FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Florida Panthers blew a chance to win the Stanley Cup in Game 4 against the Edmonton Oilers. That experience might be what was needed to finally win it.
“I think you learn from it. I think the nerves are a little less now,” winger Carter Verhaeghe said before Game 5 of Tuesday’s Stanley Cup Final against the Oilers at Sunrise. “It’s a little different with the Cup in the building, but we’re not really focused on that. We’re just trying to focus on playing the best we can.”
Edmonton forced Game 5 with an 8-1 victory Saturday night.
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Florida has closed six playoff series in the last two postseasons under coach Paul Maurice. But he said it’s a different mental challenge when the players know the Cup has arrived in the building.
“It’s different. What’s the most important thing in your mind when you come to the track? That’s there, right?” said Mauricio. “So we went through this, and it’s not something you can really appreciate until you go through it.”
Forward Evan Rodrigues said the Oilers played “desperate” hockey and the Panthers weren’t prepared to match it. “I think there was a lot of energy in that game. I think we’ll be better prepared for Game 5 than Game 4,” he said.
The Oilers come into Game 5 with their backs still firmly against the wall, but with more than a little confidence. They felt like they had outscored Florida for the rest of the series, but that goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky had prevented all of the Panthers’ mistakes outside the net.
Now, they have scored seven goals in the last three periods, taking Bobrovsky to the bench in the second period of the fourth game.
“I think we finally got past this guy. He’s been playing really well,” forward Dylan Holloway said. “We knew at some point we were going to break through. We have so much skill that I think we deserved it. But at the same time, he’s such a good goalie, you never know. I mean, he can steal games.” “.
The Panthers weren’t worried about the Oilers breaking through on Bobrovsky.
“Because he is Bob,” said Dmitry Kulikov. “He’s just great. He’s our MVP right now.”
The Oilers are the ninth team in NHL history to extend a best-of-7 Stanley Cup Final after falling behind 3-0. Five of those teams would lose in Game 5. The 2012 New Jersey Devils lost in six and the 1945 Detroit Red Wings lost in seven. One team, the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, bounced back to win the Cup.
The odds are still in the Panthers’ favor, but that’s no consolation.
“Oh, there’s no consolation in the playoffs, man. You’re never in a comfortable position in the playoffs. You’ve earned your wins, you’ve earned your losses. It’s the same feeling,” Maurice said.
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