'He's got the clutch gene': Carter Verhaeghe continues to thrive in biggest moments
Verhaeghe has played in 14 Stanley Cup Playoff overtimes and scored in five of them.
It’s pretty unreal what Carter Verhaeghe has done in his relatively short NHL career.
Few were surprised when it was Verhaeghe that ended Game 2 with an overtime winner to give the Florida Panthers a 2-0 series lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It was Florida’s 11th straight playoff overtime win, and Verhaeghe has played as big a part in that postseason success as anyone.
“Anytime that we go to OT we’re pretty confident,” Verhaeghe said. “At the end of the day it’s just one shot, and someone’s got to make a play eventually.”
At just 28 years old, Verhaeghe is earning himself a reputation as one of the most clutch players in the game.
First, let’s look at his recent history.
During the regular season, Verhaeghe scored 19 of his 34 goals during the third period.
He scored during the third period of Florida’s Game 1 victory over Tampa Bay.
Clutch?
Now let’s zoom out.
In 39 playoff games with Florida, Verhaeghe has scored 16 goals, eight of which were of the game-winning variety.
Verhaeghe has scored two playoff series-clinching overtime goals – both on the road, one in a Game 7 – and he’s scored in overtime during the Stanley Cup Final.
“I can't explain it to you,” Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice said, regarding Verhaeghe’s clutch abilities. “It's certainly not a teachable thing, but it seems that as the energy level increases in a game, his game fits. It's just it's a frequency. He operates at a very high frequency, and when the game matches that frequency, good things happen.”
Tuesday was the fifth time Verhaeghe has scored a Stanley Cup Playoff overtime goal, in just his 14th playoff overtime appearance.
Only two people have done it more: Joe Sakic and Maurice Richard.
“Woah, that’s pretty good,” Maurice said when presented with that same statistic.
It’s almost laughable at this point.
When the Panthers are in need of a big goal late in a game, that’s when it’s Verhaeghe’s time to shine.
“He’s got the clutch gene, he was born with it,” said Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad. “You say that, but it's a lot of years of hard work, and when you're with him every day – and we did some rehab stuff together before the playoffs here – so when you're with him every day, and you see the work ethic he puts in, it's no surprise at all.”
LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA
