RALEIGH, N.C. – Sergei Bobrovsky rarely gets through an interview without saying it.
“One moment at a time.”
You’ll notice he doesn’t use an adjective before “moment.”
That’s because, to him, there’s no difference.
Big or small, every moment is treated the same to the sage veteran. And for a team trying to win back-to-back Stanley Cups, that’s the perfect mindset to have between the pipes.
Standing tall to help the Florida Panthers take a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference Final, Bobrovsky made 17 saves during a 5-0 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday.
“It was a good road trip for us,” Bobrovsky said. “The guys worked hard. We had a good game, a complete game again. We skated. We worked hard. We were relentless.”
As much as relentless could be used to describe Florida’s incredible forecheck, it’s also an appropriate description of how the two-time Vezina Trophy winner approaches every day.
On game days, it’s not uncommon to hear the clanging of weights hitting the floor echoing throughout an arena as Bobrovsky squeezes in some Olympic lifting after a morning skate.
On off-days, you might spot him skating gracefully around the ice going through what he describes as a “mental and body maintenance day” in which he doesn’t face a single shot.
When it comes to his routine, it’s not one thing.
It’s everything.
“After you see it up close, you realize there’s a reason for it,” said forward Brad Marchand, who spent years trying to solve Bobrovsky as an opponent. “He competes so hard every day. He’s probably the most dedicated player that I’ve ever played with.
“With the way he takes care of himself every day and the way he recovers, everything he does has a purpose and a reason. He’s obviously and incredible, incredible goalie. He shows up in big moments. The way he’s been able to perform at that level for so long, it’s because of the work he’s put in.”
No one has been a bigger beneficiary of Bobrovsky’s routine than the Panthers.
Clearly, it works.
With his 17-save performance in Game 2 against Carolina, he set a new franchise record with his third shutout of the playoffs, which is also the most by any NHL goaltender in a single postseason since Andrei Vasilevskiy notched five in 2021.
The win also moved him into 19th places on the NHL’s all-time playoff wins list with 55.
Helping to get the Panthers to within just two wins of a third straight trip to the Stanley Cup Final, Bobrovsky seems to be gaining momentum with each and every start that he makes.
Over his last six appearances, he’s gone 5-1 with a .958 save percentage.
Elite in enemy territory, he’s also allowed just four total goals over his last three road starts.
“He’s incredible every night,” forward Sam Bennett said. “His composure in the net and his focus -- game in, game out -- he’s always dialed in. He makes the big save when he needs to and gives our team so much life, so much momentum. Yeah, we love Bobby.”
While his routine prepares his body, it also hardens his mind.
Playing a position where mental fortitude is key, Bobrovsky never gets rattled.
Case in point, there was a moment during the 5-2 win over the Hurricanes in Game 1 when Andrei Svechnikov went through his crease after a whistle and hit him directly in the head.
Popping right back up and not making too much of a fuss, Bobrovsky went on to finish with 31 saves.
"It's OK. It's playoffs,” he said of the incident with Svechnikov. “They try to get under the skin. It's alright. I just focus on my things."
With the Panthers leading 2-0 in the series, that focus now shifts to Game 3.
Set to defend their own barn, Bobrovsky will return to the crease on Saturday in Sunrise.
Just like his routine, the job’s never done.
“We get ready for the next one,” Bobrovsky said after Game 2. “Next one is a big one.”
