Special to Sports News Highlights

(SNH) — Standing in the goalie crease before the opening Game 1 faceoff of the NHL Stanley Cup second-round playoff series against the Florida Panthers, Jeremy Swayman felt the reverberations throughout Amerant Bank Arena.

The visiting Boston Bruins goalie looked up and around his raucous environment. The first-round standout was ready to get back to work.

After turning aside 38 shots during the 5-1 victory, Swayman continued to silence any doubters that the game’s first star can handle a full-time role. He appeared to shelve Bruins coach Jim Montgomery's goalie-rotation philosophy.

Until the second period of Game 2, that is.

Swayman yielded three goals during the middle frame, including a deflating marker on a desperate slap shot from one knee by defenseman Gustav Forsling at 19:58.

The curtain fell one minute, 28 seconds into the third period when Eetu Luostarinen scored on a tap-in, benefiting from Aleksander Barkov’s backcheck and turnover by defenseman Brandon Carlo. After surrendering four unanswered goals, Montgomery pulled Swayman in favor of Linus Ullmark, who had not played since April 22.

The Panthers brought their fight.

Will Swayman be able to swing back in tonight’s Game 3?

Panthers fight back vs. Bruins

Most NHL insiders likely gave Swayman a pass on his Game 2 performance. It was the first time he surrendered more than one postseason tally.

Of the four goals Swayman yielded Wednesday, two developed on mistakes by defenseman Charlie McAvoy, once when he lost his stick and failed to check Barkov and the other when he acted as a screen on Forsling’s end-of-period marker.

Poor defensive communication by the Bruins led to an unchecked Steven Lorentz redirecting Brandon Montour’s shot, which tied the score at 1-all at 18:04 of the second period. Swayman’s outing ended after Carlo coughed up the puck along the end boards.

As he exited the ice and started walking down the tunnel to the dressing room, Montgomery made a point to walk over and speak briefly with Swayman. Of the quick chat, Swayman told Boston.com: “I trust that guy with my life.”

Before the start of Game 2, debates on Swayman eventually earning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the NHL’s top playoff performer started echoing in fan conversations and social media posts.

Facing the Stanley Cup-starved Toronto Maple Leafs, Swayman backstopped the Bruins to all four first-round wins, posting a 1.49 goals-against average and a .950 save percentage.

“He’s been our rock all series,” McAvoy said after the 2-1, Game 7 overtime win over the Maple Leafs on April 30.

The 25-year-old netminder exited Wednesday with a league-high 229 saves, spanning eight playoff appearances (seven straight starts).

Montgomery defended Swayman following Game 2, instead directing attention to the skaters’ sloppy attention to detail and execution.

“Swayman was terrific,” Montgomery said.

The Bruins coach did not announce a starter for Friday’s Game 3 at TD Garden, which promises to be another chippy affair after the Matthew Tkachuk-David Pastrnak third-period bout.

Swayman: ‘Can’t wait for Friday’

With 14 minutes remaining in the third period Wednesday, the Panthers established a franchise playoff record with 67 hits. They finished with 76. During the first round of the playoffs, the Panthers ranked first, averaging 53.4 hits per game.

How will the Bruins respond?

Conventional wisdom leads Montgomery to go back to a goalie rotation and start Ullmark, the reigning Vezina Trophy winner. In three regular-season starts against the Panthers, Ullmark posted three wins and a .947 save percentage.

The “one-for-all, all-for-one” relationship between Ullmark and Swayman has been well-publicized, nearly as much as their on-ice, full-armed embraces following wins.

Attempting to distance the Bruins’ locker room from additional Game 3 distractions, Swayman said he was not concerned with Montgomery’s pending decision.

“One game at a time is all I’m worried about,” Swayman said. “Body feels great. I’m very lucky to be in this position. He’s gonna make decisions that are going to help the team.”

Physicality likely will remain a cornerstone of the Panthers’ game plan against the Bruins. Which netminder will Montgomery send out to combat them?

Said Swayman: “All I can say is I can’t wait for Friday.”

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