Bruins Show Character With ‘No Quit’ Battle Win Over Division Foe

The Boston Bruins have had their season ended by the Florida Panthers for two straight years.

Although it may not have been the postseason, the Bruins certainly showed plenty of character scoring three unanswered goals to defeat the Panthers, 3-2, at TD Garden on Tuesday night.

“We all play for something. That’s just what I see from the guys. All the guys since Friday have been showing up, ready to work, ready to work their balls off and play for the crest,” Bruins defenseman Nikita Zadorov told reporters following Boston’s gritty win. “I mean, there is no quit in this team and we’re going to keep pushing until the end. We’re trying to build a momentum we haven’t had all year. I think you get a couple of wins, you start feeling great, you feel confident inside the group. I think that’s a good thing, something brewing for sure.”

When asked if the pair were starting to blend with the team concept, Zadorov shot down the notion that he and Mason Lohrei play an aggressive style of hockey despite dropping the gloves against Sam Bennett late in the third period.

“I’m aggressive if you’re calling physicality aggressive. I’m still trying to be in the position, I’m still trying to be on the defensive side every time I go for the hit or I go for the defensive play,” Zadorov said. “Mason, obviously, is so much skillier. He’s probably one of the silliest D-men in the league for the puck.

“Our mindset in here is the hard work, go out there and play with the pride for the crest on your chest. I think in front of the Boston fans, that’s our mindset. It’s not aggressiveness, it’s just Boston Bruins hockey.”

Coming away from the NHL trade deadline, the Bruins’ locker room looks a lot different, with key members of their core — Brad Marchand, Charlie Coyle, Trent Frederic and Brandon Carlo — all being shipped to new teams. However, the Black and Gold have secured two straight wins and, more importantly, four points as they continue to battle for a playoff spot with 16 games remaining in the regular season.

“I thought we were a good enough team to win hockey games right before the deadline as well,” Zadorov said. “We had some good games, we were just unlucky in some of them. Some of them, we gave up goals in the last minute of the third period.

“There’s been just been a lot of ups and downs this year, and I think we’re kind of trying to find this consistency, trying to find this momentum. There’s a lot of guys who play with their pride and they play with their heart, and they try to prove something for either themselves or management or fans or their teammates.”

The Bruins look to close the gap in the wild-card standings when they travel north of the border to take on the Ottawa Senators on Thursday night. Puck drop from Canadian Tire Centre is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET, and you can watch the game on NESN after an hour of pregame coverage.