Vegas Golden Knights win the Stanley Cup, defeat Florida Panthers in five games

/1 Comment/in , /by

On Tuesday night, for the first time in their franchise history, the Vegas Golden Knights took home hockey’s most prized possession –  the Stanley Cup.  

 

Entering tonight’s game, the hometown Golden Knights held a 3-1 series lead in the Stanley Cup Final over the Florida Panthers. 

 

The Knights didn’t let the opportunity to hoist the Cup in front of their home fans slip away. Vegas played their best game of the series tonight against Florida, defeating the Panthers 9-3.

 

Just six years after their inaugural season, the Knights became champions of the hockey world. 

 

The Panthers were officially the last team to be eliminated from the Playoffs tonight. Two months after entering the postseason as the lowest ranked team — their historic run to the Stanley Cup Final came to an end in Vegas. 

 

The improbable task of coming back from a 3-1 series deficit for the Panthers became even more challenging after they took the ice tonight without their best player, Matthew Tkachuk. 

 

Tkachuk, who was clearly not himself in Game 4 — playing just 16:40 — was listed as a game-time decision by Panthers head coach Paul Maurice. 

 

The Panthers leading scorer would miss tonight’s game with an undisclosed injury. He was replaced by 22-year-old Grigori Denisenko — who made his Stanley Cup Playoff debut in tonight’s game. 

 

Florida had their golden opportunity to take the first lead of the game in the first period after Vegas’ Keegan Kolesar was sent to the box for interfering with Sam Bennett. 

 

On the power play, the Panthers were inches away from finding the back of the net — however Adin Hill’s last ditch effort to get a leg on the puck prevented Sasha bakov from giving the Panthers a 1-0 lead. 

 

Just seconds after Hill’s enormous save, the Knights would have an odd-man rush the other way —  and their captain Mark Stone would find the back of the net, giving the Knights a 1-0 lead, while being short handed.

 

Less than two minutes after Stone broke the ice, Vegas would make their lead two. This would be the first of three goals on the night for Stone. 

 

Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky initially made a huge stickless save with just his blocker. The rebound fell under Bobrovsky, but then poked free by a Knights’ player before Nicolas Hague found the back of the net. 

 

Upon replay, it appeared that the whistle had blown before the puck crossed the goal line, however this didn’t change the outcome. The goal would count — Vegas went up 2-0. 

 

The Knights took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission. 

 

Entering the second the Panthers needed an answer — and they got that quickly from Aaron Ekblad. 

 

2:15 into the second,  Ekblad took a quick shot from the top of the point, which beat Hill up high, getting Florida on the board for the first time in the game. 

 

The Knights lead was now just one with alot of hockey to go.

 

Florida looked like they finally found their game in the opening eight minutes of the second period. The Ekblad goal ignited momentum in the team and the game began swinging in their favor.

 

The life that was quickly fed to the Panthers disappeared just as fast over the next six minutes.

 

Vegas flipped the switch, dominating puck possession in the offensive zone — which ultimately led to pure domination for the remainder of the period. 

 

In the last 10 minutes of the period, Vegas would score the next four goals — taking a 6-1 lead to the final intermission of the season. 

 

This monumental deficit would be far too much for the Panthers to overcome in 20 minutes.

 

Vegas would take the game 9-3, winning them the Stanley Cup in just five games.

Panthers comeback falls short, Knights take 3-1 series lead

/0 Comments/in , /by

SUNRISE — Two nights after rallying from behind to win Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final in overtime, the Florida Panthers were back on home ice Saturday — trying to even up the series against the Vegas Golden Knights. 

 

The Knights were able to take control of the night early, jumping out to a three-goal lead halfway through the game — which was very reminiscent of how they started their 7-2 win back in Game 2. 

 

Despite trailing 3-0, the Cardiac Cats didn’t go down without a fight, clawing back to make it a one-goal game early into the third. Unfortunately for Florida, their rally ended up falling short. The Knights held on to win 3-2 — taking a 3-1 series back to Vegas, with a chance to win the Cup on home ice this coming Tuesday.

 

Under two minutes after the first drop of the puck, the Knights were able to get the fast jump in tonight’s game off a bad error from the Panthers. 

 

With Vegas still controlling the puck in the neutral zone, some Panthers, including defenseman Aaron Ekblad went to the bench for a line change. The Knights hit the open seam through the middle of the ice — springing Chandler Stephenson in on a breakaway. 

 

Stepehnson walked in alone on Sergei Bobrovsky and slipped his shot five-hole, putting Vegas up 1-0 just 1:39 into the game. 

 

Despite the early mistake, the Panthers were able to minimize the damage to just that. After 20 the Knights took a 1-0 lead into the break.

 

Another note, the two sides played a completely clean brand of  hockey in the first — at least in the officials minds. Surprisingly no penalties were called in the period. Game 3 had 11 penalties called.

 

The first power play in the game went to the Knights at the 2:52 mark of the second period. Marc Staal went to the box for tripping Mark Stone, who had knocked Staal’s stick out of his hands just seconds before the trip  was called. 

 

The Knights, who had scored two power play goals per game in Games 1-3, had a chance to get their red hot power play on the board again tonight. 

 

Florida played their first kill of the night  well. They adjusted their pk setup well to not give Vegas’ far-side wingers a lane to get the puck and walk in from the circles — which they’ve been extremely good at in this series.

 

Not getting the power play goal didn’t affect the Knights however. At the mark, Chandler Stephenson would get his second goal of the night off a beautifully placed shot above Sergei Bobrovsky — putting Vegas up 2-0. 

 

Minutes after Stephenson’s second goal, William Karlsson put away a rebound — giving the Knights a 3-0 lead just after the midway point of the game.

 

It felt like the wheels were falling off the wagon for the Panthers. Down three goals with no momentum going the other way. Sometimes you need just one shot, or bounce, to get you back into the game. 

 

Facing a three-goal hole before the final intermission, Florida got their bounce and lifeline in. 

 

Brandon Montour floated a non-threatening shot towards the Knights goal which hit two bodies in front before sneaking past Adin Hill. Montour’s eighth goal of the playoffs cut the Knights lead to two and got Florida back into the game. 

 

Vegas would take a 3-1 lead into the final break of regulation. 

 

With a two-goal game entering the third, the next goal would be monumental in the tide of this game. 

 

Florida would be the one to get the pivotal next goal — inching them closer to the equalizr while also preventing a three-goal Vegas lead.

 

Brandon Montour drove the net after picking up a pass from Anton Lundell in the zone. Montour dipped his shoulder and sent a backhand pass across the crease, hitting Sasha Barkov in stride. 

 

The Panthers captain fired a one-timer past Hill, cutting the once three-goal deficit to just one. 

 

Florida not only got themselves back into the game — they got the home crowd back in it as well. 

 

After the Panthers got the early goal to start the third, the pressure was on. Florida piled on the chances, pressing for the crucial tying goal. 

 

Florida would keep that pressure going until the final seconds of the game. 

 

With 17.4 seconds remaining in the game, Knights defenseman Alex Pietreangelo took a delay of game penalty in an attempt to clear the zone. 

 

Florida would have a 6-on-4 man-advantage in the dying seconds of the game. 

 

The Panthers swarmed the crease in a last ditch effort to tie the game — but Adin Hill and the Knights held on to win 3-2 despite a valiant comeback effort by the Panthers. 

 

The Knights leave South Florida with a 3-1 series lead. They can win the Stanley Cup on Tuesday in Vegas.

Panthers comeback in OT, win Game 3 of Stanley Cup Final

/0 Comments/in , /by

SUNRISE —  Quietness and frustration could be felt across FLA Live Arena for a large portion of Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final. With the Panthers on the brink of an 0-3 series deficit, the Panthers were moments away from putting themselves in the toughest hole in sports.   

 

But as this Panthers team has done all season, they got their lifeline in at the last moment and brought joy and relief to the players and fans. 

 

After tying the game with 2:13 left — the Panthers once again clawed back in Comeback Cats fashion, defeating the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 off of a Carter Verhaeghe overtime goal to get their first win in the Stanley Cup Final.

 

The Panthers still trail the series 2-1 heading into Saturday’s Game 4 at home, however they got what they came for, a win in Game 3. 

 

Florida hit their home ice jumping tonight, determined to bounce back after their 7-2  blowout loss in Game 2. 

 

The Panthers clearly felt the buzz from the fans in Sunrise — who were seeing their team play in a home Stanley Cup Final game for the first time in 27 years. 

 

The Panthers got the early jump they needed under five minutes into the game.

 

Matthew Tkachuk patiently held onto the puck along the boards before hitting Brandon Montour. Montour walked in from the point and sniped his first goal of the series past Adin Hill. 

 

That one was for his son Kai, who was born earlier this week. 

 

A few shifts later, the Panthers would head to the power play for the first time in the game after Sam Bennett got nailed by a high-stick. As the play was developing, Matthew Tkachuk got laid out at open ice by Keegan Kolesar. Tkachuk would stay on for the power play but that would be it for him in the first. He did not return in the period after playing 3:10. He would however come back to the game in the second period.

 

For whatever reason he was pulled from the game, Tkachuk didn’t seem to be affected when he came back.

 

 “I feel great, I’m ready to go,” Tkachuk said postgame.

 

Florida had Vegas on their heels to start the game, leading 1-0 while holding the Knights to just two shots until the final five minutes of the period. 

 

With the two sides playing 4-on-4 hockey, Anthony Duclair was called for a tripping penalty against the boards. The reaction of head coach Paul Maurice, who was caught saying “wow” on the broadcast, was much like the rest of the arena — questioning the call that put the Knights’ hot  power play on a 4-on-3.

 

In the first two games of the series, Vegas’ power play scored twice a game, and they capitalized on those chances quickly. The early game power play success would be there again tonight for the Knights. 

 

Vegas didn’t let this chance slip away from them. Mark Stone tipped a shot from Jonathan Marchessault past Srgei Bobrosvky — tying the game at 1-1 on Vegas’ only best chance of the period.

 

The two sides would go into the first intermission even.

 

The Vegas power play was once again all over the Panthers tonight. In a repeat of what was seen in Games 1-2, the Knights put up a double on the power play again.

 

With Aleksander Barkov in the box for an interference penalty — yes Barkov — the Knights went to work on the man-advantage again in the second period.

 

Former Panther Jonathan Marchessault has been a thorn in opposition’s sides all postseason, including his old team. Marchessault did it again tonight. He got the puck in his favorite spot around the faceoff circle and buried his 13th goal of the playoffs past Bobrovsky to give Vegas a 2-1 lead. That was his fourth goal of the series.

 

While the Knights have feasted a man up in the series, the Panthers couldn’t buy a power play goal through for a third straight game,

 

The Knights took a 2-1 lead into the third  — outshooting Florida 20-13 through two. 

 

A large portion of the third period was much like the second for the Panthers. Florida couldn’t get their power play going and they didn’t generate too many quality looks 5-on-5 either.

 

Down 2-1 in the game and 0-2 in the series, Florida’s fortune looked to be running out as the game clock quickly trickled down.

 

With 2:13 left in the third, trailing by one and the goalie pulled, Matthew Tkachuk brought life back into the stadium and the Panthers season… again. 

 

With a ton of bodies in front of Adin Hill’s net, Carter Verhaeghe fired a one-timer towards the traffic. Mr. Always in front of the net Matthew Tkachuk had the puck roll right to him. No. 19 tapped in one of the easier goals he will score in his career — the Panthers tied the game at 2-2.

 

Overtime was on the horizon in Sunrise and the momentum belonged to the home team.

 

As the final seconds ticked down on regulation, Vegas got one more big chance to take a 3-0 series lead. 

 

With 12 seconds remaining, Gustav Forsling was called for a tripping penalty — sending Vegas to the power play in basically a sudden death scenario.

 

Replays showed what looked to be an extremely iffy call, dying seconds in the game or not. Paul Maurice showed his displeasure on the bench, uttering his thoughts to the officials on the call.

 

Tied after regulation the two sides would go to overtime in Sunrise, with Vegas starting the first 110 seconds with a power play. 

 

Florida, who already conceded two short handed goals in the game, now had the most important penalty kill of the season. If they didn’t shut down the red hot Knights power play, they’d be down 0-3 in the series.

 

The Panthers would get the job done, getting back to even-strength and getting the already on edge crowd back on their feet.

 

FLA Live Arena did not have to wait much longer to take a deep breath and get back on their feet. 

 

4:27 into OT, Carter Verhaeghe — who will go down as one of the most clutch players in Florida Panthers’ history — added another huge milestone to his resume. 

 

Panthers’ forward Sam Bennett made a slick move at the top of the blue line to cut back to the middle of the ice before he found a wide open Verhaeghe between the faceoff circles.

 

Verhaeghe corralled the puck and immediately fired it towards goal, beating Adin Hill cleanly — winning the game 3-2 for the Panthers.

 

Verhaeghe picked up another playoff overtime goal and more importantly, got the Panthers back in the series with their first win in the Stanley Cup Final. 

 

“To win in overtime in front of our own fans, it gives us a little bit of momentum,” said Verhaeghe. “We saw it right from the start in the first period. We fed off our home crowd.”

 

Keystone Chiropractic and Neureplasticity is a practice focused on correction and rehabilitation of disorders of the brain and spine. Head over to Chiropractickeystone.com today

Golden Knights put seven past Panthers, take 2-0 series lead

/0 Comments/in , /by

LAS VEGAS — The Vegas Golden Knights entered Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final with a 1-0 series lead after their home win on Saturday night.

 

Vegas left T-Mobile Arena on Monday night one game closer to winning the Stanley Cup, defeating the Florida Panthers in Game 2 by a final score of 7-2.

 

The Knights got the first power play of the game — Ryan Lomberg was called for a cross-check. On the same shift, Panthers defenseman Radko Gudas took a hard hit, which looked to be high from Ivan Barbashev. Gudas immediately left the game and did not return. 

 

On their first power play of the night, Vegas didn’t take too long to get on the board. Jonathan Marchessault walked in from the top of the faceoff circle and sniped it above Sergei Bobrovsky, giving Vegas a 1-0 lead. 

 

Florida looked completely outclassed in the opening period. Vegas’ breakout and transition game was a threat basically every shift — while their defensive play was just as good with their shot blocking and lane clogging. 

 

The Panthers were being outmuscled, outskated and outplayed.  

 

Down one, Florida’s got their first chance on the power play. Vying for the tying goal, the Panthers had generated multiple quality chances — but they ran into a brick wall in Adin Hill. Hill’s big saves kept Florida off the board, and pumped up the already rampant T-Mobile Arena crowd.

 

Right after a successful kill, the Knights took a two-goal lead. Alec Martinez scored in a similar spot that Marchessault did, just on the opposite side of the ice — beating Bobrovsky to put the Knights up 2-0.

 

Vegas went into the first intermission up 2-0.

 

The misfortune for the Panthers quickly followed them into the second. 2:59 into the period, Vegas made their lead three, off a pretty calm shot from down low by Nicolas Roy. Bobrovsky didn’t see it.

 

The onslaught didn’t end there. 7:10 into the period, Brett Howden put away Vegas’ fourth goal of the game. Bobrovsky’s night would come to an end before the midway point in the second — Alex Lyon would come in and finish the game. 

 

Vegas’ two second period goals would be it for that frame, but the period wouldn’t end without some tempers flaring. 

Minutes before the second intermission, Jack Eichel was caught in his tracks by a full speed Matthew Tkachuk at open ice. Tkachuk hit a falling Eichel’s shoulder hard — popping his helmet as he hit the ice. Eichel would head to the locker room after the hit, while the Knights made their way to Tkachuk. 

 

Hands were thrown from all sides of the ice while off-setting minors filled up the score sheet. Tkachuk and Barbashev would come out of the mess the most affected — both receiving 10 minute misconducts in addition to their roughing minors.

 

Vegas took a 4-0 lead into the final break.

 

With Tkachuk serving a 2 and a 10 for most of the third and Radko Gudas leaving the game due to injury, Florida had to spend most of the third period skating with 10 forwards and 6 defensemen (Panthers dressed 11 forwards, 7 defensemen).

 

Florida started the final period with a small but important lifeline at the time in a 4-0 game. 14 seconds into the third, Anton Lundell finally got the Panthers on the board from a shot that redirected off a Knights’ player. It wasn’t pretty, but it went in.

 

Despite a quick start to the third with an early goal, the small amount of hope Florida had was short lived. Two minutes after Lundell cut the deficit to three, an unmarked Marchessault scored his second goal of the game — Vegas went up 5-1.

 

Matthew Tkachuk did end up returning to the game — for a few minutes. He scored Florida’s second goal after Vegas got their sixth, then he got thrown out of the game the following shift.


The Knights successfully defended their home ice in the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final. They’ll fly to Sunrise with all the momentum and a 2-0 series lead.

Florida Panthers Game 2 updates and lineup news

/0 Comments/in , /by

LAS VEGAS — We are just a few hours away from puck drop in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Florida Panthers and Vegas Golden Knights.

 

Earlier today, Panthers head coach Paul Maurice announced that forward Eetu Luostarinen would miss his second straight game tonight. 

 

Luostarinen left Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals on May 24 against Carolina with an injury and did not return – he hasn’t played since.


Veteran forward Zac Dalpe came into the lineup in place of Luostarinen in Game 1. He is expected to remain in the lineup tonight for his 11th game of the postseason. 

 

Maurice was asked pre-game about the “opportunity” that has been given to Dalpe this year. 

 

“I’m not giving him the opportunity. The opportunity was going to somebody and he took it. He made it be him,” Maurice said about the 33-year-old. “Right now he’s playing in the Stanley Cup Final… He’s gonna build some of the most important hockey memories of his career toward the end of his career.”

 

Trailing 1-0 in the series, the Panthers need the win tonight to split the series before heading back to Sunrise for home ice — and they are confident they can get it done.

 

“Obviously it would have been so nice to get the win out of Game 1, but we came here to Vegas to try to get home ice back so all it needs to happen is a win tonight for us and we got that,” Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk said. “That’ll be a successful road trip for us.”

 

The Panthers players seem to be relaxed heading into tonight’s matchup — already putting the Game 1 loss behind them.

 

“Whether you win or lose Game 1, you just got to get ready for Game 2 and kind of put down the past,” Panthers defensemen Josh Mahura said.

 

Puck drop for Game 2 will be at 8 p.m. EST., 5 p.m. PST. from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV.

 

Keystone Chiropractic and Neureplasticity is a practice focused on correction and rehabilitation of disorders of the brain and spine. Head over to Chiropractickeystone.com today

Panthers lose Game 1 of Stanley Cup Final to Golden Knights 5-2

/0 Comments/in , /by

LAS VEGAS — The 2023 Stanley Cup Final got underway Saturday afternoon, with the Western Conference Champion Vegas Golden Knights playing hosts to the Eastern Conference Champion Florida Panthers

 

The Knights would defend their home ice tonight, taking Game 1, 5-2 and an early series lead.

The first goal of the Stanley Cup Final was scored by an unlikely name – in an unlikely way. 

 

With the Panthers shorthanded, Eric Staal got some free space to make a jump into the play shorthanded. The 38-year-old caught Knights’ goalie Adin Hill out of position, and beat him off a wrap-around — putting Florida up 1-0, 9:40 into the first. 

 

Vegas’ first power play was terrible with them conceding the shorthanded goal — however, they kept the deficit at one, and bounced back with a successful penalty kill of their own.   

 

Still just a one-goal contest towards the end of the first, the Knights redeemed themselves on the man-advantage and got back into the game.  

 

Chandler Stephenson set up the Knights first goal of the night off a slick backhand feed from behind the net to an unmarked Jonathan Marchessault. Marchessault buried a one-timer in front of Sergei Bobrovsky’s net — tying the game at 1-1.  

 

Both teams went to the break tied, with both of their opening goals coming off a Vegas power play.

 

After nearly 11 minutes of scoreless action in the second, Vegas took their first lead of the night. 

 

Just a few seconds before Vegas took the lead, Panthers’ forward Anthony Duclair got banged up after blocking a shot from Shea Theodore. Later in the shift, recognizing Duclair was still shaken up, Theodore calmly walked around Duclair at the point before stepping into a shot which cleanly beat Bobrovsky — putting Vegas up 2-1. 

 

The shots were even in the second, but there weren’t an abundance of quality chances for the Cats until really the last minute of the period. 

 

Brandon Montour beat Adin Hill off a rocket from the point, but he couldn’t beat the post. The goalie’s best friend kept Vegas up as the clock trickled down.

 

With 12 seconds left in the period, many were heading to the concession stands thinking Vegas would have a 2-1 lead to start the third — Florida didn’t let that happen.

 

After a faceoff win in the offensive zone, Anthony Duclair ripped a shot from the top of the circle past Hill, tying the game at 2-2 just before the intermission. 

 

Six minutes into the third, Florida’s top line of Barkov, Verhaeghe, Duclair and the blueline piled on the pressure in the Vegas zone. With the play still in the Vegas zone, Marc Staal tried to pinch at the line to keep the puck in. The Knights broke out of the zone, catching Florida in transition .

 

Vegas couldn’t score off the rush, but while controlling possession, the puck found its way to Zach Whitecloud at the point. Whitecloud’s point shot beat Bobrovsky — putting Vegas up again, 3-2. 

 

A story line entering this series was Vegas’ subpar penalty kill. The Knights were great 5-on-5, but their PK was far from that. 

 

Florida had three chances tonight on the power play, and they went 0/3. The Panthers couldn’t capitalize against a Vegas penalty kill which was 54.2% at home during the postseason.

 

Vegas put their stamp on the game with 6:19 remaining in the period. A clearing attempt from Matthew Tkachuk was batted down by Vegas captain Mark Stone. Stone beat Bobrovsky up high, giving the Knights a 4-2 lead late into the game. 

 

Florida would challenge this goal for a high stick — they would lose the challenge, sending Vegas to the power play.

 

Vegas would get an empty netter goal later on the power play to finish the night with a 5-2 win.

 

Keystone Chiropractic and Neureplasticity is a practice focused on correction and rehabilitation of disorders of the brain and spine. Head over to Chiropractickeystone.com today

The Florida Panthers punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Final

/0 Comments/in , /by

SUNRISE — The Florida Panthers are on their way to the Stanley Cup Final for the second time in franchise history after defeating the Carolina Hurricanes in four games. 

 

The Panthers took Game 4 by a final score of 4-3 off of Matthew Tkachuk’s game winner with four seconds left in regulation. 

 

It was a wild night at FLA Live for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes.   

 

Holding a 3-0 lead, the Panthers had a chance to close out the series at home Wednesday night — which would have booked their ticket to the Stanley Cup Finals.  

 

Like all the games in this series, tonight’s went down to the wire. 

 

It didn’t take the Panthers long to crack open this game and get the crowd off their feet.

 

Less than a minute into the game, Frederik Andersen made a big first save on an Anthony Duclair one-timer, however Andersen lost track of the puck after the save. Duclair picked up his own rebound and put it past Andersen, putting the Panthers up 1-0 just 41 seconds into the game. 

 

A little over halfway through the first, the Panthers would take a two-goal.

 

As the Panthers second power play of the game dwindled down, a broken up shot Aaron Ekblad shot found its way to Matthew Tkachuk in front of the net.

 

Tkachuk quickly fed the puck through Andersen’s five-hole, putting the Panthers up 2-0, 10:23 into the game. 

 

The desperate Hurricanes didn’t let Florida’s multi-goal lead last long. Just a few minutes after Tkachuk’s goal, Carolina got one back.  



A shot from near the corner landed in the blue pain behind a sprawling Sergei Bobrovsky. Paul Stasny beat Bobrovsky to the loose puck, cutting the Panthers lead in half with just under seven minutes to go in the period.

 

The three goal first period tonight was a completely different script from the 1-0 Game 3 we saw on Monday night. 

 

After an eventful opening 20 minutes, the Panthers took a 2-1 lead to the dressing room. 

 

As the teams took the ice for the second Carolina was able to get this game even just three minutes into the period.  

 

Similar to Tkachuk’s goal in the first, a Carolina shot from up high got broken up in front of goal before landing on the stick of Teuvo Teravainen. Teravainen shot the puck over an out of position Bobrovsky, tying the game at 2-2.

 

Just like that, Florida’s two-goal lead was gone.

 

With Carolina’s two unanswered goals, the building wasn’t quiet, but it definitely didn’t have the same energy as it did in the first. 

 

That was a problem that fan favorite Ryan Lomberg was able to solve. 9:49 into the second period, the Panthers fourth line executed one of the  nicest passing plays you’ll see all postseason. 


Lomberg started the play by dishing the puck to Eric Staal down low, who quickly spun it around his body to a wide-open Colin White in front of the Canes net. Rather than forcing a handcuffed shot, White calmly slid the puck over to Lomberg — who tapped in the go ahead goal. Florida went up 3-2, and FLA Live Arena went crazy as you’d expect. 

 

Lomberg’s goal would be the final one of the period, due in large part to some big saves by Sergei Bobrovsky. As the period came to an end, ‘BOB-BY’ chants echoed through the sold out arena from the Panthers faithful. 

 

Their team went into the break with a one-goal lead — and 20 minutes away from the Stanley Cup Finals. 

 

Florida held on to their lead for most of the third, but with 3:22 left, Carolina kept their season alive. 

 

Jesper Fast put away the game tying goal, and  overtime looked to be on the horizon in Sunrise. 

 

But the hockey gods seemed to not want extra hockey. 

 

With just 57 seconds left in regulation, Carolina captain Jordan Staal was sent to the box — giving Florida a last minute power play. 

 

A goal would mean a trip to the Stanley Cup Final, the other option would be another OT game… Matthew Tkachuk said ‘bus in 10’. 

 

The Panthers star forward came around the net, held out Andersen and put this series to bed. 

 

With 4.9 seconds remaining, the Florida Panthers took the lead — and the series. 

 

Florida will have to await the winner of the Vegas-Dallas series to see who their final opponent of the season will be. Vegas currently leads Dallas 3-0.

Sergei Bobrovsky’s shutout leads Panthers to victory over Hurricanes, take 3-0 series lead

/0 Comments/in , /by

SUNRISE — After a successful two-win road trip in Raleigh, N.C, the Florida Panthers returned home to FLA Live Arena for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Carolina Hurricanes.  

 

In their first home game in 12 days, the Panthers won another extremely close game, defeating the Hurricanes 1-0.

 

Florida now holds a 3-0 series lead, and are just one win away from the Stanley Cup Final. 

 

The opening set of games in Raleigh showed how tight this series would be played, and with the two matches going to OT, you could expect this one to be just as close.

 

The opening 20 minutes of the contest was a continuation of that — the two sides went into the intermission scoreless.

 

Towards the end of the first, Panthers captain Sasha Barkov left the game with a lower body injury. 

 

Barkov did not return to the game after Panthers PR announced he was questionable to return midway through the second. Eetu Luostarinen replaced Barkov on the top line.

 

Panthers’ Head Coach Paul Maurice did not have an update on Barkov’s injury or status post game.

 

This lockdown defensive type of series makes it hard for either team to really get a jump on the other. As the second period rolled on, the score was still 0-0. 

   

It wasn’t until the halfway mark of the game where someone would light the lamp on this scoreless affair. Florida’s Sam Reinhart would be the one to break the deadlock.

 

With the Cats on their second power play of the night, Florida capitalized on the man-advantage for the second straight game.


Florida went to work down low – where the majority of their postseason power play success has stemmed from. Sam Bennett fed Matthew Tkachuk from behind the net, then Tkachuk quickly hit Reinhart in front of goal. From the bumper position, Reinhart quickly spun a shot past Frederik Andersen’s blocker — giving Florida a 1-0 lead just eight seconds into the powerplay . 

 

“I was just trying to find a soft area in the middle and (Tkachuk) showed some great poise to be able to wait for it to open up,” Reinhart when explaining the power play goal setup. 

 

Reinhart’s goal would be the only one of the period. Florida took a one-goal lead into the second intermission. 

 

Trailing 1-0 in the game and 2-0 in the series, necessary desperation kicked in for the Hurricanes as they took the ice for the final period of regulation.

 

Carolina came out of the break rolling, as they’ve done time and time again this series. However on the flip side, Sergei Bobrovsky and the Panthers weathered the storm of the Hurricanes’ attack in the final 20.

 

The Canes outshot Florida 11-2 in the third, and 32-17 in the game. Their frantic pressure was met by the thorn in their side all series, Bobrovsky. 

 

Florida’s goalie stopped all 32 shots he faced in his first shutout of the postseason. Bobrovsky has saved 182 shots in his last four starts, only conceding five goals over that span. 

 

“It seems like every day he’s making another huge save, changing momentum and helping the team win games,” Carter Verhaeghe said about Bobrovsky postgame. “He’s our backbone, he’s our best player.”

 

The Panthers have a chance to sweep the Hurricanes on Wednesday, May 24 — which would punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Final. 

 

 

For all your mortgage needs in South Florida, reach out to MortgageByArash

Florida Panthers win Game 2 in OT, return to Sunrise with 2-0 lead

/0 Comments/in , /by

Less than 48 hours after playing the sixth-longest game in NHL history, the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers were back on the ice in Raleigh for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

As it did in Game 1, this contest went to overtime. Unlike Thursday’s game, tonight they only needed one over time – where the Panthers won 2-1. Once again off of the stick of Matthew Tkachuk.

 

For the second straight game, Carolina took the first lead of the game. 

 

Just 1:43 into the first, Sebastian Aho layed a shot from near the boards towards the front of the Panthers’ goal. Hurricanes defenseman Jalen Chatfield, who jumped up in the rush, redirected the Aho shot past Sergei Bobrovsky to give the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead.

After Carolina opened the scoring on their first shot of the game, the Panthers appeared to have tied it. 

Gustav Forsling walked in from the point before wiring a redirected shot past Anti Raanta to get the Panthers on the board.

However, this Panthers goal would quickly be removed after Carolina’s challenge for offsides on the zone entry proved to be correct.  

 

After the overturned Panthers goal, the Canes stepped on the gas. 

 

For nearly the entire first period, it was Carolina’s game. At the halfway mark of the period, the shots on goal were 13-1 in favor of the Hurricanes. 

 

If matters couldn’t get worse for the Panthers, Carolina looked like they had taken a two-goal lead in the first.

 

But as Rod Brind’Amour did earlier in the game, Paul Maurice challenged the play for offsides. 

 

Florida’s challenge was successful, wiping Jack Drury’s goal off the board. The Canesead was still one. 

Q 

Trailing by one goal heading into the second, the Panthers pulled a repeat of Game 1 —  getting on  as the board with a goal. 



The Barkov line has been outstanding this postseason at getting the Cats back into games, and oddly enough, it’s happened quite often in the second period. 

 

7:43 into the second, Florida’s captain put himself on the highlight reel. Coming down alone on Raanta, Barkov faked a between the legs shot before pulling the puck to his backhand, beating the Canes’ goalie to tie it at 1-1. 

 

Barkov’s goal would be the only one scored in the period. The teams went to the break tied. 

 

An early storyline in this has been the desire of these two teams to play more hockey than required… ok not really but for a second straight game, regulation would not be enough in Raleigh. 

 

After a 4 OT thriller on Thursday, the Canes and Panthers went to overtime again, and luckily for everyone this OT lasted only minutes. 

 

Matthew Tkachuk sent the Panthers to the hotel up 1-0 in the series after Game 1. Tonight he sent the Cats back to Sunrise with a 2-0 series lead. 

 

1:51 into OT with the Panthers on the powerplay, the Cats executed a tic-tac-toe play with Tkachuk putting away the winner. This was Florida’s first goal on the power play in the series, and it couldn’t come at a better time. 

 

After taking both games on the road, the Panthers head back home for Games 3 & 4. This is the first time in 27 years that Panthers’ fans can see their team play in the Conference Finals at home.

For all your mortgage needs in South Florida, reach out to MortgageByArash

Florida Panthers win Game 1, defeat Hurricanes in quadruple OT

/0 Comments/in , /by

The Eastern Conference Finals finally got underway tonight in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Carolina Hurricanes played host to the Florida Panthers in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs  third round. 

 

After both sides not playing for almost a week, they ended tonight the way they finished their respective second round series, in overtime. Well, kind of… this one went to the dying seconds of quadruple overtime. 

 

The Panthers defeated the Hurricanes 3-2, off of Matthew Tkachuk’s heroic quadruple OT winner. 

 

Hours before the OT marathon, Carolina got the start they needed. The hometown Canes broke the deadlock after a nearly scoreless first period. 

 

Towards the end of the first, the Canes went to a 5-on-3 power play. The Panthers successfully killed off the first of two penalties, however by the time Marc Staal reached the defensive zone from the penalty box, Seth Jarvis walked into a clapper from the slot – giving the Hurricanes a one goal lead with 12 seconds remaining in the period. 

 

The second period was similar to the first in terms of the score line. With the Canes leading 1-0, nobody could get the puck past Sergei Bobrovksy or Frederik Andersen for most of the frame. 

 

At the 15:28 mark of the second, the Panthers got back into the game courtesy of their captain. 

 

Anthony Duclair carried the puck up the boards into  the zone, spun off the pressure and then fed the puck across the ice to Sasha Barkov. Barkov took one step into open space before ripping a shot past the Hurricanes goalie to tie the game at 1-1. 

 

A few minutes later, the Barkov line got on the board again. 

 

Carter Verhaeghe came out of the corner with the puck after his linemates worked the puck down low behind the net. Verhaeghe had free real estate in the shooting lane and didn’t let his opportunity go to waste, slipping a shot past Andersen to give the Panthers their first lead of the game. 

 

With the Panthers carrying a lead heading into the third, Carolina did not back down. 

 

The final frame of regulation was dominated by the home team with the Canes out shotting the Cats 14-2. Their constant pressure had the Panthers on their heels.

 

A big story for Carolina tonight was their superior play on special teams. After grabbing their first goal of the game on the man advantage, Carolina got their second just minutes into the third. 

 

Stefan Nosek found himself on the receiving end of a beautiful tic-tac-toe play that was setup by Martin Necas and Seth Jarvis. Nosek roofed the puck over Bobrovsky for Carolina’s second PPG of the game – tying it at 2-2. 

 

Once again tied, the two teams couldn’t break each other for the remainder of regulation. This one would head to over time. 

 

In the extra frame, Florida looked to have won the game off a Ryan Lomberg goal, however after the play was reviewed they determined that Colin White made contact with Frederik Andersen in the crease, and the goal was called back. 

 

Still 2-2, both teams had a chance on the power play to end the game in OT. For the Panthers, they couldn’t muster anything on their third power play of the night. For Carolina, they had their high danger chances, including a shot ringing off the post. 

 

80 minutes after puck drop we were still without a winner, double OT was needed. 

 

As you’d expect, the teams tightened up in the second OT. Not as many guys jumping up into the play, not too many risky moves… It was patient hockey. 

 

After 100 minutes with no winner, they went to triple overtime in Raleigh. 

 

If two overtime’s weren’t enough time to score, apparently three wasn’t either. After an 8 pm ET puck drop, Game 1 completed two full 60 minutes frames without a winner. A quadruple overtime would be needed, starting just after 1:20 am.  

 

In OT number 4, the goalies did what they did all game, stood on their head. It was an absolute goaltending duel between Andersen and Bobrovksy.

 

In what was the sixth longest game in NHL history, the teams were seconds away from heading back into the dressing room to gear up for a fifth over time. 

 

Matthew Tkachuk didn’t let that happen.

 

With 13 seconds remaining in the fourth over time, Tkachuk squeezed a tight angle shot over Andersen, ending the game just shy of 2 am et. 

 

The Panthers take this draining Game 1 and a 1-0 series lead.