“I can’t explain it to you any better, but these guys are different,” Paul Maurice said last year after the Panthers beat Edmonton 2-1 in Game 7 to lift the Stanley Cup for the first time in their 30-season history. Cut to the present day, the Oilers are just one win away from doing it again, that too against the same opponent, all thanks to their dominant 5-2 victory in Game 5.
Brad Marchand took the initiative again. With two goals, Marchand brought his series-leading total to six goals, while Sam Bennett continued his postseason dominance by netting his NHL playoff-leading 15th goal. Both Sam Reinhart and Eetu Luostarinen scored into the empty net, and that defined the Panthers’ night as one step away from repeating the glory. While the team capitalised on their key chances, they bounced back perfectly after a Game 4 loss and now look forward to the most anticipated one.
However, in a recent zoom call with the media after the win, Maurice was asked whether things feel different this time around, when last year, the Panthers admitted they could hardly sleep before a potential closeout game. “Well, we’re hopeful. Certainly the context changes when you get this close, but having a bit of an experience does matter. It does help in this,” Maurice highlighted how the games they played previously made the team tough and resilient to compete in the present.
Credits – X / @FlaPanthers
Well, he had more to add. “I think we were all pretty wired after game three last year, and I think we can handle that a bit better now,” Maurice further said. The Panthers lost the plot in Game 4 last year as the Oilers clobbered them 8-1 at Rogers Place, starting a comeback run that would take the series to the winner-takes-all Game 7.
This is a developing story…
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