Tkachuk sets ‘tone’ as Panthers top Rangers in G1
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Greg Wyshynski, ESPN
NEW YORK CITY — The Florida Panthers’ Game 1 win over the New York Rangers may have set the tone for the Eastern Conference final. But Matthew Tkachuk unquestionably established it in Florida’s 3-0 victory on Wednesday night.
Tkachuk opened the scoring with a first-period goal after delivering two booming hits on the Rangers’ Vincent Trocheck.
“He’s a leader. A true leader of this team,” Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said. “Today was a good example of that: He set the tone physically, made some plays and did whatever he does at his best. And we follow his lead.”
Tkachuk finished with a goal and an assist on Sam Bennett‘s empty-netter that iced the win, giving Florida a 1-0 series lead ahead of Friday night’s Game 2 at Madison Square Garden.
The Panthers forward has 16 points in 12 games, with five goals and 11 assists.
Tkachuk hasn’t had the same star moments in the Panthers’ series wins against the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins as he did in Florida’s run to the Stanley Cup Final last season. His coach, Paul Maurice, said that “I would never bet against him coming up with some heroics” in the conference final.
“The players have kind of come to expect it. So it’s not necessarily a huge boost in that, ‘Oh my god, Matthew scored a goal.’ But for him, that just gets him cooking,” Maurice said.
The Panthers coach said that Tkachuk’s greatest contribution to the win was reorienting the team to face the Rangers. Game 1 was a tightly played, physical contest that remained 1-0 until 16:12 of the third period. Florida grinded out a win.
“What he did tonight is he righted our team back to the simple parts of our game,” Maurice said. “These are the best players in the world and they’re capable of doing more. But sometimes less is just way better, and it’s also quite a bit smarter. And I thought he led in that department.”
The Panthers got on the scoreboard first at 16:26 of the first period. Tkachuk took a drop pass from defenseman Gustav Forsling, used a screen from Rangers defenseman Adam Fox and beat goalie Igor Shesterkin for the 1-0 lead.
“It was smart because it was a shot off the rush, instead of trying to wait to find more,” Maurice said.
Tkachuk said he doesn’t feel any extra responsibility to be an offensive force in the conference final.
“I don’t put any pressure on myself to score or produce offense. It’s not about myself here. There’s a way bigger goal ahead. Guys on our team that didn’t score tonight were some of our best players,” he said. “There’s so much buy-in from everybody that nobody cares who’s producing, who’s doing whatever, who’s doing the hitting. I mean, at the end of the day, we’re here for wins. That’s it.”
The Panthers took Game 1 by killing two Rangers power plays, getting a strong 23-save performance from Sergei Bobrovsky and controlling play at even strength for long stretches. In the second period, the Rangers went 14:25 between shots on goal.
“I thought we had opportunities that we didn’t cash in on really. Some of that we’ve got to give to them. Some of it we got to take responsibility with our execution and getting pucks to areas that we need to get to,” Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said.
It’s the first time the Rangers have trailed in a series in the 2024 playoffs, having gone 8-2 before facing the Panthers.
“It’s onto the next game. It’s a long, long, long fight,” defenseman Jacob Trouba said. “I think throughout the course of a series, you’re probably going to be down at some point throughout the playoffs. Anytime you lose a game, you want to respond in the next one.”
Tkachuk believes the Panthers have room for improvement, too.
“All in all happy with how it went, but there are a lot of things that we can get better at,” Tkachuk said. “But I never complain after a win, especially in playoffs. So on to Game 2.”
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Greg Wyshynski
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.
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Eric Karabell
Boston Red Sox SS prospect Marcelo Mayer is getting the call to the major leagues, as starting 3B Alex Bregman (calf) is headed to the injured list. Fantasy managers should not expect Mayer, 22, to replace Bregman’s excellent numbers (.938 OPS), but he should see opportunity for playing time over the likes of Nick Sogard and Abraham Toro. Mayer is an excellent defensive shortstop, but he has played second base and third base at Triple-A Worcester as well this season.
Ranked No. 6 in Kiley McDaniels’ recently updated top 50 prospect rankings, Mayer hit .265/.342/.465 over 43 games and 193 plate appearances at Triple-A, with 9 home runs, 43 RBI and 2 stolen bases. The No. 4 pick in the 2021 amateur draft, Mayer hits left-handed, makes solid contact and drew a 10.4% walk rate this season. There is power upside, but as with most prospects, fantasy managers should keep initial expectations well in check.
Everyone loves the prospects until they reach the majors and alter their narrative (as most do). Chicago Cubs rookie IF Matt Shaw struggled earlier this season and was sent back to Triple-A, though he has returned to the majors. Arizona Diamondbacks SS Jordan Lawlar remains hitless in the majors this season. New Red Sox teammate Kristian Campbell is hitting .225 with a 27% strikeout rate. Hitting big league pitching can be problematic even for long-time veterans. In ESPN’s shallow standard leagues, with no middle infield spot and only nine active hitting spots, it is tough to make an argument to rush out and add Mayer. At the time of the promotion announcement, he was available in 94% of ESPN standard leagues.
Those needing to replace Bregman at third base should look at the Texas Rangers‘ Josh Jung and Jake Burger, and the Philadelphia Phillies‘ Alec Bohm, proven players with job security. For those looking at adding Mayer as their shortstop, Angels star Zach Neto somehow remains available in 71% of leagues, and he certainly comes recommended over Mayer, as does Colorado Rockies starter Ezequiel Tovar. Mayer will likely hit near the bottom of the Boston lineup. If he hits well, he might move up, and he might keep his roster spot even when Bregman returns to health.
It is exciting when one of the top prospects in the sport earns a promotion, but hitting a baseball against top pitching can be challenging for all. Those in deeper formats can make a better case to add Mayer and hope for the best.
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