Florida knows how to clamp down on a late lead, and they did so again in Game 2

The Florida Panthers did not look like their usual selves in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, but they sure turned things around in Game 2.

Florida controlled the puck, had the better of the scoring chances and looked like the team that marched through the first three rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs during Monday’s 4-1 win over the Edmonton Oilers.

The victory gave Florida a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 championship series.

While much of the talk after the game had to do with the status of Sasha Barkov, there were also several positives to highlight.

Let’s get to the Game 2 takeaways.

Big night from E-Rod

Apparently, Evan Rodrigues is built for the Stanley Cup Final.

The veteran forward has three goals in two Cup Final games after popping in a pair during the third period of Game 2.

Rodrigues, in his first season with the Panthers, has shown he can play well on any forward line, providing consistent two-way play with sneaky good offensive skills and an excellent, perhaps underrated shot.

“It’s special,” Rodrigues said after the game. “I’m just trying to embrace it and stay in the moment. That’s two big wins for our team, but I think we’ve already turned the page and we’re getting ready for Game 3.”

Strong defensive effort

After getting outshot and out chanced during Game 1, the Panthers looked much more like themselves on Monday night.

The offense was there for Florida, but after an opening game in which goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky stole a win for the Panthers, he wasn’t asked to do nearly as much in Game 2.

Now the question is whether the Cats can continue to impose their defensive will when the scene shifts to Edmonton.

“I thought it was a continuation of our third period from Game 1,” Maurice said of Florida’s defending on Monday. “I thought our gap was good and the effort was outstanding.”

Holding leads is their comfort zone

Florida did not play their best in Game 1, but the closest they came to resembling their usual selves was during the third period.

That strong play continued into Monday’s game, with the Panthers limiting Edmonton’s shots and scoring opportunities while completely shutting down any high danger chances.

Over the last four periods of the Stanley Cup Final, Edmonton has mustered exactly one high danger shot on goal, according to Natural Stat Trick.

“We got two years of doing it,” Maurice said of Florida’s team defense. “We play tight games. We've always played tight, hard games. We don't necessarily score easily, that’s not a function of our skill or talent. The story in these playoffs is we've seen some pretty fine goaltending.”

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