‘A UFC FIGHT’: TENSIONS RISE IN STANLEY CUP FINAL AS THE PANTHERS GET THE UPPER HAND ON THE OILERS
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Things got chippy in the Stanley Cup Final late in Game 3 when the Florida Panthers were well on their way to blowing out the Edmonton Oilers.
Brawls ensued, Darnell Nurse and Jonah Gadjovich dropped the gloves, and eight guys got sent to the showers early with misconduct penalties.
“When we get into garbage time, those things happen, and I don’t mind when those things happen,” Oilers captain Connor McDavid said. “It’s what good teams do: fight your way out of the rink. I don’t mind that in garbage time.”
Long before garbage time, Florida took it to Edmonton, with the defending champions dictating their style of play and knocking their opponents off kilter to take a 2-1 series lead with a 6-1 laugher. If more of that continues in Game 4 on Thursday night, it’s advantage Panthers because they thrive on making other teams feel uncomfortable.
“We played our game, our style, stuck up for each other when we needed to,” Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk said. “If you have to take a punch, take a punch. If you have to take a cross-check, take a cross-check — a spear, a slash, whatever the case is, you’ve got to take it.”
It should not be surprising that tensions boiled over given the lopsided score in the 10th game in the Cup final between these two teams over the past year. The Oilers and Panthers have grown a healthy distaste for each other with all that familiarity.
With that comes plenty of hits, shoves and jabs that lead to slashes, punches and gear strewn all over the ice. The 140 combined penalty minutes in Game 3 were the most in a final since Game 4 between Montreal and Calgary in 1986.
“The game’s over with 11 minutes left,” Oilers star Leon Draisaitl said Tuesday after practice. “Then all hell breaks loose. It’s a UFC fight.”
The penalties that mattered to the result came early. The Oilers were not shy about criticizing the officiating and the Panthers for allegedly influencing it. Goaltender Stuart Skinner said, “Some guys are flaking and going down trying to cause penalties,” and Evander Kane questioned some of the calls.
“There seems to be a little bit more attention on our group,” said Kane, who took two minor penalties in the first period alone. “They seem to get away with it more than we do. It’s tough to find the line.”
Toeing that line is what the Panthers do best, and it is a recipe that has them in the final for a third consecutive year under coach Paul Maurice, who credited Tkachuk for having “a little bit more impact on the tenacity of the team than the guy who wears a suit behind the bench and never takes a shift.”
Florida’s roster is full of truculence with talent to match. Sam Bennett delivered a big, open-ice hit that led to his breakaway and playoff-leading 14th goal, and finishing checks on John Klingberg has hampered the veteran defenseman’s play in the series compared to the first three rounds.
“That’s part of their DNA, that’s what they do,” Draisaitl said. “It’s an emotional time. It’s two teams that want to win, two teams of doing it their own way, but I don’t think anybody is going crazy here. They’re good at what they do.”
Maurice did not buy into the idea that Game 3 was the Panthers showing what they can do at their best. The opener went to overtime and Florida needed double OT to win Game 2.
“I think the first two games are indicative of what Game 4 is going to look like,” Maurice said. “We’re not going to look at (Game 3) and say, ‘That’s the way it should look if we play our game.’”
The Oilers certainly look at it as the opposite, discombobulated and nothing resembling the group that had gone 12-2 since a couple of losses to open the first round. They’ve dropped two in a row for the first time since.
“We just got to play our game,” Nurse said. “We got guys that can do all that kind of stuff. But is that our game? So I think we just got to stick to play the way that we play. We’re such a good hockey team when we just play hockey, and we just got to do that.”
PANTHERS TAKE 2-1 LEAD INTO GAME 4 AGAINST THE OILERS
Edmonton Oilers (48-29-5, in the Pacific Division) vs. Florida Panthers (47-31-4, in the Atlantic Division)
Sunrise, Florida; Thursday, 8 p.m. EDT
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Panthers -150, Oilers +125; over/under is 6.5
STANLEY CUP FINAL: Panthers lead series 2-1
BOTTOM LINE: The Florida Panthers host the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Final with a 2-1 lead in the series. The teams meet Monday for the sixth time this season. The Panthers won the last matchup 6-1.
Florida has gone 32-15-2 at home and 47-31-4 overall. The Panthers have a +23 scoring differential, with 246 total goals scored and 223 conceded.
Edmonton has a 48-29-5 record overall and a 29-20-2 record in road games. The Oilers have a 30-9-4 record in games they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponents.
TOP PERFORMERS: Aleksander Barkov Jr. has 20 goals and 51 assists for the Panthers. Sam Bennett has eight goals and three assists over the last 10 games.
Evan Bouchard has 14 goals and 53 assists for the Oilers. Leon Draisaitl has five goals and nine assists over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Panthers: 7-2-1, averaging 4.1 goals, 7.1 assists, 6.1 penalties and 19.2 penalty minutes while giving up two goals per game.
Oilers: 7-2-1, averaging 3.5 goals, 6.4 assists, 5.5 penalties and 15.6 penalty minutes while giving up 2.4 goals per game.
INJURIES: Panthers: None listed.
Oilers: None listed.
PANTHERS PREPARED FOR OILERS’ BEST IN CRUCIAL GAME 4
The Edmonton Oilers showed their disdain for losing with some late-game antics in Monday’s Game 3 loss to the Florida Panthers.
Now, the Oilers must find a way to turn their angst into a victory or risk falling into a dangerously deep hole when they resume the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday in Sunrise, Fla.
With the Panthers leading 2-1 in the best-of-seven series, the next clash could either send the series back to Edmonton all-square — and with the Oilers regaining the home-ice advantage — or put the Panthers on the cusp of a second consecutive title against the Oilers.
“We’ve always been a good team at coming back out with a strong effort,” Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl said of turning the page from Monday’s 6-1 loss. “Obviously it was not our best showing, not our best game, but we have a great chance … to show what our team is all about.”
Edmonton must do more than just talk about a better performance. The Oilers reached this point thanks to an improved defense to go with their high-octane attack, but they have been undisciplined in the finals and have struggled keeping pucks out of their net.
Goaltender Stuart Skinner is under the microscope having surrendered 13 goals in the series, and boasting an .866 save percentage. But the Oilers as a whole must find another gear to send the series back to their home on even ground.
“It’s one game. We’re looking for the whole series,” Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. “We know we’re down 2-1 and we gotta be better next game … but we’re one win away from having the best-out-of-three (series) with two home games.”
Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said Wednesday there probably will be a lineup change. Troy Stecher is a possibility to move in for defenseman John Klingberg, while Knoblauch would not divulge who will start in goal.
Although they lead the series, the Panthers will look forward and not gloat over their early series lead.
Sure, Florida played a fantastic game, but the message from coach Paul Maurice is to park that victory and prepare to earn the next one because he does not believe momentum carries forward to the next outing.
“Every game starts at zeros, and it’s a reset and it’s a mental reset,” Maurice said. “We got beat 8-1 in Edmonton (in Game 4 during last year’s finals) and then came back and played Game 5 here, and for me that was the best game we played in the entire playoffs and we lost the game.”
After the Panthers slammed the door against Edmonton’s dynamic duo, they had best be ready for Edmonton’s best effort. Draisaitl was held without a shot attempt for the Oilers and Connor McDavid managed only a pair of shots and no points.
“The experience of taking a beating and then being able to come back and play your next game lets you know (character is) there,” Maurice said. “It’s also what we expect from Edmonton.”
What bodes well for the defending Stanley Cup champions is that a pair of top-tier players had their best game of the series in Game 3.
Sam Reinhart, who has been playing through an injury during the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes, scored once in a two-point outing. Captain Aleksander Barkov has been held without a point in the series but was instrumental in Reinhart’s goal by creating a turnover that led to the score.
“I always can be better but all I’m thinking about is winning the game,” Barkov said.
AVALANCHE’S CALE MAKAR WINS SECOND NORRIS TROPHY
Colorado Avalanche offensive-minded defenseman Cale Makar is the recipient of the James Norris Memorial Trophy for the second time in his career, the NHL announced Wednesday.
The award is presented “to the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position,” as selected by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
“Any time you get recognized for something like this, it’s very cool,” Makar, 26, said. “It’s very special to be able to (win) this a second time. To have the group of guys that we did — it seems cliche to say, but it’s truly a team award.
“We had a fun year and it’ll be more fun hopefully continuing, but this one’s for them.”
Makar learned that he won the award during a recent golf outing with family and friends in Calgary, his hometown.
He joins Hall of Fame members Bobby Orr (eight times), Denis Potvin and Paul Coffey (three times), and Rod Langway (two times) as players to win multiple Norris Trophies before turning 27. Current Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson also won twice before his 27th birthday.
Makar took home 176 of the 191 first-place votes and recorded 1,861 voting points to win the Norris Trophy for the first time since 2021-22. He has been a finalist for the award in five of his first six NHL seasons.
Zach Werenski of the Columbus Blue Jackets received 13 first-place votes and finished with 1,266 points, while Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes had two first-place votes and 918 points. Hughes was seeking to become the first repeat winner of the award since Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings captured three in a row from 2005-06 through 2007-08.
Makar opened the season with a 13-game point streak. He led all NHL defensemen in goals (30), assists (62) and points (92) this season.
