“I'm just extremely happy for a guy like Stevie and how he's battled this year and what he's gone through, the kind of person that he is, getting to know him, getting pretty close with him, and he's played phenomenal,” Okposo said of Lorentz. “You can see that he's got that spring in his step.”
The embodiment of Florida’s depth, the fourth line also isn’t just three players deep.
With Sam Bennett returning to action during Friday’s 6-2 win over the Bruins in Game 3 at TD Garden, Kevin Stenlund shifted back down to the fourth line to center Lorentz and Okposo.
Coming out of the lineup was Cousins, who joined Ryan Lomberg and Jonah Gadjovich as healthy scratches. For most teams, all three of those players would be in the lineup every single game. But with how deep the Panthers are this season, they essentially always have a “fifth line” in waiting.
"It makes you feel like a bigger family," Maurice said.
Not just scoring key goals, the fourth line has also brought the physicality against the Bruins.
Through the first three games of the high-intensity series, the four players that have spent time on that line have combined 37 hits (Okposo: 12, Stenlund: 11, Cousins: 7, Lorentz: 7) and five blocks.
“I think we’ve done a pretty good job of that (playing effective) the last couple games,” said Okposo. “We know what our job is and it’s to be heavy, hard on the forecheck, doing the little things right, and making sure we’re not being too risky with our decision making.”
Even in the stressful do-or-die scenarios of the playoffs, the fourth line can't stop smiling.
“It was a lot of fun,” Okposo said of Game 2 against Boston. “That one felt like a playoff game. It just is different, and you know there's not many things in this world that you get to do that give you that feeling, that just pure dopamine release in your brain and playoff hockey is one of them. I know that I'm not going be able to do this forever."
“I know that I'm near in the end of my road for sure, but when you get into a game like that and you get the atmosphere and you're starting to feel it, then you got some jump and some legs and you're finishing checks and creating chances, it's just a phenomenal feeling. I'm so proud to just be part of the group and being able to add to the group.”
While fans have been cheering on the fourth line, so have the rest of the Panthers.
These are just guys you root for.
Okposo is back in the playoffs after an eight-year drought, Lorentz is a player that fought his way from the ECHL to the bright lights of the NHL, Cousins is a beloved glue guy in the locker room and Stenlund is now a crucial piece of a playoff team after weathering knee issues early in his career.
“They work so hard,” Tkachuk said. “They put so much into it, and it's so good to see them get rewarded. They were creating energy for us and providing a spark, chipping in with goals, and ultimately being a positive impact and difference for us. I’m very happy for them.”
The fourth line will look to keep on grinding when the Panthers try to take a 3-1 series lead against the Bruins in the Eastern Conference Second Round in Game 4 at TD Garden on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET.
