The Florida Panthers are one of those teams that might just pull off one of the greatest feats in the NHL. And what is that? A back-to-back Stanley Cup. It last happened when the Tampa Bay Lightning brought home the Cup in 2020 and 2021. This postseason, the Panthers are playing with a really aggressive style. Yeah, there’s definitely slashing, roughing, misconduct, and all that stuff going on. They’ve already shown their dominance by how they can take control of their opponents’ minds.

In Round 1 against the Lightning, the Panthers really stepped up, dominating most of the games and clinching the series 4-1, except for Game 3. The Panthers had a tough time in Games 1 and 2 against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Eastern Conference semifinals. After that, they really took charge and won games convincingly, but then came Game 5, and the scoreboard showed 6-1 for Florida by the end of the third period. In Game 6, the Maple Leafs pulled off a win with a score of 2-0, which means the series headed to Game 7!

At the Scotiabank Arena, right in Toronto’s backyard, Florida really took it to them with a 6-1 win. It was such a tough loss for the Maple Leafs that fans were actually tossing jerseys and beers at their own players’ bench out of frustration. The Panthers are off to a great start in the Eastern Conference Final against the Carolina Hurricanes, leading 1-0 after Game 1. However, looking back at their playoff journey, coach Paul Maurice accepted his team’s certain mistake and gave credit to the Tampa Bay Lightning. What’s the reason for that?

“But after game one and each one, game two in Tampa was the nastiest game that we’ve been a part of. We weren’t the sole drivers of that. They owned the other half of that, too,” Maurice said, referring to their Round 1 Game 2 against the Lightning. In Game 1 against Tampa Bay, Florida racked up 48 hits. That’s pretty impressive when you look at the other team, which only pulled off 28. But in Game 2, things took a different turn. So, the Panthers pulled off a 2-0 win, but the Lightning still got in 38 hits, while the Panthers only had 28. Interesting matchup, right?

Maurice mentioned that this was quite a drastic move from their opponent, and it was impressive how quickly they adapted their playing style, even turning their own aggressive approach back on them. With a hint of worry, Maurice remarked, “That was—walked off that bench and thought, I don’t know, there’s going to be enough to either of these two teams if that keeps up. Other than that, there have been big hits. They changed the way they marked the hitting. I’m not saying it’s wrong. They’re trying to get a consistency in the hitting, which makes sense.”

It seems like whatever Tampa Bay attempted just didn’t sit well with Florida’s coach. So, we’re in the playoffs now, and if all their players take some hits, it’s likely that someone will end up getting injured, which is definitely not what he wanted. He also pointed out how consistent the Lightning were with their hits, which might have posed a problem for the Panthers. But are you aware that the Canes were also aggressive towards Florida in Game 1?

They gave the Florida Panthers a tough time

The score of Game 1 in the Eastern Conference Final was 5-2, with the Florida Panthers taking on the Carolina Hurricanes. The Panthers really brought their A-game on offense, with Carter Verhaeghe, Aaron Ekblad, A.J. Greer, Sam Bennett, and Eetu Luostarinen all finding the back of the net. So, the MVP ended up being Sergei Bobrovsky, who made an impressive 31 saves out of 33 shots. But there was a lot of other stuff happening on the ice.

Early in the second period, Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov leveled Sergei Bobrovsky with a borderline hit that drew no call, prompting jeers from the Panthers bench. Later, emotion boiled over when Shayne Gostisbehere and Brad Marchand dropped the gloves in a spirited brawl—Marchand was ejected on the spot—underscoring how quickly tempers are flaring in this series.

Panthers are known for their aggressive style of play, but they managed to get 47 hits, while the Hurricanes topped them with 50. That’s pretty surprising! Carolina had a solid face-off advantage of 60%, but the Panthers’ goalie was on another level, making those key saves and shutting down the Canes’ offense. But you know what’s really concerning for the Panthers? Those penalty minutes. In Game 1, they scored 22 points, while Carolina only managed 8. What did the Panthers coach say about this?

“I think that’s where we learn more. I didn’t love our game, but I understood it. Significant style change. Game 1 is that first look of what your game looks like with a completely different opponent,” Paul Maurice mentioned. So, even though they won the game, there were definitely some mistakes, and the coach wasn’t too happy about it. The Florida Panthers, in Maurice’s opinion, need to step up their game now that they’re in the Eastern Conference Final. Well, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if they come up with something fresh in Game 2.