Hurley: There won't be any way to comprehend this Bruins loss

BOSTON -- Here's the deal: Yes, the Boston Bruins set all-time records for wins and points in the regular season, but they weren't an unbeatable monolith. If they made it to the postseason after winning 65 games and amassing 135 points but lost to another one of the NHL's top-tier teams, then it would have made some sense. Such is the nature of playoff hockey.

But the Bruins didn't lose to a top-tier team. They lost to the Florida Panthers -- a team that barely made the playoffs, winning just two games more than it lost during the regular season, and entered the postseason without a real starting goaltender. They had one very dangerous scoring threat in Matthew Tkachuk, plus an elite offensive defenseman in Brandon Montour, but pound for pound, they didn't match up with the top-seeded Bruins. Not even close.

Yet ... here we are.

The Panthers proved to just have more. More grit, more determination, more jump, and more resilience than the greatest regular-season team of all time. And as a result, they celebrated Sunday night on Boston's ice, ending what was expected by most to be a long and successful playoff run for the Bruins.

It won't make sense any time soon. It might not ever make sense.

After the overtime loss in Game 7, the Bruins tried their best to explain what happened. Florida finished their checks, they capitalized on opportunities, they pre-scouted Boston and carefully planned their attack. That might make some sense on the micro level, but in the bigger picture, it does nothing to explain how this happened.

Especially because ... the Bruins turned back into the Bruins in the third period. They stared this colossal failure right in the eyes and turned a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead. They were a minute away from moving on. It had taken more time and effort than they wanted, but much like the 2011 Cup-winning team, they won in the end. With the Florida net empty, Boston was a few clears or one empty-net goal away from welcoming the Toronto Maple Leafs to the TD Garden on Tuesday night.

But disaster struck. Patrice Bergeron casually blocked a shot from the point, kicking the puck out of danger ... but right to the stick of Montour. He fired a shot toward net, and as often happens when playoff games remain tight in the late stages, the puck bounced off a strict and past Jeremy Swayman. Tie game. Overtime.

In that OT, the Bruins needed Swayman to make two Grade-A saves -- one on a Tkachuk breakaway, another on a point-blank redirection from Carter Verhaeghe -- just to stay alive. 

Shots were technically even in overtime at 5-5, but Florida had the best chances, including the game-winner from Verhaeghe.

It left the building stunned. It left the hockey world stunned. This really shouldn't have happened.

Again, upsets do happen in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. And if the Bruins eventually came up short against the Carolina, New Jersey, or even Toronto in the East, it would have made some sense. If they lost to Vegas or Edmonton or Colorado in the Stanley Cup Final, it would not have been shocking. But this? This wasn't supposed to happen.

Sure, the 2019 Tampa Bay Lightning were also one of the best teams in NHL history, and they failed to win a single playoff game ... against Columbus. And the history of Presidents' Trophy winners is well-known.

But these Bruins had much more working on their side. They had experience and leadership from veterans who have been through countless playoff battles; Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, and David Krejci are nearing a combined 500 playoff games. Charlie McAvoy clearly entered his prime this year, and Hampus Lindholm gave Boston two No. 1 defensemen. David Pastrnak had a season for the ages, scoring 61 goals, second in the league to only the generational talent that is Connor McDavid. Boston also had the clear-cut Vezina winner in Linus Ullmark and a 1A who was just as good in Swayman. The team also got reinforcements at the deadline, with Dmitry Orlov, Garnet Hathaway and Tyler Bertuzzi playing critical roles as soon as they slipped on Boston sweaters.

Perhaps the coach was a bit inexperienced, as were the goaltenders in terms of playoff history. But the Bruins were certainly good enough to get past the Florida Panthers in the first round of the playoffs. Their 3-1 series lead after last weekend was indicative of that.

But they couldn't put Florida away. They couldn't withstand the relentless pressure placed upon them by a team that, quite simply, was not as good as them. And right down to the final minute of regulation of Game 7, they might have assumed to a degree that at some point, the Panthers would relent.

They did not. Now, they're moving on, and the Bruins are left searching for answers. Few, if any, will be materializing in the near future.