The Panthers and Oilers series got testy after a hard-hitting Game 2. The two teams square off in Game 3 in Edmonton on Thursday night.
FORT LAUDERDALE — Panthers coach Paul Maurice described Florida’s series with Boston the last two postseasons as “mean.”
“There were fights at the pregame meals in that series,” Maurice said Wednesday.
With the intensity of the Stanley Cup Final ratcheted up after a high hit to Aleksander Barkov that knocked the Panthers captain out of Game 2 and other incidents during Florida’s Game 2 victory, the series against the Oilers appears poised to turn “mean” entering Game 3 in Edmonton on Thursday at 8 p.m.
“It’s the Stanley Cup Finals,” Florida forward Kyle Okposo said. “I think both teams are pretty desperate to win, obviously. Emotions are going to be high, and we’re looking forward to Game 3.”
Fortunately for the Panthers, it appears Leon Draisaitl’s hit on Barkov will not keep the Florida star off the ice. Barkov returned to practice Wednesday and appears likely to play in Game 3.
“Nobody’s replacing their elite players,” Maurice said. “… He’s a key piece.”
In addition to the hit from Draisaitl on Barkov, Edmonton forward Sam Carrick was sent off for a game misconduct when he slashed Florida’s Kevin Stenlund. The league fined Carrick for the penalty.
Edmonton’s Vincent Desharnais and Warren Foegele also received misconduct penalties in the game. Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad was caught on video with his arm around an Edmonton player’s neck.
However, Maurice said he does not think the “mean-ness” will increase to the level of the Boston series.
“Both teams understand the value of staying out of the penalty box,” Maurice said. “So there’s going to be big hits because that’s the intensity of the game. It’s more of a skating-speed series. That’s not going to change. Sure, some more hits get finished. But we’re not going out of our way to do it, and neither are they. There’s no sending messages, there’s no sending tones. It’s whatever you’ve got to do to win a game.”
The rash of Edmonton penalties could be attributable to frustration at the lack of offense through the first two games of the series. Edmonton was fourth in the NHL with 292 goals in the regular season, and the Oilers’ 64 goals leads all teams in the postseason.
But the Panthers have kept Edmonton and its star forwards in check through two games in Sunrise. Sergei Bobrovsky and the Florida defense shut out the Oilers in Game 1, then shut them down after allowing the game’s opening score on Monday. Edmonton had just seven shots on goal through the first two periods of Game 2.
“Obviously, team defense is something I think we do pretty well,” Okposo said. “I don’t think many players around the league are winning a footrace against (Connor McDavid). But I think that it’s defending by committee.”
As the series shifts to Canada for Games 3 and 4, the Panthers have the odds in their favor. NHL teams are 49-5 in a seven-game series when taking a 2-0 lead. Win Game 3, and the odds get even better. But Maurice is not putting much stock in those numbers.
“This is the Final,” Maurice said. “These are two great teams. You’re not playing the eighth seed or the 16th seed, so that skews all of that. And then we don’t think about it.”
