Seeking first championship in team history, Florida sees similar opponents in Dallas and Edmonton

Don’t look now, but the Florida Panthers are going back to the Stanley Cup Final.

After falling behind in the Eastern Conference Finals two games to one to the Presidents’ Trophy-winning New York Rangers, Florida reeled off three straight wins to punch their ticket to the big dance for the second straight season.

The Panthers will now have a week to rest and recuperate before going into the Stanley Cup Final with what should be a fully healthy roster.

Before we move on to the biggest stage in all of hockey, let’s dive into our Game 6 ECF takeaways:

Big game from back line

As the Panthers had done throughout the series, they clamped down on the with a strong, aggressive defensive game.

There were different challenges that emerged as the Rangers attempted to adjust to Florida’s style of play, but ultimately the Panthers five-man, team-oriented style of defending was too much for the Rangers to overcome.

Perhaps that’s part of why Florida held the Rangers to just 12 total goals during the six-game series.

“(New York) had a bit of an adjustment in their game,” Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice said. “I felt they put a lot more pucks deep brand, ran a stronger forecheck than they did early, which drove I think shot attempts higher. Early in that game, maybe through the first 30 or parts of the first 30, our D are working heavy corner work, and that's hard to do. But that won’t be what I show them (on tape), what I will show them are the line holds in the third. Playing against so much speed, the first reaction for defenseman is to give ice. It's natural and normal, especially with one little lead and the pressure of the moment of the game, potentially a conference ending game. They got really good and mobile, the Montour hit in the third period, that's what I'll walk (with). They were especially good, and it takes some courage to hold the line against the team with that skill level. You can just as easily give ice, and nobody will blame you. The back end held the line.”

Sam Bennett en fuego

It’s no secret how crucial Bennett has been to the Panthers success.

The veteran centerman plays a key role as an incredibly fast and physical presence in Florida’s forward ranks.

What Bennett does best are the things that Maurice asks most of his forwards.

Bennett’s goal in Game 6 against New York was his third in as many games. He’s up to six goals and 10 points in 12 playoff games.

“I'm sure after missing a couple of weeks it was a little bit of an adjustment coming back in the lineup,” said Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk. “But now him being fully healthy, you can see what he is doing out there, you can see what he's capable of. The way his physicality and his speed gets on the defense, he’s so easy to play. I'm very proud of the way he's been playing. He's leaving it (out there) each and every night, he's playing super physical and I think that's what drives our line.”

Looking ahead

The Panthers will have a week until they get back to the task at hand, and it could be a few days before they find out which team they need to prepare for.

As it stands, the Edmonton Oilers hold a 3-2 lead over the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Finals, with Game 6 coming up from Alberta on Sunday.

Despite the unknown, Florida will be able to start prepping for two teams that aren’t terribly dissimilar.

“I think there's a lot of New York Rangers in both these teams,” said Maurice. “They have brilliant speed and are dynamic off the rush. That would be our sense, that the Boston Bruins series to the New York Rangers series have all is completely different. (Our next opponent) will be more akin to what we've seen in our last series. We think we've seen three completely different styles in some ways. Tampa was such a dynamic, broken play team. You could subdue them for a while, those guys could find a way. That Boston series was as physical and as nasty as a series of any I’ve been a part of. Last year, before they changed the (way they judge hitting), there was 86 hits in Game 1. It was the most physical game I’ve ever seen. But it took a year before it got mean, and that series was as mean and nasty as I've been a part of. This came up completely different, D-zones, the systems were completely different, it was a major shift for us. We think this would be more akin to what we’ve seen.”

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