Tkachuk has been issued 36 penalty minutes during the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final
Tkachuk has been issued 36 penalty minutes during the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final
It’s been an odd Stanley Cup Final debut for Florida Panthers superstar Matthew Tkachuk.
He entered the series playing some of the best clutch playoff hockey of all-time, scoring four goals during Florida’s four-game sweep of Carolina in the conference final.
Three of those four goals were game winners, including the series clincher with 4.9 seconds left in Game 4, while the other two came during overtimes in Games 1 and 2.
Through 18 playoff games, Tkachuk has racked up 10 goals and 22 points.
He also has 60 penalty minutes.
More than half of them have come during first two games against Vegas.
Tkachuk has been issued three misconducts, including two on Monday night during Florida’s 7-2 defeat at T-Mobile Arena.
“I was a little bit surprised by it,” Tkachuk said of his first misconduct of Game 2, which came with 2:04 remaining in the second period. “I went to the bench getting ready for a power play. I think one of those misconducts I deserved, but I don't know about the other one.”
The second misconduct came with just under six minutes left in the game, and it was the start of a swarm of Panthers players making an early entrance to the locker room.
Casey Fitzgerald, Eric Staal, Anthony Duclair, Nick Cousins and Sam Reinhart were also shown the door by the officiating crew.
By the end of the game, Florida’s bench resembled the missing-tooth grin of a veteran hockey player.
Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice, as he often is, was asked about the officiating after the game.
He held back from any direct criticisms but also sent the message to his club not to beat themselves up over the calls.
“Power plays were 2-1 Vegas through 36 minutes. It wasn’t a discipline (issue),” he said. “What happened after that…I won’t debate.”
What happened after that, at the 17:56 mark of the second period, was Tkachuk leveled Golden Knights star center Jack Eichel with a crushing open ice hit at the Panthers blue line.
Eichel’s head was down, and he appeared to toe-pick just before contact, causing his body to lunge forward right into Tkachuk as the 6-foot-2, 201-point forward was locking on to his target.
The hit was violent and jarring, but it was not dirty.
Eichel immediately skated off the ice in clear discomfort. After the game he said he was trying to catch his breath, which is why he looked the way he did.
Eichel was back on the ice for the start of the third period no worse for the wear, and he looked just fine while dishing out the primary assist on Jonathan Marchessault’s goal at the 2:10 mark.
Both Eichel and Tkahcuk agreed after the game that the hit was clean.
“I just came off the bench and saw him in the middle of the ice with his head down, and it doesn't matter who you are, you shouldn't be going through the middle with your head down, you're going to get hit,” Tkachuk said. “I would get hit too if I had my head down in the middle. It's not a big deal. He is a really good player. Really good players can get hit too.”
The series will now take a chill pill for a couple days as the scene shifts from the Vegas to South Florida.
Panthers fans have been waiting 27 years for the chance to cheer their team on during the Stanley Cup Final.
During the two road games, fans paid $10 a ticket and packed FLA Live Arena for watch parties, with thousands upon thousands of dedicated Panthers followers cheering on their beloved Cats.
Now they’ll get the chance to see the Panthers in person, in what is absolutely the most important game of the season.
Florida knows that falling behind 0-3 in a playoff series is a death wish.
“Going home and playing in front of our amazing fans, and the momentum we've had playing there, honestly since January…we've been a solid home team and we're going to need them,” said Tkachuk.
“We hope to come out in Game 3 playing our best hockey of the season. I think if we do that, it'll be a recipe for success for us and we can make this a series.”