33%), and forced one turnover.

 

While it is a small sample size, Highsmith’s length allows him to bother opposing players. That, along with his high motor, should give Spoelstra more trust in deploying him on Giannis for small stretches going forward.

 

You’re never going to shut down a player of Giannis’ caliber, but you can never have enough capable and rested bodies to throw at him. Highsmith is proving to be capable.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Jimmy Butler Carves Name in NBA History

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Monday morning, it was reported that Giannis Antetokounmpo would return to the Bucks’ lineup for Game 4 in Miami. He hurt his back in the first match and was pulled out 11 minutes in, following multiple check-ups in the locker room.

Antetokounmpo picked up where he left off, piercing the lane with zero regard for obstacles. In quarter one, he logged nine points and four assists. During the first timeout, he walked around his team’s space so his back wouldn’t tighten up.

Six minutes into the game, the Heat was down 20-10. Two quick fouls on Bam Adebayo earned him an early spot on the bench. But then Jimmy Butler went nuclear, scoring 22 points in the frame.

Butler was unguardable while defended in single coverage. He entered the paint at will, taking guys off the dribble for a shot past or over them. On his second attempt of the night, JB isolated Khris Middleton for a runway to the cup. Antetokounmpo tracked the drive and met him at the summit, but Butler slammed it with two hands over his head. On the next try, he buried a 25-foot jumper while draped by Middleton on the right wing.

Through the first half, Butler recorded 24 of Miami’s 50 points. The Heat was down 50-57, and aside from #22, no one had broken past single digits on their scorecard. The team’s next-best offensive option was prolific benchwarmer Duncan Robinson and his nine points. Miami’s disregarded sniper canned two triples against drop coverage and splacked another 3-pointer in transition on the left wing.

Twenty seconds into the third quarter, Middleton intercepted Max Strus’ pass to Adebayo in the paint and raced down the court for a step-back left-wing triple over Gabe Vincent. Miami was again on its back foot. Butler stayed in every play of the period to stop the bleeding inflicted by Milwaukee’s front court, plus Jrue Holiday.

The Greek Freak hammered a putback dunk, finished a fastbreak layup, and maneuvered around Cody Zeller in the drop for a layup in quarter three. In this stretch, the visitors converted 32 points on 52.2% field goal efficiency.

JB responded with a step-back jumper over Grayson Allen in the mid-post, a pivot past Holiday and Brook Lopez at the cup, and a pull-up in front of Antetokounmpo in drop coverage for scores in the third. His evening output reached 35 points, and then Coach Erik Spoelstra gave him a breather for nearly four minutes of the fourth quarter.

Milwaukee started the last period ahead by 11 points. The Bucks converted four out of 11 attempts before Butler checked back in for the last time. He finished the game scoring an additional 21 points in the last frame, the most by any Heat player ever in the fourth quarter or overtime in the Playoffs, per Stathead, ending the night with 56.

The Heat was down 12 points in crunch time. Inspired by Butler, Miami went on a 13-0 run to reclaim the lead. Milwaukee took the advantage back twice as the time ticked away, but Butler logged 12 points in the last two minutes, seven of which were free throws. Miami won the game 119-114.

At his post-game sideline interview with TNT, Butler shot down the inquiry of what it felt like to hear MVP chants. He said that honor should go to Joel Embiid. Before stepping away, he answered on going back to Milwaukee for Game 5. “To play basketball in Milwaukee, in front of their crowd, and to be together on the road, that’s where championships are won, and we got a shot.”

JB’s 56 points tied Wilt Chamberlain, Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan for the fourth-highest individual scoring output by a player in the postseason. MJ, Elgin Baylor and Donovan Mitchell have the highest playoff game point totals in league history at 63, 61 and 57. Their marks were safe because of Spo’s habitual habit of resting Butler between four and six minutes in closing intervals.

Butler’s Homeric eruption pushed the Heat to a 3-1 lead over the one-seed in round one. Miami still has to win another, but these types of deficits are almost insurmountable. Only 13 outfits have come out alive.

As Bob Seger sang, “Some men go just where they want… some men never go.”

Butler is the former because fortune favors the bold. I’m lucky enough to have seen some of the best that wore White Hot, and in the Playoffs, there’s no right or wrong answer as to who is best fit to lead a squad.

Like Dwyane Wade at this time of year or Batman when Gotham is in danger, Butler raises his game when it matters most. He’s the beast of the east, and he comes out of hibernation in April.

 

*******

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Five Takeaways from Panthers Game 4 loss to Bruins

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SUNRISE – Playoff hockey came early today in Sunrise, with the Panthers and Bruins facing off in an afternoon Game 4.

 

The Bruins had their way for a second straight game at FLA Live Arena in a 6-2 win, taking both of their road games.

 

Boston now leads the series 3-1, with a chance to close it out Wednesday night at home.

 

Takeaways:

Bruins Power Play was dangerous

Boston’s power play this series has been more than a step ahead of the Panthers. 

 

The opening minutes of the game was flat out dominated by Florida – with the shots at one point being 10-0 in favor of the home team. 

 

At 9:11 into the first, Colin White called for interference, putting the Bruins on the man-advantage. 

 

Boston got some juice being a man up and eventually opened the scoring. 

 

After two huge saves by Sergei Bobrovsky, Brad Marchand poked in a loose puck, putting the Bruins up 1-0.

 

The Bruins started the second period on the power play after Matthew Tkachuk got called for cross-checking Garnet Hathaway behind the net following the conclusion of the period.

 

With just eight seconds remaining on the Tkachuk penalty, a great zone entry by the Bruins led to Jake DeBrusk’s second goal of the series. 

 

Paul Maurice made multiple lineup changes in Game 4

Panthers head coach Paul Mauric kept everyone out of the loop pre-game when he had his media availability. 

 

We didn’t know who would be the starting goalie, who would be in the lineup and who would be out. 

The most we got was that either Bobrovsky or Alex Lyon would be in net… obviously.

 

When the teams came out for warmups, Aaron Ekblad was not on the ice. The Panthers’ defenseman was injured in Game 3. Despite skating yesterday in Florida’s optional practice, the former first-overall pick was absent for tonight’s game.

 

Casey Fitzgerald filled in for Ekblad tonight on the blueline. 

 

The bigger surprise omission from the Cats lineup tonight was Anthony Duclair. Duclair took warmups tonight and was part of the normal line rushes – so it seemed like he would definitely be in the lineup… that wasn’t the case.

 

Duclair, who is pointless in the series, was scratched tonight. He was replaced by Zac Dalpe, who spent the majority of the season in AHL Charlotte. Dalpe has been with the team all postseason, but he didn’t play in a game before tonight. 

 

And finally, Sergei Bobrovsky made his first start of the playoffs tonight. Alex Lyon got the nod in games 1-3. After a short relief appearance in game 3, Bobrovsky got his first full game of the series tonight. 

 

Taylor Hall with a big four-point game

The Bruins forward may not be the same player he was when he won the Hart Trophy a few years back with New Jersey, but he definitely played close to that level tonight. 

 

Hall finished the game with two goals and four points, while icing the game with Boston’s fifth goal off a nice move in front of Sergei Bobrovsky.

 

Hall has seven points through four games in this series, which is the most on the team this postseason.

 

Florida drops both at home 

Coming into the arena on Friday night, the Panthers were in pretty good shape. 

 

Riding off a dominating win in Boston, Florida had the chance to shift the series in their favor at home. They didn’t.

 

Now onto Sunday, Florida once again could have made this series interesting by tying it up ahead of Game 5. They didn’t.

 

The Panthers dropped both of their home games and now have to play with their season on the line in Boston against a team that only lost seven times in their building throughout the regular season. 

 

Bennett, Tkachuk, Montour and that’s about it

The three best skaters in this series, offensively at least – have been Sam Bennett, Brandon Montour and Matthew Tkachuk.

 

The offense tonight was almost all on them again. 

 

Bennett had a good showing with his power play goal, which is the first one the Panthers scored all series. 

 

Tkachuk did what he’s done all season – get points in the score sheet. He scored the first Panthers goal of the game off a between-the-legs shot to cut the Bruins lead to 2-1. He picked up a helper on the Bennett goal.

 

Montour grabbed his third point of the series and had six shots on goal, which led the Panthers blue line. 

 

The Panthers captain looked about as aggressive as he has all series, getting seven shots on net, but we are through four games of this series and he has yet to score a goal. 

 

Florida had chances around Linus Ullmark’s net, both too many loose pucks were left unfinished by the Panthers as the Bruins’ goalie turned away 41 of Florida’s 43 shots.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat Lose Victor Oladipo in Game 3 Win over Bucks

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The Heat was up 24 points with fewer than four minutes left when Victor Oladipo’s leg gave out. He drove into the lane from the top of the key, but when he had Bobby Portis on his back hip, he elevated off his left leg, yet he didn’t take off completely, landing on his backside.

Caleb Martin and Duncan Robinson walked over to their hurt teammate first. Before they helped Oladipo stand up, he looked past Martin and shook his head. It confirmed to everyone watching on TV and in attendance that his season was likely over after all his diligent work to recover.

In the blink of an eye, his body betrayed him again, but this setback was the hardest to watch Oladipo face. The past four seasons were littered with injuries that defrauded Vic of his talents, but in some spurts of the Heat’s campaign, he was logging his most productive minutes in a White-Hot jersey.

During Game 3 against the Bucks, Oladipo played 19 minutes, converting four out of six field goals. In the second half, Vic dropped three in a row by dribbling past Portis in the paint for a fadeaway jumper, and he zipped down the court for a pair of fastbreak layups.

Oladipo limped to the locker room with the help of the trainers. The Heat finished garbage time and took a 2-1 lead in the series, but the atmosphere in the Kaseya Center was thick with anxiety and sorrow.

At the postgame presser, the win seemed meaningless to coach Erik Spoelstra. He said an evaluation of Oladipo’s injury would happen Sunday and that it was difficult to watch.

“It’s a great win, but when you see a player go down like that, and particularly a player like Vic who’s gone through so much in the last three years…It’s not a good feeling to see Vic on the floor like that.”

Spo also added that when Oladipo saw a stretcher come out for him, he refused it.

The Heat can worry about how losing Oladipo affects the group in the series. What concerns me is the frustration likely clouding his mind. By all accounts, Vic worked tirelessly after each mishap since Jan. 23, 2019, to get back on the floor and contribute.

He was never going to get back into All-Star form, but like a good soldier, he performed well in his role as a reserve. He was still capable of putting pressure on the rim and defending quick perimeter players. But after his knee buckled in Game 3, I’m not sure if Oladipo wants to keep this going after his contract is up. He has a player option for 2023/2024 that I expect he’ll opt in to, but following that, who knows?

If the end of his pro career is near, the version of Oladipo in White Hot won’t be what I remember him for. I’ll reminisce about the Black Panther in Indiana.

In 118 combined games between 2018 and 2019, regular season and Playoffs included, Vic was one of the league’s ascending two-way stars. He had an explosive burst off the dribble and was unafraid to catch a body in the paint. On defense, he had excellent timing when invading the passing lanes for a steal and was effective in stopping the ball outside.

During seven games of round 1 in the 2018 Playoffs, Oladipo went toe-to-toe with LeBron James, then a Cavalier. In Game 6, to hold off elimination, Oladipo snapped and logged a 28-point triple-double to send the series back to Cleveland. He got in the paint whenever he wanted and could detonate for a two-handed jam standing under the rim.

In Game 7 in Cleveland, Oladipo went out, dropping 30 points with 12 rebounds in a four-point loss.

Before the injuries mounted on, Oladipo spent every minute as a Pacer validating his status as the second pick of the 2013 Draft. He was honored with two All-Star selections, an All-NBA + All-Defensive Team spot and the league’s Most Improved Player award in 2018.

What I admired most about his game was the rage that he attacked the basket with. Like Brandon Roy, Derrick Rose and Yao Ming, when I think about Oladipo, I’ll wonder what he was really capable of.

 

Five Takeaways from Panthers’ Game 3 loss to Bruins

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SUNRISE – The Panthers-Bruins series shifted to South Florida for Game 3 on Friday night. 

 

After a 6-3 loss at home on Wednesday, Boston returned the favor tonight at FLA Live Arena, taking down Florida in a 4-2 win.

 

Here’s the takeaways.

Florida fell asleep in the second period

After a fairly even opening frame, The Panthers trailed by a goal entering the second period thanks to a Taylor Hall shot that cleanly beat Alex Lyon.

 

It was a one shot game going into the second frame – however the Panthers only got four.

 

Florida’s best scoring period of the regular season was the second. They found the back of the net 101 times in the middle frame.

 

The Panthers came out of the break flat. They couldn’t generate any momentum going forward while the Bruins controlled the tempo.

 

Boston doubled their lead in the period off of Charlie Coyle’s first goal of the playoffs.

 

Florida was lucky to only be down by two entering the third.

 

Alex Lyon’s night ends early – Sergei Bobrovsky makes 2023 playoff debut

Florida’s goaltender Alex Lyon didn’t have the best of starts to his night. Just 2:26 into the first, a quick shot by Taylor Hall beat Lyon up high, giving Boston an early lead on the road.

 

Lyon was able to shake off the early goal against and get back into a rhythm with multiple cross crease stops on the Bruins. 

 

Florida’s offense was non-existent until the last five minutes of the game, while Boston kept piling on the chances. Lyon kept the came close for as long as he could, but after David Pastrnak beat him cleanly 8:32 into the third, Lyon’s night would come to an end.

 

“He’s played heavy pressure games and a lot of them,” Maurice said. “It was not a critique of Alex’s game (pulling him), it was if we are going to come back in this game it’s not because our goalie’s going to bail us out, it’s going to be because we are going to get a lot more action then we had, so what the hell.”

 

Paul Maurice switched to Sergei Bobrovsky, who started the majority of Florida’s games this season, but has not seen the ice this postseason. 

 

Bobrovsky finished the game with a goal against and eight saves. 

 

Florida still can’t score on the power play

In what is becoming a repeat of last season’s first round, Florida is three games into the playoffs without a power play goal.

 

Dating back to last season, Florida has scored just one power play goal in the playoffs, and have not scored a first round power play goal since 2021.

 

Florida went 0/2 tonight on the power play – pushing them to 0/7 in the series.

 

Sasha Barkov quiet offensively 

The Panthers captain has been quiet this series, too quiet for the skill he has.

 

Entering Game 3 he had just one assist and one shot on goal. 

 

Tonight it was much of the same story for him in the first 50 minutes of the game.

 

All of the Panthers lacked the drive that they showed Wednesday night in Boston for the majority of the game.

 

But it was clear that Barkov wasn’t making the impact you’d expect him to make.

 

Barkov didn’t get his shots towards the net until late in the game and he didn’t get on the score sheet until Florida’s last goal of the game with the goalie pulled. 

 

“It’ll be a five man game always, find the right combinations,” Maurice said about getting Barkov going. “I’m not worried about how many shots he gets there. When you’re not generating offense you’re looking for those kinds of players. Coach has to find the right combination.”

 

Through the first three games, Barkov has two assists, four shots and is a -1.

 

Boston came out hard

It was no surprise to see the Bruins come out of the gates strong after their performance in Game 2. 

 

After getting completely dominated by Florida in the third the previous game, the Bruins looked like the Presidents’ Trophy winners. 

 

They scored all of their four goals tonight even strength while outshooting the Panthers 35-31.

 

Until the last five minutes of the third, which had Florida throw everything towards Linus Ullmark in a last ditch effort to get back in the game, Boston didn’t look phased all night.

 

The Bruins played well defensively in front of their goalie, had another outstanding night on the penalty kill and followed their defensive efforts with offensive results.

 

Boston was clearly the better team tonight. Florida needs to respond on Sunday — otherwise they will be facing a 3-1 series deficit at the TD Garden.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat’s Poor Defense Leads to Blowout in Game 2 in Milwaukee

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Without the Greek Freak after 11 minutes in Game 1, Miami’s offense was as potent as a medical-grade tranquilizer. In Wednesday’s match without Antetokounmpo, the attack held up, but production on the other side crashed like the Hindenburg.

The Heat is a mess. Losing on the road to a team without the best player in the world can be forgiven. But what can’t be is how hard it was thumped. The visitors hung around for a quarter before the herd of stags trampled them and ripped away at the paint.

Brook Lopez exploited Miami’s guards for six close-range finishes to start when Bam Adebayo matched up with Bobby Portis. Jimmy Butler responded on the other side with 13 points. He attacked the drop coverage when zipping past a screen and took Lopez off the dribble from the top to the cup for a layup.

In the opening period, the Heatles, aside from Butler, converted five of 16 attempts. The Bucks contested well on pick-and-pop plays and when snipers curled around screens. On top of that, Miami was down on the glass again, giving up seven additional boards that turned into eight shots for Milwaukee.

In quarter one of Game 1, the Heat uncommonly operated at 15.24 pace-points higher than its season average (112) and generated four more shots on goal. The start of Game 2 was the opposite. Miami was slow getting down the court and didn’t get many opportunities to score without the defense set.

At the end of the second quarter, the host’s lead swelled to 31 points, but the Heat cut it to 26 at intermission. There wasn’t much hope for a comeback. By this point, Milwaukee doubled Miami’s inside action (40-20) and held its rivals to 29.4% shooting behind the arc.

Butler and Co. opened the third frame on an 11-5 run, but it wasn’t enough to sustain the eight straight buckets the Bucks logged or its nine of 14 trifectas.

This play can sum up what kind of night it was for the Heat: Khris Middleton recovered a defensive rebound and his mouthpiece off the floor. Next, he dribbled up court to blow by Vincent for an 11-foot jumper.

Duncan Robinson started the match out of necessity, with Tyler Herro absent with two broken fingers. He was the lone player from the initial five-man unit to record a minute of the fourth quarter. Coach Erik Spoelstra waved his white flag before the last period started.

At the postgame presser, Spo referred to Milwaukee’s showing as an avalanche.

“They had some good, clean, easy looks in the beginning,” Spo said. “Once they got on a roll, they were hitting some tough step-backs… Anytime there was a momentum shift, they seemed to knock down a big one. You have to credit them with that. We had an idea that they were going to shoot 50 plus and they answered the bell on that and then some.”

When it was Butler’s turn in front of reporters, he cited Milwaukee’s inside finishes and 3-point shots as the reason for the blowout.

“I feel like we were not protecting the paint,” Butler said. “Whoever was getting in there and getting layups…It’s all about putting body on body, not slipping in space, being more physical, and whenever they kick it out to the three, close out, run them off the line and do it all over again.”

The Heat will not practice on Thursday.

 

 

Five Takeaways from Panthers’ Game 2 win over Bruins

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Trailing 1-0 in the series, the Florida Panthers returned to the TD Garden in an attempt to even things up before they make their return to Sunrise. 

 

The return of Sam Bennett was instrumental for the Panthers tonight as they were able to bolster the forward depth and comfortably take down the Bruins tonight in a 6-3 win, evening up the series at 1-1.

 

Here’s tonight’s takeaways.

Playoff Sam Bennett is back

Sam Bennett last played March 20 in Detroit – almost a month to the day. 

 

The Panthers received great news today when it was announced that Bennett would be in the lineup.

 

The 26-year-old forward has had quite the success in his playoff career, putting up 27 points in 45 career playoff games ahead of this one. 

 

Bennett’s game is made for the playoffs and it was on full display tonight.

He was one of, if not the most noticeable Panther on the forecheck. He didn’t miss the opportunity to land a hit or put pressure on the Bruins defenders.

Bennett’s tenacity eventually led to the first goal of the game, where he slipped the puck, and himself, past Linus Ullmark to give Florida a 1-0 lead.

 

He once again fit perfectly alongside Matthew Tkachuk on line 2, and the old Calgary pals made sure to fill in the stat sheet tonight. 

 

Brandon Montour scores… twice

Enough can’t be said about Brandon Montour’s record-breaking offensive season.

 

Florida’s top point-producing defenseman showed NHL fans tonight why he had 73 points this season.

 

Montour broke the 2-2 tie early into the third period, rifling a shot past Ullmark to give Florida the lead.

 

12 minutes later, Montour put a stamp on the game with his second goal, putting Florida up 5-2 with under 10 minutes to play in regulation.

 

Montour finished the night with two goals in 22 minutes of ice time.

 

Still no power play luck

Florida got out of this game with another empty night on the power play. The team went 0/3 tonight on the PP, making that 0/5 on the series.

 

To make matters worse they gave up a shorthanded goal while leading 1-0 in the first period.

 

The Panthers have scored just one goal on the power play dating back to last year’s playoffs – that goal came in the second round against Tampa. 

 

The goose egg on the power play didn’t end up hurting them tonight,  but they’ll need to find the back of the net during this series on the man-advantage.

 

Florida was able to play their game

Playoffs are a different animal from that of the regular season.

 

When you see team’s get into a dominant groove during the 82 game year, it doesn’t necessarily translate to the postseason.

 

Tonight the game was an entertaining back and forth battle for the first 40 minutes of play. Both teams played each other pretty tight and didn’t give each other much breathing room to breakaway.

 

That all changed when the final period began. 

 

Florida was able to jump out to the early lead because of Brandon Montour’s first goal. Boston was still keeping it pretty close up until Carter Verhaeghe gave Florida a two goal cushion. 

 

After Florida got the breathing room, they began to control the game. 

 

The team was locked into their brand of hockey; controlling the puck and activating the blueline in the offensive zone. 

 

For the first time really all series, Florida looked to be the clearly dominant team in the late stages of the game.

 

Not having to play catch up calmed the Panthers down tonight. It opened up their game and possibly their confidence against the Bruins.

 

Alex Lyon’s tale continues

Another game, another win for the Lyon King.

 

Alex Lyon was locked in from the jump – as seen on NHL network’s pregame show where he was staring down the camera. 

 

The Panthers’ goalie got the nod again tonight from Paul Maurice after he lost Game 1.

 

Lyon took the crease again for the tenth straight game and second of the playoffs. 

 

He was able to stop 34 of the 37 shots he faced, giving up a short handed goal, a power play goal and a late five-hole squeaker as the game was 6-2. 

 

It’s safe to say that Lyon’s job as the starter will live to see another day after two impressive starts in Boston. 

 

Games 3 & 4 will be at FLA Live Arena in Sunrise.

2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs preview: Boston Bruins vs Florida Panthers

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The first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs is set to begin Monday, April 17. Today we preview the Boston Bruins vs Florida Panthers series.

 

(1A) Boston Bruins vs (WC2) Florida Panthers 

Boston: 65-12-5, 135 points (Presidents’ Trophy)

Florida: 42-32-8, 92 points (WC 2)

Head-to-Head: BOS 2-1-1; FLA 2-2-0

 

The battle of the last two Presidents’ Trophy winners will begin Monday night at the TD Garden in Boston, with the Florida Panthers taking on the best regular season team in NHL history, the Boston Bruins.

 

Florida’s last minute 6-1-1 regular season run was just enough to get them into the playoffs as the final wild card team in the East. Last season’s top-seed struggled to find their game as they finished the 2022-2023 campaign with 30 points less than they did the previous season. 

 

The Bruins on the other hand breezed through the league this year, winning 65 games in the season, which is the most in NHL history. They also set the league record for points with 135. 

 

Despite the 43 point difference between the teams, history has shown us that the Stanley Cup Playoffs is a 16 team race – with every series up for grabs. 

Goaltending

A hot goalie can steal you a series in the same way a bad goalie can lose you one. 

 

BOSTON: Going into the series, it is clear that Boston has the advantage over Florida. Linus Ullmark made a strong case this season as one of the Vezina favorites. The Bruins starting goalie led the league in multiple categories including save percentage with .938, goals-against average  with a 1.89 and tied for wins with 40 in his 49 games (48 starts). 

 

His backup Jeremy Swayman also had a nice season, finishing with a 24-6-4 record,  a .920 save percentage and a 2.27 GAA. 

 

The duo combined to win the William M. Jennings Trophy, which is awarded to the goaltending duo who conceded the least amount of goals against in the season. The one area this duo lacks in his playoff experience, with the two only having a total of seven postseason starts under their belt. Other than that, Boston really shouldn’t have any issue in net going into this series.

 

FLORIDA: The Panthers have a much more interesting goaltending situation compared to their opponent, which has been the story of Florida’s playoffs for the last three seasons. 

 

For the majority of the season, two-time Vezina winner Sergei Bobrovsky has held the Panthers’ net to himself. Bobrovksy had a record of 24-20-3 with a 3.07 GAA and .901 save percentage in 50 games (49 starts) in 2022-2023. 


Bobrovsky has a plethora of playoff experience with his 51 games played (46 starts). The 34-year-old started all 10 playoff games last season for the Panthers. 

 

However, the man who Florida may turn to, at least at the start of the playoffs, could very well be the wild card backup, Alex Lyon.

 

Just a few weeks before the postseason, Florida was on the outside looking in for a playoff spot and Bobrovsky was sidelined with an illness. Alex Lyon had to step in and he clawed Florida into the playoffs with a 6-1-1 record in their last eight games, while putting together a six-game win streak. Lyon,30, has no NHL playoff experience, however he did win a Calder Cup last year with the Chicago Wolves in the AHL.

 

Bobrovsky hasn’t played in a game since March 27 in Ottawa, while Lyon has played in the last eight games. It should be Lyon to start the series, but don’t be surprised if head coach Paul Maurice turns back to his $10M goalie. 

Scoring

This area of the game is a lot more even than it is in the crease. Both teams were top 10 offenses this season, with the two sides scoring at over a 3.5 goals per-game rate.

 

BOSTON: Boston’s offense is carried by superstar David Pastrnak, who finished second in the league in goals with 61. The Bruins winger had the third most points this season with 113. He will be the most dangerous player on the ice for Boston.

 

After Pastrnak’s astounding numbers, the Bruins don’t have another “stand out”, what they have is a balanced team offense. Eight of their players scored 50 or more points this season, five of whom had 20+ goals (including Pastrnak). 

 

FLORIDA: Florida’s offense is a little more top heavy compared to the Bruins. The Panthers offense is spearheaded by two 40 goal scorers in Matthew Tkachuk and Carter Verhaeghe. Before this year, Florida only had one player ever hit 40 goals in a season. That was Pavel Bure who got 50+ twice in South Florida. Tkachuk finished sixth in the NHL in points with 109, while Verhaeghe’s 42 goals was top 10 in the league. 

 

A large portion of Florida’s offense this season came from the blueline, with Panthers defensemen scoring 53 times – second most in the league.

 

Both teams relied on offensive contribution from their back end this season. Boston’s d-men had 205 points, while Florida’s had 204 — this was the second and third most points by defensemen in the NHL.

Two-way game

BERGERON: This series will be an entertaining one on the other side of the puck because of the two teams’ captains. Boston’s Patrice Bergeron will go down as one of the best two-way players of all-time. Bergeron has won the Selke Trophy five times, most recently last year and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he takes home his sixth trophy as the league’s best defensive forward. 

 

BARKOV: Florida’s Aleksander Barkov is the perfect counterpart for Bergeron in this series. The 27-year-old Panther captain is a one-time Selke winner himself and just finished another impressive campaign with 78 points in 68 games. Barkov will log a lot of minutes for the Panthers as they try to shut down the explosive Bruins offense. 

 

The blueline for these teams both boast entertaining players. Charlie McAvoy continues to be a top defenseman in the league on both sides of the puck for Boston while Florida’s Brandon Montour had a Panthers record setting season with 73 points.

 

With these two juggernaut offenses getting contributions from everywhere on the ice – yes even Linus Ullmark scored a goalie goal this season, it should be a fun back and forth series. 

 

Boston was the best team in the NHL this season and you can see why. They had spectacular goaltending, offensive help up and down the lineup, and they were led by a well-established veteran presence. Florida struggled to find their way to the playoffs, but now that they are at the dance, they have some top players who can steal them a series.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Jimmy Butler, The Deer Hunter

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The Heat’s first wrinkle for the Bucks was to get down the court faster than usual. Miami ended the regular season as the second-slowest team in the NBA, but in Game 1 of the quarterfinal at Milwaukee, the visitors were operating six percentage points higher than their normal pace.

The hit-ahead pass plus instant takeoffs after defensive rebounds generated the Heat eight fastbreak points in the first quarter. Bam Adebayo hurled a full-court pass to Jimmy Butler that was laid in softly a foot away from the rim. Kyle Lowry found the first man on the break twice, outrunning the deer. And Gabe Vincent stumbled to the nail and pulled up for two in transition.

To start, Butler dropped 14 points on six of eight shots to power Miami to a 33-24 lead. He was guarded by Jrue Holiday and Wesley Matthews in single coverage, but it wasn’t enough as JB got into the paint whenever he pleased.

Defensively, Miami was on time contesting 3-point shots, allowing just 2 out of nine makes for Milwaukee through quarter one.

Eight minutes in, Giannis Antetokounmpo hurt his lower back on an unsuccessful drive to the rim. He collided with Kevin Love, picking up the charge foul, but tumbled on his posterior. Toward the end of the period, he plunged into Love again and went to the locker room after getting subbed out for Jae Crowder.

The Freak came back but had to return a second time to Milwaukee’s private chambers, and here, he was ruled out for the rest of the game. In total, he contributed six points and three rebounds.

Antentokounmpo’s absence eliminated the presence of a weak side shot blocker. Brook Lopez didn’t have backup getting attacked in drop coverage, plus Miami’s executed off-ball cuts trailing the handler without the Bucks’ security blanket to disrupt.

In the second frame, Miami mixed man protection with the 2-3 zone. To close off the paint, the Heatles sagged away from the corners and recovered on kick outs to force the Bucks into misfiring on 83.3% of deep tries.

With a minute left in the first half, Tyler Herro poked the ball free from Grayson Allen, but he hurt himself as he missed reaching for it on a dive to the hardwood. He broke his middle and ring fingers on his shooting hand, likely keeping him out between four-to-six weeks per TNT’s Chris Haynes.

When Miami got the ball back, Herro retreated to the corner and crouched, holding his hand in pain. The ball swung to him anyway, yet he air-balled it and swiftly grabbed at his wound again. On Miami’s next possession, he roamed to the corner and put his hands by his knees, the signal he needed medical attention, but the second quarter ended first.

In the first half, Butler had 20 of Miami’s 32 paint points. Additionally, he seized the passing lanes twice and stripped Khrid Middleton to initiate the break.

At halftime, the visitors were up 68-55 while uncommonly blazing from the field at 59.6% and 57.1% outside the 3-point line.

Duncan Robinson started in Herro’s place in the third quarter. Even with #55 having a down season, the Bucks wouldn’t concede much space off-ball. With Robinson on the floor, Milwaukee couldn’t cheat, flashing a corner defender at Adebayo when he got to work at the nail and in. As a result, Adebayo drained three midrange jumpers.

Coming out of halftime, Butler tallied six dimes. He repaid Adebayo with a full-court hit-ahead pass that turned into a two-handed jam and found open teammates when Milwaukee doubled on rim runs or post-ups.

When Antetokounmpo came out in the second quarter, the Bucks’ primary offensive focus shifted to Middleton. Even in front of solid contests, Middleton’s jump shot was on target from midrange and deep. Through three quarters, he had 20 points and had kept the Bucks within striking distance after falling behind by 14.

In the fourth quarter, Vincent was the Heat’s leading scorer with nine points. He made one jumper curling around Adebayo’s dribble handoff on the left wing, another in the corner when the Bucks failed to closeout, and his last shaking Allen away with #13’s screen. He was also the lone Heatle to play the entire period.

Butler added six points and an assist in the final frame to bring his total to 35 on 55.7% field goal efficiency with 11 dimes.

At the postgame presser, Adebayo and Butler answered questions together. I’m unsure if he was puffing smoke, but Butler said the Heat “can be better in a lot of areas.”

Adebayo said the turbulence the team went through to earn a playoff spot prepared them for the challenge present.

It’s unknown when Antetokounmpo will return, but as long as he is out, this encounter has become an even affair. Milwaukee still has weapons and disruptors to win a pair of matches, but home-court advantage will merge to Miami after Game 2.

******

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Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat Survive Play-In Tournament

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Jimmy Butler said at the postgame presser that Max Strus “made himself a lot of money [Friday].” He wasn’t exaggerating. Mad Max hit Miami’s opening four baskets because the Bulls were quick to overhelp on Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro. #31 would finish the game with 31 on his scorecard to help push Miami to round one of the Playoffs.

Butler beat Chicago on rolls to the basket, transition attacks, and baseline cuts for nine points through the first quarter.

The Heat had an opposite start on Friday to Tuesday’s Play-in loss at home against Atlanta. Versus the Hawks, the hosts allowed its rivals to convert 56% of its tries in the first quarter. Matched up with Chicago, the Heat’s man-to-man coverage was disruptive and held the visitors to 38.9% through 12 minutes.

Herro logged every second of quarter two and contributed six points, three dimes and three rebounds. He got into the lane in front of the drop coverage to hit a pair of floaters.

At intermission, Miami was up 49-45, beating Chicago on the boards by nine and doubling the Bulls’ free throw attempts. Tuesday versus the Hawks, the Heat gave up 26 second-chance points. Through the first half Friday, the hosts had only allowed two of those to Nikola Vucevic.

Defensively, it shut down Zach LaVine by closing out to his jumper on time, switching length on him at the perimeter and clogging the paint. In this period, he was held to three out of 10 makes, and the Heat even forced seven consecutive misses.

In the third quarter, Miami only made six field goals out of 26 and would miss its last seven of the period. Adebayo bricked all four of his attempts here, but three can be excused because they came after Patrick Beverly kicked him in the back of the head.

Adebayo momentarily lost his dribble in the paint, but at this point Beverly was airborne, and his patella came crashing into #13’s snook. It was contact above the shoulders. It should have been called a flagrant-1, at least, because of where the hit occurred and how it knocked Adebayo to the fetal position.

The referees, Josh Tiven, Tony Brothers and Karl Lane, took a moment to check it out, but they were too brainless to crack down on Beverly. Instead, they called a common foul. Next time it might take a player losing consciousness from a blow to the head before these blind mice make the right call.

Adebayo could have been concussed, and TNT’s Brian Anderson rambled on, “That was ruled as a common foul, by the way. Nothing excessive here from Beverly. I think he’s going for a block…”

In quarter four, Miami switched up coverages using the 2-3 zone plus man-to-man. Chicago attacked mainly from the outside, taking six of 20 paint shots in this frame.

In the final period, the Heat’s offense burned the Bulls, making 62.5% of its shots, plus 13 free throws. Strus added eight more points in the fourth. When Butler attacked from the right side, Strus curled into the paint from the left for a lay-in after the catch. Again, when four black jerseys surrounded JB in the mid-post, Strus was hit with the pass and canned a right-wing trifecta.

With under a minute to go, Caruso fouled Strus on a 3-point corner shot while Miami was up five points. Strus buried each freebie to extend the game to at least three possessions. The Heat defeated the Bulls 102-91.

The win over Chicago now puts Miami in eighth place for a rematch of the 2021 quarter-final with the Bucks. The group will not practice Saturday ahead of Game 1 Sunday.