Connect with us

Published

3 years ago

on

8:10 AM ET

With the 2022 Winter Olympics fast approaching and NHL players still on track to participate, excitement is growing for American fans.

(Not over Team USA’s new sweaters, unless Patrick Kane will be playing rugby in Beijing. But USA Hockey has answered the nagging question of what the men’s national team would look like if Mike Ditka designed the jerseys.)

The U.S. team’s goaltending depth is stronger than Canada’s. The team has forwards like Auston Matthews, which is great, although not “Canada great,” considering our friends from the North could have Connor McDavid or Nathan MacKinnon playing on their second line.

But the most fascinating part of the potential Team USA roster is the defense, because the growth of that position in this hockey nation has itself been fascinating.

The country has produced Hall of Fame defensemen like Phil Housley, Brian Leetch, Chris Chelios and Mark Howe. The current crop has the potential to yield a few more.

Here’s a look at the state of American defensemen, taking into account recent history and their starts to the season. We’ve ranked them in tiers according to our own observations and with input from those we informally polled, including Chelios, now an ESPN studio analyst.

The elite

Adam Fox, New York Rangers
Charlie McAvoy, Boston Bruins

They’re the consensus top two American-born defensemen in the NHL today. Fox, 23, has 107 points in his first 143 NHL games with the Rangers, winning the Norris Trophy last season. McAvoy, 23, is still looking for his awards breakthrough, but with 134 points in 250 games and a 200-foot game, he’s the next in the great tradition of outstanding Bruins defensemen.

The main differences between the two: Fox has been an ace on the power play, with 6.38 points per 60 minutes with the man advantage. McAvoy (4.05) is no slouch, and he finally has been given the keys to the Bruins’ power play and has excelled (7.87 this season). McAvoy also gets credit for being a stouter defender in his own zone.

“McAvoy has the best overall game. You can put him on the No. 1 power play, the penalty kill, he can play a physical game against physical players and can play the speed game against the faster players,” said one NHL veteran. “Fox is a very good player in the offensive zone. He’s a heck of a defenseman. But if he’s going against a physical player in the corners, he might not come up with that puck as often as McAvoy would.”

The divisive ones

John Carlson, Washington Capitals
Seth Jones, Chicago Blackhawks

Perhaps having a name that sounds like “Karlsson” means dominating offensively but getting dragged for defensive deficiencies. No American-born defenseman has more points (349) since 2014-15 than the 31-year-old Carlson, whose passing acumen has helped power the Capitals at even strength and on their deadly power play. But his only Norris Trophy nomination was in 2019-20, when he was the runner-up. The winner that season, Roman Josi, was seen to have a more “complete” all-around game. Despite 75 points in 69 games, Carlson couldn’t overcome that perception.

Jones, 27, has represented one of the widest gaps between the analytics community and the NHL’s “eye test” dogma for a few seasons, to the point where it’s become a study in and of itself.

“Players like Jones force us to consider the ways that flashy displays of talent do not necessarily translate to macro-level on-ice results; how a player can be really good at certain very visible things but quietly ineffective in other areas,” noted the analytics writer JFresh.

Jones is having a bounce-back campaign with the Blackhawks, after a tough start. “He likes to get up the ice and lead the play. He’s settled down quite a bit from the beginning of the year. He’s playing a lot smarter,” Chelios said.

Former Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman committed eight years, $76 million and full no-move protection to Jones in a contract that starts next season. That salary did little to help bridge the perception gap. One NHL veteran we spoke with believed that Jones is actually a better defenseman than Adam Fox, but that his contract with the Blackhawks obscures that.

“He’s a really good defenseman, but not at $9.5 million [against the cap],” he said.

The expected Olympians

Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks
Jaccob Slavin, Carolina Hurricanes
Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets

Jones has already been named to the U.S. Olympic men’s hockey team for the Beijing Games in 2022. It’s assumed that Fox and McAvoy will join him. Carlson played in Sochi and is one of the youngest of the old guard, so he’s expected to be there, too.

Three other spots could go to these three defensemen. Hughes, 22, is an instant-offense player with speed and creativity, although his defensive game is still coming along.

Chelios said he likes everything about Hughes but his size, as he’s listed at 5-foot-10. “He’s not a hard guy to play against in D-zone, but he’s great with the puck. He’s got unbelievable skill,” he said.

Slavin, 27, graduated from annual “most underrated player” lists to become one of the NHL’s most respected defensive defensemen, and the perfect complement for players like Hughes and Carlson. “He’s awesome,” said one NHL veteran of Slavin. “If you’re looking for an all-around guy you can throw out there in all situations, then Jaccob Slavin is my guy.”

Werenski has emerged from the shadow that Seth Jones cast as his partner in Columbus. The 24-year-old signed a long-term deal with the Blue Jackets, and had 13 points through 16 games for them to start the season.

Chelios pushed back on the idea that Werenski was overshadowed by Jones. “I would say the opposite. I think he’s a more complete defenseman,” he said. “I’m a big fan of him. Size, strength. He’s good in every aspect.”

The old guard

Justin Faulk, St. Louis Blues
Erik Johnson, Colorado Avalanche
Alec Martinez, Vegas Golden Knights
Ryan McDonagh, Tampa Bay Lightning
Kevin Shattenkirk, Anaheim Ducks
Ryan Suter, Dallas Stars
Keith Yandle, Philadelphia Flyers

Some of these names were synonymous with U.S.-born defensemen in the past decade, and a few are proving to have a bit more left in the tank.

Suter (36), Johnson (33), McDonagh (32) and Shattenkirk (32) are all previous Olympians. Of the four, Shattenkirk has arguably had the best 2021-22 season, with 14 points in 19 games with the surprising Ducks. Martinez, 34, has gained newfound respect since joining the Golden Knights, after being an overlooked performer with the Kings. Yandle, 35, isn’t the offensive powerhouse he once was, but is closing in on Doug Jarvis’ NHL ironman streak record (964 games), having played in 939 straight as of Wednesday.

Faulk is the youngest of the “old guard” at 29 years old. It only seems like he’s been around forever because he started with the Hurricanes as a 19-year-old rookie in 2011. He has been the embodiment of “solid but unspectacular” for St. Louis.

The regression squad

Jakob Chychrun, Arizona Coyotes
Matt Grzelcyk, Boston Bruins
Jeff Petry, Montreal Canadiens
Mike Reilly, Boston Bruins
Brady Skjei, Carolina Hurricanes

Chychrun, 23, has dual citizenship and has represented Canada internationally but was born in Florida. With four points in his past five games, he’s starting to pick up the pace offensively, but he has a long way to go: A player who quietly built a Norris Trophy case last season started this campaign with five points in 19 games, potentially dashing his Team Canada Olympic hopes.

Petry, 33, has suffered an even steeper decline. He had four straight seasons with at least 40 points playing for the Canadiens. This season, he tallied two points in his first 20 games, which is a big yikes.

Chelios said the absence of Carey Price so far this season has impacted Petry. “When you’ve got a good goalie behind you, it bails you out. I’ve been in that position a lot in my career. But I still like [Petry] a lot,” he said.

Grzelcyk, 27, has struggled to fulfill the promise of his potential. Grzelcyk had two points in his first 15 games this season after posting 20 points in 37 games last season. A decrease in power-play time can carry some of that blame.

Skjei, 27, has four points in 17 games, but some of his underlying numbers are both underwhelming relative to his teammates and continue a two-year dive into below-average play.

Reilly, 28, went from being one of the best-kept secrets in the league with Montreal and Ottawa to a solid contributor for the Bruins last season, who kicked him a new three-year deal in the offseason. But it hasn’t been the best start for him, as the Bruins made him a healthy scratch on a couple of occasions. After being one of the better defensemen in puck retrieval for them, “he’s leaving some of that dirty work to his partner too often when it’s his turn,” said coach Bruce Cassidy.

The resurgent squad

Shayne Gostisbehere, Arizona Coyotes
Cam Fowler, Anaheim Ducks
Noah Hanifin, Calgary Flames
Nick Jensen, Washington Capitals
John Marino, Pittsburgh Penguins
Torey Krug, St. Louis Blues
Nate Schmidt, Winnipeg Jets

It took a season, but Krug looks like Krug again. Leaving Boston to ostensibly replace Alex Pietrangelo in St. Louis was a tough transition, but he’s playing improved defense and is on his way to generating a great portion of points on the power play, where he was extremely effective in Boston.

Fowler, 29, is off to a great start offensively (13 points in 19 games) after a couple of middling scoring campaigns for the Ducks.

Marino, 24, has been unable to build on an outstanding rookie season (2019-20), but he has shown signs early this season that he might be bouncing back from his sophomore slump. Hanifin, 24, has also rebounded from a couple of rough campaigns, with better possession numbers under coach Darryl Sutter, which is to be expected. He’s got something good going with partner Rasmus Andersson.

A couple of players just needed new addresses. Schmidt, 30, has wiped off the stink from his ill-fated stint with the Vancouver Canucks and has helped steady the game of Josh Morrissey in Winnipeg. And how about that Ghost Bear with the Coyotes, huh? Gostisbehere is currently posting his highest points-per-60 minutes average (2.1) since the 2017-18 season with the Flyers.

Jensen, meanwhile, has seen his ice time jump by nearly two minutes with the Capitals as Dmitry Orlov‘s primary partner. The 31-year-old is fourth in the league among defensemen at 5.5 goals scored above average.

The underrated

Brandon Carlo, Boston Bruins
Nick Leddy, Detroit Red Wings
Ryan Lindgren, New York Rangers
Brett Pesce, Carolina Hurricanes
Neal Pionk, Winnipeg Jets

With Slavin having graduated off the “underrated” list, he has symbolically passed the torch to his teammate Pesce. The 27-year-old can contribute offensively and play steady on defense, and has been mentioned as being on a long list for the Olympics.

Pionk, 26, plays a solid blue-collar game for the Jets. He had breakout offensive seasons from 2019-20 to 2020-21, yet still hasn’t landed on many radar screens as a Winnipeg defenseman. But his underlying numbers are strong and he can play in all phases of the game.

The Islanders could certainly still use Leddy, who was a steadying regular-season presence for them since 2015. But the salary cap dictated his move to the Red Wings, where he has been a good veteran partner to Filip Hronek and Moritz Seider this season.

Lindgren, 24, has been one of the secrets to Adam Fox‘s success in the NHL, pairing perfectly with the Norris winner. He’s solid in his defensive role and not a bad skater himself, either.

The unbalanced

Tony DeAngelo, Carolina Hurricanes
Connor Murphy, Chicago Blackhawks
Jacob Trouba, New York Rangers

All three of these players cannot claim to have great all-around games, even if they have some great facets to their games.

Trouba, 27, was an average defenseman with some outstanding offensive potential with the Jets. In his two previous seasons with the Rangers, he didn’t fulfill that potential offensively. His underlying numbers are promising at the start of this season, and he had seven points through his first 18 games.

Murphy has contributed offensively here and there, despite being a defensive defenseman. But that’s dried up so far: 0.3 points per 60 minutes through 19 games this season. Then again, it hasn’t exactly been the best ride for him overall with a 35.8% Corsi for percentage.

DeAngelo, whom the Rangers infamously let go last season, has reminded everyone why he was sought after despite his reputation: 16 points in 17 games with the Hurricanes, with six of them coming on the power play. They brought him in to help fill the offensive hole left by Dougie Hamilton, and fill it he has. But he remains a player whose offensive prowess can help obscure his shortcomings.

The next ones

Mikey Anderson, Los Angeles Kings
Luke Hughes, New Jersey Devils
K’Andre Miller, New York Rangers
Scott Perunovich, St. Louis Blues
Jake Sanderson, Ottawa Senators

The next class of American defensemen features some who have already made the show — Anderson (22), Miller (21) and Perunovich (23), who was just called up by the Blues — and a couple of recent draftees in Sanderson and Hughes.

The past was solid. The present is outstanding. With these players, and the young stars who are still improving, the future is bright for U.S.-born defensemen.

Three things about jerseys

1. Jersey Devils

I grew up a New Jersey Devils fan. I understand the initial disappointment fans had from seeing their all-black third jerseys, because they were radically different than the ones we’d all imagined since the team switched its color palette three decades ago. There wasn’t a radical reimagining of the logo or a menacing visage of a devil on the front. It’s a jersey that has “JERSEY” on the front of it and more white stripes than an alt-rock station’s 2003 playlist.

When something doesn’t match what the mind’s eye sees, disenchantment sets in, and the dunk party begins. Fun as it’s been, I can’t join the party, because (shrug) I like them. Sure, I could use fewer stripes and some sort of logo — either a Devils insignia or a silhouette of the state — near the wordmark on the front. But I like them for their boldness. I like that’s a little street art adjacent. And I like that for millions of us who say “we’re from Jersey” when asked about our geographic lineage, the only major pro team with the state’s name in its moniker wears that with pride.

Now, go make the hat that says “HAT,” will ya, Devils?

2. Team USA

There’s so much wrong with these national team jerseys that it’s hard to know where to start, so I’ll focus on the absurdity of that third jersey, aka a second blue jersey.

From the ad copy: “Drawing inspiration from American ‘muscle cars’ and traditionally bold hockey designs, Team USA’s alternate jersey bears a deep blue double stripe running around the chest and arms.” Finally, a hockey sweater for Jay Leno!

Inside the collar is the message “Driven By Pride,” a statement meant to inspire our athletes to win for their nation … or buy a BMW, which made that slogan its ad campaign in 2020.

3. Team Canada

I have no idea what Canada was thinking with this logo, because the maple leaf on the front of its national team’s jerseys looks like the backside of a turkey. I hate that I’m the one that had to point this out, because it makes it absolutely impossible for you to see anything but the posterior of a Meleagris gallopavo domesticus when you see Team Canada at the Olympics. I’m truly sorry, although not really.

Winners and losers of the week

Winner: Jared Bednar

What a pleasant surprise. Bednar, the winningest coach in Colorado Avalanche history, looked destined to take the fall if the team fell apart in the playoffs again. Another postseason dud, and general manager Joe Sakic would dump Bednar and opt for “the guy with the Stanley Cup ring” to get the Avalanche over the top. (A Claude Julien or Mike Babcock type.)

Instead, Bednar was extended through the 2023-24 season. That’s an endorsement not only of his coaching prowess, but an indication that Sakic isn’t going to overreact if Colorado can’t scale the mountain again. More on the move here from Adrian Dater.

Loser: Travis Green

Can the plummeting Vancouver Canucks finally excuse this man from the apocalypse? Green’s hands aren’t clean in this mess — at a .350 points percentage, this appears to be the fourth of his five seasons in Vancouver with a team under .500. But this version of the team’s problem is construction and not coaching, and word is that total regime change is coming. As Patrick Johnston reports, a disagreement among team owners may be preventing GM Jim Benning from doing what should have already been done.

Winner: Calgary Flames

The Flames haven’t lost in regulation in seven games (5-0-2) and shredded the Eastern Conference on a recent road trip. We figured coach Darryl Sutter was going to get this team in shape defensively, and they’re first in the league with a 1.90 goals-against average. But the Flames have a plus-30 goal differential because they’re seventh in team offense (3.40 goals per game). Hiring Sutter was a Hail Mary last season from GM Brad Treliving. Sometimes those passes connect for a score.

Loser: New York Islanders

Losing players to COVID-19 protocols and injuries, the Islanders opened UBS Arena with three straight losses — part of a seven-game losing streak overall in which they were outscored 31-7. But hey, at least there are 17 bars to take the edge off.

Winner: Connor McDavid‘s house

Here’s the problem with Connor McDavid’s house: perception. Architectural Digest used the word “cozy” in its description, which is like describing McDavid’s skating as “plodding.” This is not a warm sweater of a house. This is an ostentatious luxury hotel with a dog. And that’s OK! It’s gorgeously designed and a stunner. You do you, Connor and Lauren.

Loser: The discourse on the discourse

For years, I’ve been told that NHL players who say controversial things shouldn’t get goofed on by fans, because they’ll run away like scared little bunnies and never say anything interesting again. Now I’m hearing “don’t goof on a player’s Architectural Digest spread or else they won’t show us their houses anymore.”

If players require 100% approval ratings to do and say things, we might as well ban booing at games. Or, you know, assume they understand what comes with the territory as a famous person in professional sports, which is a depository for our hyperbolic reactions and emotions.

Puck Headlines

From your friends at ESPN

Neil Paine tries to figure out what the Seattle Kraken are and what they could be this season.

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

Sports

Panthers one game away from another Cup Final: Grades, biggest takeaways from Game 3

Published

3 hours ago

on

May 25, 2025

By

Panthers one game away from another Cup Final: Grades, biggest takeaways from Game 3

  • Multiple Contributors

May 24, 2025, 11:15 PM ET

One team is a win away from advancing to a third straight Stanley Cup Final. The other is about to once again come up short in a conference final. As drastic as that sounds, that is the reality facing the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes following the Panthers’ 6-2 win Saturday in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers opened the series by scoring five goals in each of the first two games and exposing the Hurricanes in a way that hadn’t been done by another team this postseason. On Saturday, it appeared that the Canes may have found a solution as they entered the third period tied at 1-1 … before the Panthers exploded for five straight goals to close out Game 3 in emphatic fashion.

How did both teams perform? Who is worth watching in Game 4? And given that there’s a sweep in play, what could Monday mean for both teams, knowing that one of them could see their season come to an end? Ryan S. Clark and Kristen Shilton answer those questions while reviewing what has been a lopsided Eastern Conference finals.

The Panthers withstood an expected early push from Carolina and settled swiftly into their own game. They failed to capitalize on their first-period power-play chance but made up for it by opening the scoring with a goal credited to Niko Mikkola (that actually went off Carolina’s Dmitry Orlov) midway through the first. It was a deflating marker for Carolina goalie Pyotr Kochetkov to cede right after a solid Hurricanes penalty kill and appeared to diminish Carolina’s confidence.

There was potential to shift Carolina’s momentum, though. Before the first period ended, Panthers forward Eetu Luostarinen finished a check sending Jackson Blake awkwardly into the boards. That earned Luostarinen a five-minute penalty and game misconduct, putting the Panthers down two of their top forwards in Luostarinen and an injured Sam Reinhart. But Florida didn’t let the lengthy man advantage hurt its momentum. The Panthers killed it off and matched Carolina’s shot total while shorthanded.

While the score was tied at 1-1 going into the third, Florida regained its lead with Jesper Boqvist undressing (to put it mildly) Orlov in shocking fashion. Boqvist entered the lineup to replace Reinhart, and it was the type of contribution Florida could only hope to see from its depth skater.

It was all Panthers from there, with goals from Mikkola, Aleksander Barkov (capitalizing on a turnover by Orlov), Evan Rodrigues and Brad Marchand giving Florida a 6-1 lead halfway through the third and putting Carolina against the ropes going into an elimination Game 4. Florida will wonder about Mikkola’s status ahead of that tilt. (He left in the third period Saturday after slamming into the end boards.) But the Cats can’t be too frustrated given their win. — Kristen Shilton

play

0:53

Jesper Boqvist puts Panthers back ahead

Jesper Boqvist goes through the goaltender’s legs to restore the Panthers’ lead vs. the Hurricanes.

Unofficial Canadian poet laureate Avril Lavigne once posed one of more philosophical questions of her generation: Why’d you have to go and make things so complicated?

Everything the Hurricanes did through the first two periods of Game 3 created the belief that they could potentially stick with the Panthers. Only to then fall apart in the third period. Again.

There are numerous reasons why losing Game 3 is so damning for the Hurricanes. What might be the most prominent and prevalent is there might not be anything else they can do at this stage. We have seen the Panthers take a 3-0 series lead only to be pushed to a Game 7 in a playoff series. That was the case in last year’s Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers.

But through three games of this series? The Hurricanes have switched goaltenders, adjusted their lineups and sought out other alterations within their structure — and still lost by a large margin while once again falling prey to being on the other end of a big period. — Ryan S. Clark

Three Stars of Game 3

Mikkola has had quite a series. The defensemen has broken up plays, taken command off the rush and created quality scoring chances. He had two goals in Game 3 for his first career multigoal playoff game and the fourth multigoal playoff game in Panthers franchise history.

It was two goals and a helper for the Cats’ captain. This was Barkov’s 20th career multipoint playoff game, the most in Panthers franchise history.

3. The Panthers’ third period

The Panthers unloaded in the final frame, scoring five goals to run away with Game 3 by a final score of 6-2. Five tucks is the most in any period in a playoff game in franchise history. The Hurricanes have now lost 15 straight conference final games since they won the Stanley Cup in 2006. — Arda Öcal

play

0:44

Panthers pour it on with 2 more quick goals

The Panthers net two more goals in just over a minute to pad their lead vs. the Hurricanes.

Players to watch in Game 4

There’s no question Florida’s netminder has been building a Conn Smythe case with his excellent play in this postseason. However, Bobrovsky hasn’t been at his most dominant in (initial) closeout games during the playoffs. He made 26 saves for an .897 save percentage in Florida’s Game 5 win over Tampa Bay to send the Lightning home, and made just 15 stops (.882 SV%) in Florida’s Game 6 loss to Toronto in the second round, when the Panthers had a chance to advance.

Bobrovsky was practically impenetrable in Game 7 of that series as the Leafs imploded, but it’s fair to wonder what version of Bobrovsky the Panthers will get in Game 4.

When Florida had an opportunity to close out Edmonton in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final last spring, Bobrovsky turned in his worst showing of the playoffs, with five goals allowed on 11 shots that saw him chased from the net in an 8-1 thumping. Florida has put itself in a good position to send Carolina home, but wouldn’t it be nice to do it sooner than later? Bobrovsky at his best will help Florida do just that. — Shilton

Benching Frederik Andersen was done with the belief that Kochetkov could give the Hurricanes a stronger chance to win. Through two periods, it appeared that that could be the case, as Kochetkov received the necessary support from the Hurricanes’ defensive structure, something that had been an issue in the first two games.

But the Panthers’ five consecutive goals in the third period derailed things. The Hurricanes have now allowed 16 goals over three games. It’s a stark contrast to the first two rounds, when Carolina allowed 18 total in 10 games against the Devils and Capitals.

Kochetkov’s first two periods of Game 3 provided a level of consistency the Hurricanes have struggled to find at times. Is it possible they take something from the opening two-thirds of Game 3 and parlay it into a different outcome in Game 4? Or will it be game and season over instead? — Clark

Big questions for Game 4

Is Florida ready to end this series?

The cliché that the fourth win of a playoff series is the hardest to get exists for a reason. The Panthers experienced that firsthand last season when they took a 3-0 lead over Edmonton in the Stanley Cup Final, then crisscrossed the continent over the next week as the Oilers clawed back to force a Game 7.

Did the Panthers learn their lesson on how to close an opponent out quickly? Florida did it to these very Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference finals two years ago with a tidy four-game sweep featuring many of the same elements we’ve seen from the Panthers in this round. But Florida appeared to have Edmonton well in hand 11 months ago, too.

Game 3 was arguably the Hurricanes’ best of the series. If they can channel some significant desperation into their game Monday, how will Florida handle the pressure of an urgent club trying not to be embarrassed with a 16th consecutive loss in a conference final situation? The Panthers can’t afford to look past what will be a dramatic Game 4. — Shilton

Is this it for the Hurricanes — and what comes next if it is?

That in and of itself is a rather loaded question for several reasons, with the obvious being: Will Monday be Carolina’s last game of the 2025 playoffs? If it is, what could that mean for the franchise going forward?

The way the Hurricanes have been constructed has allowed them to become a perennial playoff team with a legitimate chance of reaching the conference finals. But that comes with the caveat that the Canes might not go any further than that.

It was a dilemma the Panthers faced before making the changes that saw them not only win a Stanley Cup, but also be one win away from a third consecutive Stanley Cup Final. Maybe it doesn’t come to that point for the Hurricanes. But if they allow five or more goals for a fourth straight game while also struggling to score? It could lead to some difficult questions this offseason in Raleigh. — Clark

Continue Reading

Sports

Up 3-0, Panthers will not ‘start looking ahead’

Published

4 hours ago

on

May 25, 2025

By

Up 3-0, Panthers will not 'start looking ahead'

  • Greg WyshynskiMay 24, 2025, 11:35 PM ET

    Close

      Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer.

SUNRISE, Fla. — The Florida Panthers are one win away from an Eastern Conference finals sweep. They’ve outscored the Carolina Hurricanes, a team that’s lost 15 straight conference final games, by a count of 16-4. Yet Panthers forward Brad Marchand is still ready for this series to go the distance.

“We’re prepared to go seven here,” he said after their 6-2 victory in Game 3 on Saturday night. “I mean, you can’t start looking ahead. That’s such a dangerous game to play.”

Contextually, that mindset might seem preposterous. The Panthers are trying to match the Tampa Bay Lightning as the only teams since the Edmonton Oilers’ 1980s dynasty to advance to the Stanley Cup Final in three straight seasons, having won the Cup last season. They’ve dominated the Hurricanes with their physicality, scoring depth and the goaltending of Sergei Bobrovsky, who now has a .947 save percentage and a 1.33 goals-against average in the conference finals.

It seems like a matter of when, not if, Florida will eliminate Carolina — and the “when” is trending to be Monday night at home in Game 4. Yet the Panthers are the last team to take a 3-0 lead for granted.

Coach Paul Maurice recalled their semifinals series against the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2023, when they went up 3-0 and dropped a Game 4 on home ice. “We wanted it so bad that we tried to win the game on every play,” he said.

Then came the ultimate lesson on how not to close out a series: The 2024 Stanley Cup Final, which saw the Panthers squander a 3-0 series lead to the Edmonton Oilers before finally winning Game 7 to hoist the Cup for the first time.

Maurice hopes his players understand the dynamics at play in Game 4.

“They have the desperation advantage. You have, potentially, the desire advantage. Both teams will fight that. Can we control the desire emotion and play the game? Can they control the desperation emotion and play the game? The common denominator is just playing the game,” he said.

Game 3 saw the Hurricanes play with more desperation than they’ve exhibited in this series. The game was tied 1-1 entering the third period after Carolina’s Logan Stankoven — who Bobrovsky robbed earlier in the second period with a lunging blocker save — managed to knock the puck past him for a power-play goal at 14:51 to even the score.

The Hurricanes were finally looking like the stingy, tight-checking team they’re known for being. Maurice wasn’t expecting a windfall of offense from the Panthers after the first 40 minutes of Game 3.

“We’re not going out to the third period saying, ‘Well, we can tell this is going to work out [for us]. I’ve got an extra piece of gum in my pocket for the second overtime. That’s how our experience with Carolina has been,” the coach said.

The gum stayed in his pocket. Florida scored five goals in the first 10:37 of the third period to put the game — and potentially the series — away.

“We knew we needed to be a little better than what we were in the second period, so we tried to keep things simple and I think we got rewarded for that,” said captain Aleksander Barkov, who had two of the goals in the onslaught.

Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour was left dumbfounded.

“We’re playing better and then we just turn pucks over. It’s not what we do. I think everyone’s just pretty surprised, you know what I mean?” he said. “Just you can’t do that. In a preseason game it’s going to cost you. But against that team, and you turn it over for odd man rushes? Forget it.”

The key to the rally was a goal by forward Jesper Boqvist, who was put on Barkov’s line as an injury replacement for Sam Reinhart, the Panthers’ leading scorer in the regular season. He took a short pass from linemate Evan Rodrigues and then turned Carolina defenseman Dmitry Orlov (minus-4) inside out before scoring on the backhand against Pyotr Kochetkov (22 saves), who got the start over Frederik Andersen in Game 3 for Carolina.

Boqvist had just one goal and one assist in 9 playoff games this postseason, averaging 8:53 in ice time. In Game 3, he had three points (1 goal, 2 assists) and skated 15:08 for the Panthers.

“He’s an extremely gifted player. I love playing with him. He can kind of play anywhere in the lineup and he’s such an incredible skater. So strong with the puck, so smart. And that was a massive goal,” Marchand said.

The Panthers won Game 3 without Reinhart and without having forward Eetu Luostarinen for most of the game, after he was ejected for boarding Carolina forward Jackson Blake in the first period. Luostarinen was tied for the team lead with 13 points entering Game 3, with 4 goals and 9 assists.

The Panthers would kill off that 5-minute major in what Maurice called “a real inflection point in the game,” considering that Florida was missing key penalty killers in Luostarinen and Reinhart, who is day-to-day with a lower body injury. When they needed him, Bobrovsky (23 saves) was a great last line of defense.

Thanks to their third-period deluge, the Panthers are now poised to sweep the Hurricanes in the conference final for the second time in three postseasons. Yet even with Florida’s domination of the series, Marchand said his team is anything but overconfident.

“I don’t think the way the games have been played is really an indication of what the outcome’s been, score wise. They’ve been pretty tight. It just seems like we’ve gotten a couple bounces, a couple lucky breaks here and there that have given us a pretty good lead,” he said.

“But it doesn’t matter. It’s not going to change anything about next game. We’ve got to come in and prepare the same way. It’s always the toughest one to get, so we got to make sure we bring our best.”

Continue Reading

Sports

Panthers’ Luostarinen ejected after check in 1st

Published

6 hours ago

on

May 25, 2025

By

Panthers' Luostarinen ejected after check in 1st

  • Greg WyshynskiMay 24, 2025, 09:25 PM ET

    Close

      Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer.

SUNRISE, Fla. — Florida Panthers forward Eetu Luostarinen was ejected from Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals after a boarding major against forward Jackson Blake of the Carolina Hurricanes.

With 3:01 left in the first period, Blake was chasing the puck back in his own zone with Luostarinen behind him. As Luostarinen reached out with his stick, Blake stopped short of the boards and Luostarinen hit through him. Luostarinen drove Blake’s head into the boards, bloodying the Carolina forward.

The on-ice officials gave Luostarinen a five-minute major and then reviewed the hit. They confirmed the call on the ice. Per NHL Rule 41.5, when a major penalty for boarding is called, a game misconduct is automatic. A major penalty for boarding is determined by “the degree of violence of the impact with the boards.”

Luostarinen was tied for the team lead with 13 points entering Game 3, with 4 goals and 9 assists. He scored 12 of those points on the road. Blake returned to action in the second period.

The Panthers lead the series 2-0 and had a 1-0 lead in Game 3 when the major penalty was called.

Continue Reading

Trending