Kessel hurt; weary Bruins get drubbed

SUNRISE, Fla. -- In hindsight, a 4-2 trip is just what the desperate Bruins needed.

But last night, the Bruins fizzled in the finale of the road swing, leaving Florida with disappointment as their companion on the charter flight home.

The Panthers put a seven-spot on the shorthanded Bruins, claiming a 7-2 win before 16,816 at the BankAtlantic Center. The Bruins' four-game winning streak was snapped.

To make matters worse, the Bruins lost Phil Kessel in the third period when he appeared to injure his right knee. There was no immediate update on the rookie's condition.

The Bruins looked like a team on the last leg of a six-game trip, getting outshot, 52-27.

The Bruins, who played the night before in Tampa, looked legless against the Panthers, a club that had won all three previous meetings of the season.

The Panthers scored three goals in the first period, chasing a gassed Tim Thomas from the game.

The Panthers added two more strikes in the second period against Hannu Toivonen, playing his first game since Jan. 30. The Bruins scored two power-play goals in the second, making the score 5-2 after 40 minutes.

Patrice Bergeron (lower body injury) played for the first time on the road trip. But the Bruins, already without Glen Murray (groin), Andrew Alberts (hamstring), and Petr Tenkrat (ankle), took another blow, this time during warm-ups.

Shean Donovan (lower body injury) limped off the ice and did not return, leaving the Bruins with 11 forwards. Bergeron anchored the No. 3 line, but returned to his usual spot on the top power-play unit.

The Panthers stormed the Bruins in the first period, claiming a 19-7 shot advantage.

Forward Ville Peltonen opened the scoring at 4:33 of the first period. Forward Juraj Kolnik took the puck off the left-side wall and dished it to Peltonen. The winger put a wrister through a screen that Thomas couldn't handle.

For the third straight game, the Bruins had to kill off a five-on-three power play in the opening minutes. With Mark Stuart (interference) and Andrew Ference (holding the stick) in the box, the Bruins were two men down for 1:19. The Panthers took advantage, with the scoring play starting when captain Olli Jokinen smoked a one-timer from the point.

Thomas kicked out Jokinen's shot, but the rebound went to Martin Gelinas, who gave Stephen Weiss a clever setup at the right post. Weiss had an easy tuck-in for his 13th goal, giving Florida a 2-0 lead at 7:19.

The Bruins then went on three straight power plays, but couldn't do anything. Marc Savard had the best opportunity on the third power play, teeing a one-timer toward a wide-open net, but he missed the net.

On the other end, with 49 seconds remaining in the period, Nathan Horton scored Florida's third goal. Horton and Weiss entered the Boston zone with speed. Weiss, handling the puck, stopped and slid a cross-crease pass to Horton, who flipped a shot past a flopping Thomas. The Boston netminder, making his 12th straight start, fought the puck much of the first period, leading to Toivonen's entrance in the second.

In the second period, Chris Gratton made it 4-0 at 11:28. Then Jokinen scored his 25th of the season, at 12:48, through a screen set by Gary Roberts, extending the lead to 5-0.

The Bruins got a break when Alexei Semenov (holding the stick) and Gregory Campbell (high-sticking) were whistled for penalties within eight seconds of each other, putting the Panthers down two skaters for 1:52.

The Bruins took advantage, getting on the scoreboard when Savard smoked a one-timer past goalie Ed Belfour at 14:09. With Campbell still in the box, Boston netted its second power-play goal when Marco Sturm slid a backhand pass across the crease to Brad Boyes, who slammed it home at 14:57.

Toivonen stopped 11 of 13 shots in the second period. His best save came after Peltonen got loose for a close-range bid. Toivonen flashed his right pad and kicked out Peltonen's bid.