SUNRISE, Fla. – The Florida Panthers know better than most that a sweep is never easy.
Twice they found themselves up 3-0 in a series during last year’s run to the Stanley Cup, and both times the team on the brink of elimination managed to keep their season alive.
But with the Panthers just one win away from a third straight trip to the Stanley Cup Final, few teams also know better what it takes to advance and get the hardest win you can in a series.
Leading the Carolina Hurricanes 3-0 in the Eastern Conference Final, the defending champs are prepared to shut the door in Game 4 at Amerant Bank Arena on Monday.
“It’s a seven-game series,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said. “We’ve won three, but it doesn’t three to win a series. That’s the simplest answer I’ve got. It takes four [wins]. We need one more. It’s the hardest one to win. They’re going to be ready, and I know we will as well.”
Being ready has been Florida’s calling card through the first three games of the series.
In all three games, they’ve opened the scoring and never looked back.
Taking a commanding lead in the series, the Panthers erupted for five goals in the third period of an eventual 6-2 win to push the Hurricanes to the brink in Game 3 on Saturday in Sunrise.
Aleksander Barkov and Niko Mikkola each scored twice, while Jesper Boqvist and Brad Marchand also touched twine. Called into action after Sam Reinhart suffered a lower-body injury on a low hit in Game 2, Boqvist stepped up and also chipped in a pair of assists.
Stopping 23 of 25 shots in Game 3, Sergei Bobrovsky kept the game close prior to Florida’s scoring spree in the third period, including making an incredible save on Logan Stankoven.
On fire, "Playoff Bob" has gone 6-1 with a .952 save percentage and two shoutouts in his last seven starts.
Showcasing their depth in this year’s playoffs, 18 different Panthers have netted a goal through 15 games, with Sam Bennett leading the team’s lamp lighters with nine.
Evan Rodrigues paces the Panthers with six points against the Hurricanes and is one of just six players to record multiple assists in each of the first three games of a Conference Final. Right behind him, Barkov, Bennett, Tkachuk and Carter Verhaeghe have all registered five points.
That depth will be put to the test again in Game 4 as Reinhart, Niko Mikkola and A.J. Greer are all unavailable with injuries. Mikkola and Greer both exited in the third period of Game 3 and did not return. All three players are considered day to day, according to head coach Paul Maurice.
With Boqvist staying in and holding down Reinhart’s spot on the top line for a second straight game, Sturm will slot in on the fourth line and Balinskis will join the blue line, likely on the bottom pair.
Sturm has appeared in seven games this postseason, while Balinskis has played in four.
"The determination is the three guys that I'm playing -- obviously Boqvist is already in -- but those guys would perform better than those three men would tonight,” Maurice said.
For the Hurricanes, it’s now or never to snap out of an historic streak.
Entering Game 4, they’ve lost a record 15 straight games in the Eastern Conference Final, including being previously swept by the Panthers in 2023.
Outscored 16-4 through the first three games of the series, the big guns have been held in check for Carolina. The team’s three leading scorers entering the series – Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis and Andrei Svechnikov – have combined to notch just two goals and six points.
Svechnikov, who’s scored a team-high eight goals this postseason, has just one shot.
How have the Panthers kept him in check?
“Not letting him shoot,” defenseman Gustav Forsling said.
Simple enough.
Despite controlling 54.06% of shot attempts at 5-on-5, the Hurricanes haven’t managed to generate much with that possession against the Panthers. Per NaturalStatTrick.com, they not only trail 12-1 in goals at 5-on-5, but have earned just 45.58% share of expected goals.
Thrown into the series in the third period of Game 2 after Frederik Andersen had given up four goals on 16 shots, backup goalie Pyotr Kochetkov did the best he could in Game 3.
Despite surrendering six goals, Kochetkov kept the Hurricanes in the fight for much of the game against the Panthers, with seven of his 22 saves in the loss considered high danger.
Even with that effort, reports from Carolina’s morning skate are that Andersen, who's seen his save percentage in the playoffs dip from .937 to .907 during this series, will start Game 4.
In a battle between desperation and desire, the Panthers hope desire will prevail.
“When you’re in that situation, you’re going to bring your best game,” defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. “We know that. It’s never easy closing out a series.”
THEY SAID IT
"He's the full package. I've seen it for almost three years now. It's an honor playing with him. ... He's leading right now and doing it in such an amazing way." – Matthew Tkachuk on Aleksander Barkov
“I don’t know he’s scoring those goals. They’re pretty incredible. I guess I’ve got to learn from him. His wingspan, we call him The Condor, it’s impressive to see how he’s able to get across the ice with that wingspan.” – Aaron Ekblad on Niko Mikkola
"You don't think about that. We're prepared to go seven here. I think the biggest thing for this group is we're really good at just focusing on what we need to do and staying in the moment and not looking ahead. You can't start looking ahead." – Brad Marchand on trying to close out a series
“Sometimes less is more. You want to stay in your game plan and don’t overdo anything. The opportunities are going to come from the simple stuff.” – Gustav Forsling on Florida’s defensive approach
FIVE CATS STATS
- The Panthers have scored at least five goals in each of their last four games.
- Ten different Panthers have recorded at least 10 points this postseason.
- Aleksander Barkov leads Florida with six points (3G, 3A) at home this postseason.
- The Panthers own a 7-1 record when Sam Bennett scores a goal.
- Matthew Tkachuk has tallied 10 points (5G, 5A) in his last seven games vs. Carolina.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Evan Rodrigues – Aleksander Barkov – Jesper Boqvist
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Brad Marchand
Nico Sturm – Tomas Nosek – Jonah Gadjovich
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Dmitry Kulikov – Seth Jones
Nate Schmidt – Uvis Balinskis
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Vitek Vanecek
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Monday, May 26 at 8 p.m. ET
Where: Amerant Bank Arena – Sunrise, FL
TV: TNT, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 92.1 WZZR-FM & 1230 WBZT-AM (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); Panthers App; SiriusXM Channel 220 / App & Streaming 931
Tickets: Click Here
