Edmonton – Florida’s Panthers are always ready to play 7.
That mindset remains unchanged as they try to pull out even a Friday Game 2 series at Rogers Place following a 4-3 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.
“It’s going to be a long series,” forward Sam Bennett said after Game 1.
For the defending Stanley Cup champions, bouncebacks are nothing new.
In the last two playoff runs, they posted a 9-4 record in the game following their losses.
“We’re such a powerful group mentally, so I think it’s more technical than mentally,” forward Matthew Tokachuk said of Florida’s ability to reorganize. “We’ve had a lot of fight scars on us over the last few years. We’ve been getting worse than yesterday. We can get better.
On the return trip to this year’s Stanley Cup final, the Panthers lost one consecutive game, dropping games 1 and 2 in round two to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Overall, they went 4-1 after the loss.
Looking at these bounceback victories, the surge in attacks is a noticeable trend.
In all four victories, they scored at least four goals.
Above all, the Panthers believe they can bounce back because they simply did it many times.
As they say, the evidence is in the pudding.
“It’s just an experience,” coach Paul Maurice said of his team’s fortitude. “After the loss, it’s been tough enough. Every (loss) in the playoffs feels like weight. After the next day, I know how to handle it.”
Schmidt is shining
Nate Schmidt waited a long time to get back to the big dance.
So you knew he wouldn’t waste this opportunity.
The veteran defender, who first shot the ice in the Stanley Cup final since 2018 when he was a member of the Vegas Golden Knights, was shining in Game 1 against Edmonton.
After setting a power play goal to give the Panthers a 2-1 lead in the first period, Schmidt set Bennett free to the breakaway goal with yet another silky pass to extend the lead to 3-1 with the Oilers two-half minutes later.
In addition to his two assists, he also tallied hits and takeaways at 17:18 ice time.
“Whenever we can contribute to the biggest stage on our field, you want to make it clear,” Schmidt said of his performance. “We’ve seen the game in advance what we can do to help our team win. Unfortunately, at the end of the day, that wasn’t enough, but it was something the garrison could build on the rest of the series.”
In Schmidt’s case, the underlying numbers also stood out in Game 1.
At 14:52 he played 5-5, with the Panthers leading 21-7 on shot attempts, 9-5 on goal and 1.5-0.4 on expected goals.
Bob is tall
Sergei Bobrovsky couldn’t do any more in Game 1.
He became the third different goaltender in the last decade with a 40-round performance in the Stanley Cup final, with the two Vezina Trophy winners putting aside 42 of 46 shots.
“I can’t believe it again,” Bennett said. “Every night he puts us in it. He gives us the opportunity to win, and that’s all we can ask from our goaltenders.”
Stepping up at a big moment, 11 of Bobrovsky’s 42 saves were considered high risk.
There have been a lot of good things,” said Bobrovsky, who went 5-2 in the final seven playoff starts. The next game is a big game. ”
As always, “Playoff Bob” is ready to go again in Game 2.
Game 2 Watch Party
The party will join Amerant Bank Arena again for Game 2!
The door opens at 7pm on the pack drop at 8pm.
Enjoy the game-like atmosphere while cheering on the Panthers with fellow fans.
Ticket revenues benefit the Florida Panthers Foundation.
For tickets please click here.
