Marchand scores 50th career playoff marker as NHL-best Bruins beat Panthers in Game 1

Brad Marchand scored his 50th career playoff goal, David Pastrnak and Jake DeBrusk also scored, and the NHL-best Boston Bruins opened the playoffs by beating the Florida Panthers 3-1 on Monday night.

Linus Ullmark, a Vezina Trophy candidate who led the league in wins (40), goals-against average (1.89) and save percentage (.938), stopped 31 shots and Tyler Bertuzzi added two assists for Boston, which controlled the game even with captain Patrice Bergeron sitting out because of illness.

Matthew Tkachuk scored for the Panthers and Alex Lyon made 26 saves but gave up Marchand's goal on a relatively easy shot.

Game 2 is Wednesday night in Boston.

6️⃣3️⃣ with a sneaky one. <a href="https://t.co/z23Aul0FBL">pic.twitter.com/z23Aul0FBL</a>

The Bruins captured the Presidents' Trophy, setting NHL records in points (135) and wins (65). Florida, last season's No. 1 seed, earned the Eastern Conference's eighth and final playoff spot with a late-season push.

It's the first playoff matchup between a No. 1 seed and the Presidents' winner from the previous season since the award was introduced in 1985-86.

Lyon gave up the soft goal early in the second when Marchand fired a seemingly harmless shot from the top of the left circle. Lyon bent down to catch it and it tipped off his glove, caroming into the net after hitting the inside of the right post.

Soon after, the TD Garden crowd started serenading him with chants of "Lyon! Lyon!"

Florida cut the lead in half when Boston defenceman Dmitry Orlov sent a blind, backhand pass directly out front, where Tkachuk collected it and flipped the puck past Ullmark at 6:34 of the second.

DeBrusk restored the two-goal lead when he dove into a pile and knocked the puck into the net out of a scramble near