Beyond Marchand, 5 Panthers who were key in Cup Final Game 2 double overtime win
Brad Marchand was the obvious headliner of the Florida Panthers’ 5-4, double overtime victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Friday night in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final.
But the Panthers had a slew of other key contributors throughout the game to help them even the best-of-7 series at 1-1, with the games now shifting to Sunrise for Game 3 on Monday and Game 4 on Thursday.
Here are five of those players.
▪ Sam Bennett: Florida’s second-line center opened scoring 2:07 into the game with a one-timer off a feed from defenseman Nate Schmidt. It was Bennett’s 13th goal of the postseason, which extended his franchise record, and 12th on the road, which set the NHL record.
“I don’t think there’s any difference between at home or on the road for me, but right now they seem to be going in,” Bennett said. “I’m getting some great passes from teammates and great setups. There’s nothing really I’m doing differently. It’s just the way it’s going right now.”
▪ Sergei Bobrovsky: Yes, he gave up four goals on Friday — including the game-tying tally with 17.8 seconds left to send the game to overtime — but Bobrovsky came up big several times down the stretch to keep Florida in the game before Marchand’s eventual game winner.
Overall, Bobrovsky stopped 42 shots, including 13 in the first overtime alone and was 11 for 13 against high-danger shots on goal. Bobrovsky’s expected goals against on Friday was 5.74.
The Oilers’ Stuart Skinner was solid in his own right in net, stopping 37 of 42 shots, including 8 of 10 high-danger shots.
“I don’t think we talk about the two goalies enough in this series,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “There were good saves made a both ends, high-end saves.”
▪ Nate Schmidt: The veteran defenseman had assists on each of Florida’s first two goals and now has four helpers through two Stanley Cup Final games.
Schmidt’s eight total assists and 11 total points this postseason are tied with Aaron Ekblad for the team lead among defensemen and tied for third among all defensemen this playoffs.
“I’m just trying to enjoy my time in these games,” Schmidt said. “I felt the last time I was here [with Vegas in 2018], it kind of was a blur. It went by too quickly for me. Just trying to relax and settle into it because you can’t say it’s just another game. It’s the Stanley Cup Final. But man, is it fun to be a part of it. It’s the reason why we play.”
▪ Gustav Forsling: After struggling in Game 1, Forsling returned to form in Game 2. He made a slew of big plays on the back end late in the game to stop Edmonton scoring chances, including sprawling out his body in the slot twice — first to break up a Corey Perry chance late in the third period and then again in the first overtime period to swipe the puck away from Evander Kane.
▪ Seth Jones: In addition to scoring his fourth goal of the playoffs, most among Florida defensemen and tied for second among all blueliners, Jones played a team-high 34:35 on Friday. He is averaging 25:45 across the playoffs. He was a plus-3 on Friday as well.
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