Category: National Hockey League (NHL)

The Florida Panthers were in a deep hole seven weeks ago but found the will and determination to claw their way out and extend their season.

Now, the Panthers will try to find another route back from a 3-1 series deficit when they meet the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Tuesday night in Las Vegas.

Florida trailed 3-1 to the top-seeded Boston Bruins in the opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs before rallying to win the series, beginning with an overtime road win in Game 5.

“I believe, fully, we’ve earned the right to play our best hockey in a difficult situation,” said Panthers coach Paul Maurice. “All we want to do is get this thing back (to Florida). It’s not the series, it’s not a game, it’s just get this thing back home and give our fans another look at us.”

Vegas will have plenty of motivation to raise its first Stanley Cup in team history, especially inside its energized home arena.

“It’s a different game than the other ones,” Vegas forward Chandler Stephenson said. “A lot more emotion, a lot more of everything.”

The Golden Knights dominated the Panthers in the first two games of the series in Las Vegas, outscoring them 12-4 before Florida tied the score late in regulation of Game 3 and won in overtime.

The Panthers were unable to ride that momentum into Game 4 back on their home ice in Sunrise, Fla., however, falling behind 3-0 before ultimately losing 3-2 on Saturday.

That put the Golden Knights in a position they’ve never experienced before, one game from winning their first Stanley Cup.

Vegas reached the Stanley Cup Finals five years ago in its inaugural season, but lost the series 4-1 to the Washington Capitals.

“Everybody is going to be into it,” Stephenson said of Game 5. “The emotion is going to be high. Adrenaline. Everything. The biggest thing is to just be composed. Shift by shift. It’s all the cliches, but I feel confident.”

The Golden Knights will continue to lean on goalie Adin Hill, who has allowed two goals in regulation in each of the first four games of the series.

Jonathan Marchessault, who scored 30 goals for the Panthers in the 2016-17 season before they lost him to the Golden Knights in the expansion draft, has 24 points (13 goals, 11 assists) in 21 playoff games.

Stephenson (10) and William Karlsson (11) have also reached double figures in goals during this postseason for Vegas.

The Panthers will look for Matthew Tkachuk to give them some early momentum — assuming he is on the ice. Tkachuk missed part of Game 4 due to an undisclosed injury, and he sat out practice on Monday. His status will be reassessed before Game 5.

Tkachuk has tallied 24 points (11 goals, 13 assists) in 20 playoff games, including three goals and three assists in the final three games against the Bruins to lead the Florida comeback.

“You’ve got to win four,” Florida center Aleksander Barkov said. “It’s 3-1. I know they’re one win away, we’re three wins away, but all we can do is think about one game, bringing it back to Florida and that’s our goal. That’s what we want to do in Vegas, go there and try to win that game.”

–Field Level Media

Michael Andlauer won the bidding for the Ottawa Senators, reaching agreement to purchase the franchise for nearly $1 billion, according to multiple reports Tuesday.

The transaction next goes before the NHL’s Board of Governors, to whom Andlauer is familiar. He owns a 10 percent stake in the Montreal Canadiens and is an alternate governor. He also owns the Ontario Hockey League’s Brantford Bulldogs.

Andlauer, 57, would divest his stake in the Montreal franchise before being fully approved to take over the Senators. He agreed to terms of the sale, which prohibited moving the team from Ottawa and shared plans for a new arena as part of his bid.

His offer edged a joint effort by Jeffrey and Michael Kimel of Harlo Capital to purchase the Senators. The Ottawa Sun reported the bid submitted by Los Angeles-based producer Neko Sparks was “underfunded” and Toronto-based billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos, who dropped out of the bidding.

Previous owner Eugene Melnyk purchased the team out of bankruptcy in 2003. He died in March 2022, and his daughters, Anna and Olivia Melnyk, inherited the franchise. In November, a process for the team’s sale was initiated. A condition of the sale requires keeping the franchise in Ottawa.

Andlauer is the CEO of the Andlauer Healthcare Group Inc. and also has 35 years of experience in the transportation industry in Canada. He also founded Bulldog Capital partners, a merchant bank based in Toronto.

–Field Level Media

Matthew Tkachuk, who has been in and out of action for the Florida Panthers during the Stanley Cup Final, faces an uncertain status ahead of Game 5 on Tuesday in Las Vegas.

The star winger didn’t practice on Tuesday after missing much of the third period of Game 4 against the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday in Sunrise, Fla. The Panthers lost that game 3-2 to fall behind three games to one in the best-of-seven finals.

Tkachuk also was sidelined was sidelined for part of Game 3 on Thursday due to a possible head injury.

Florida coach Paul Maurice said after practice on Tuesday, “The update will be tomorrow. We’ve been at an optional point for the last two months in terms of skating (on) off days, but you’ll get all that big information tomorrow night.”

Defensemen Brandon Montour and Radko Gudas and forwards Eetu Luostarinen and Nick Cousins also skipped the optional Tuesday practice, according to NHL.com. Luostarinen last played when the Panthers clinched a four-game sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals on May 24.

Tkachuk, 25, stood alongside goalie Sergei Bobrovsky as the Panthers’ top two players in the run through the Eastern Conference playoffs. Tkachuk logged nine goals and 12 assists in 16 games as the eighth-seeded Panthers upset the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina.

In the finals, Tkachuk has two goals and one assist in four games.

Tkachuk put up 40 goals and 69 assists in 79 games during the 2022-23 regular season. An All-Star for the Flames in 2021-22, Tkachuk is in his first season with Florida after he was acquired in an offseason trade that sent Jonathan Huberdeau to Calgary.

–Field Level Media

The Calgary Flames promoted assistant Ryan Huska to be their new head coach on Monday.

It marks Huska’s first job as a head coach in the NHL.

Huska, 47, has been an assistant coach with the Flames the past five seasons. He was in charge of a penalty-kill unit that ranked sixth in the NHL in 2022-23.

“My position coming into this is a little different than most as I know our players very well,” Huska said in a statement. “We have good people in our dressing room, excellent hockey players who want to win. My job is to inspire them every single day to help get our team to the next level.”

Kelowna ?? Glens Falls ?? Stockton ?? Calgary pic.twitter.com/MsmZnCoWz9

— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) June 12, 2023

Huska replaces Darryl Sutter, fired May 1 after three seasons. Huska has been a head coach in the AHL and the WHL.

The move is the first for Craig Conroy, who was named general manager three weeks ago.

“Ryan provides 11 seasons of bench experience as a head coach from the WHL and the AHL and over 20 years coaching in total, including knowledge gained as an assistant coach in Calgary for the past five seasons,” Conroy said in a statement. “Ryan has earned this opportunity and we are confident he is the right coach for our team.”

Huska played just one game in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks on May 1, 1998. He logged 5:51 of ice time. He was a third-round pick in the 1993 draft.

–Field Level Media

Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice was not too forthcoming about the health of forward Matthew Tkachuk on Sunday, one day after his team was pushed to the brink of elimination in the Stanley Cup Final.

Tkachuk was nursing an undisclosed injury and sat out nearly 11 minutes in the third period of the Panthers’ 3-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday. He returned to the ice for the final 2:26 of the game.

“You know what, it’s more important to get rest for the players who aren’t banged up, because they’re going to have to drive this thing,” Maurice said Sunday.

The Golden Knights hold a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series. They will look to clinch their first championship in Game 5 on Tuesday in Las Vegas.

Tkachuk, 25, has recorded a team-leading 24 points (11 goals, 13 assists) in 20 playoff games. He also posted career-high totals in assists (69) and points (109) in 79 games this season.

–Field Level Media

Star golfer Brooks Koepka and Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad apparently have buried the hatchet.

Koepka, a South Florida resident and “dedicated fan” of the Panthers, was enthusiastic in his support of his favorite NHL team on Saturday prior to Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final versus the Vegas Golden Knights. He banged the drum to get the crowd going in Sunrise, Fla., all while wearing an Ekblad jersey.

So, why is that a talking point?

Well, Koepka made himself somewhat of a spectacle while attending a Panthers’ home game against the New York Rangers on March 25.

In a video that went viral, Koepka was shown holding the traffic cone after Ekblad was beaten on a goal during the Panthers’ 4-3 loss.

“He gave up a bad goal,” Koepka said about Ekblad at the time, per GolfWRX. “It was a bad pass in the third. I’m a die-hard P’s fan, and he gave up a bad goal.

“I just felt like if they didn’t win that game they weren’t going to make the playoffs. Dedicated fan, man.”

Ekblad responded days later with the following to Sportsnet:

“We’re not buddies. Never be buddies.”

Ekblad, 27, is a former Calder Trophy recipient as the NHL’s rookie of the year in 2014-15. He was selected by the Panthers with the first overall pick of the 2014 NHL Draft.

Koepka, 33, won his fifth major by capturing the 2023 PGA Championship last month.

The Panthers lost 3-2 on Saturday night and trail 3-1 in the series. The Golden Knights can clinch the Stanley Cup in Game 5 on Tuesday night in Las Vegas.

–Field Level Media

When the Vegas Golden Knights came into existence, owner Bill Foley set a goal to win the Stanley Cup within their first six seasons.

The Golden Knights are one win away from completing that feat after claiming a 3-2 victory over the Florida Panthers on Saturday night in Sunrise, Fla., in Game 4 of the finals.

Vegas leads the best-of-seven series 3-1, and will look to clinch its first championship Tuesday at home in Las Vegas.

“I think everybody knows what’s at stake,” Golden Knights forward Chandler Stephenson told Sportsnet after scoring twice in Saturday’s game. “We’ve got a veteran group, and we know what to do.”

William Karlsson also scored as Vegas took a 3-0 lead and held on as goaltender Adin Hill made 29 saves, including a couple of clutch stops in the final seconds. Captain Mark Stone collected two assists.

Teams holding a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven Stanley Cup Final have won 36 of 37 times. The only team to come back is the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, who trailed 3-0 to the Detroit Red Wings.

The Golden Knights reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2017-18, their inaugural season, but lost to the Washington Capitals in five games. The Philadelphia Flyers won the 1974 title in their seventh season, giving the Golden Knights an opportunity to top that achievement.

“We’ve got two days off, so I think we just enjoy this win, regroup tomorrow just like we did after the loss,” Stone told NHL Network. “You treat it the same way. There’s going to be momentum swings in a game and there’s momentum series in the series. We’ve got a lot of leadership in that group that has been here before, and I think we’ll be ready to go.”

Brandon Montour and Aleksander Barkov both collected one goal and one assist for the Panthers. Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 28 shots for the club, which is one loss away from seeing their Cinderella run end.

Stephenson sent the Golden Knights off and running when he converted a breakaway 99 seconds into the game, and notched his second goal of the game, and 10th of the playoffs, at 7:28 of the second period.

They appeared to have the game in hand when Karlsson’s 11th goal of the playoffs made it 3-0 at 11:04 of the second period, but the Panthers clawed back.

Montour notched his eighth goal of the playoffs when his long shot banked off two defenders and into the net with 3:51 remaining in the second period, and Barkov scored to make it a one-goal game at 3:50 of the third period.

Florida, which won Game 3 in overtime after a late game-tying goal, couldn’t duplicate that feat despite a frantic late push.

The Panthers opened the playoffs by erasing a 3-1 series deficit against the Eastern Conference’s top squad during the regular season, the Boston Bruins. Now they will look to do just that against a Vegas squad that was tops in the Western Conference.

“Just go out there, win one game and force them to come back to Florida. That’s pretty much the message in this room,” said Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk, who saw limited shifts in the third period but would not reveal why.

“It was the same thing with Boston. … We just thought short-term and get it back to Florida then, and we’re going to do the same thing now.”

–Field Level Media

Despite losing Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final in disappointing fashion, the Vegas Golden Knights appear relaxed heading into Saturday’s road clash with the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, Fla.

Then again, the Golden Knights still hold a 2-1 edge in the best-of-seven series, giving them plenty of confidence even after they squandered a late lead en route to a 3-2 overtime loss that has the Panthers back in the series.

“We’ve managed to stay composed throughout these playoffs,” Vegas forward William Karlsson said. “I’ve never expected it to go super easy. It should not be. To win is a grind and sometimes you lose, but all that matters is the next game. I think we’ve done a great job throughout the playoffs being composed and going into the next game, trying to win that one.”

The Panthers are favored by 1.5 goals at BetMGM, where the Golden Knights have drawn 56 percent of the puck-line bets and 66 percent of the money. Las Vegas’ +100 moneyline has been even more popular, having been backed by 80 percent of the total bets and 87 percent of the money.

The Golden Knights certainly could have won Game 3 and taken a stranglehold on the series. Thanks to a pair of power-play goals — the fifth and sixth Vegas has scored in the series — the Golden Knights earned their lead in the tight affair.

It took a late Matthew Tkachuk goal to tie it while the Panthers had their goaltender pulled for the extra attacker, and then Carter Verhaeghe’s overtime winner to turn it into a defeat.

Had it not been for fantastic goaltending by Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky, the result would have been a one-sided Golden Knights victory.

“We’re playing against a really good goaltender and a good hockey team. That’s how it goes,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “We’re not going to beat ourselves up over (Thursday’s) game. We’re going to do what we’ve always done. We’re going to look at what we can do to get better and keep growing our game.

That said, another Panthers win on Saturday, and the Golden Knights may not be so relaxed, which is exactly Florida’s quest going into the affair.

As exciting and entertaining as their victory was, the Panthers cannot spend their time relishing it but must build on it. After all, a loss on Saturday would have Vegas looking to clinch the franchise’s first championship on home ice.

In the Panthers’ favor is the fact some of their big guns finally had an impact on the series.

Tkachuk recorded more misconducts than points in the first two games, but he responded with his clutch goal in a two-point outing. Verhaeghe then scored his fourth career overtime winner, and second of this year’s playoffs — with the other the Game 7 opening-round winner against the Boston Bruins.

“He’s one of those guys who just has that in him,” Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said of Verhaeghe. “He has an incredible shot. Whenever he shoots, it’s dangerous, no matter from where he’s shooting. To have that guy on the ice in overtime is always dangerous. I will give the puck to him any time.”

And if that’s not enough for the Panthers to go into the clash with a boosted confidence, they can also look at their overtime success. With Thursday’s win, they boast a 7-0 record in overtime playoff games this year.

“Everybody will probably say how they were leading most of game, which they were, but at the end of the day, nobody cares how we got here,” Tkachuk said. “It’s a 2-1 series. We came into (the) game just to win one game, and we did that, and we’re going to do the exact same thing going into Game 4.”

The public is expecting a high-scoring affair, with the 5.5-goal Over/Under at BetMGM seeing 62 percent of the bets and 77 percent of the money backing the Over. The most popular Game 4 player prop is Bobrovsky to have more than 27.5 saves at -120.

–Field Level Media

Despite losing Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final in disappointing fashion, the Vegas Golden Knights appear relaxed heading into Saturday’s road clash with the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, Fla.

Then again, the Golden Knights still hold a 2-1 edge in the best-of-seven series, giving them plenty of confidence even after they squandered a late lead en route to a 3-2 overtime loss that has the Panthers back in the series.

“We’ve managed to stay composed throughout these playoffs,” Vegas forward William Karlsson said on Friday. “I’ve never expected it to go super easy. It should not be. To win is a grind and sometimes you lose, but all that matters is the next game. I think we’ve done a great job throughout the playoffs being composed and going into the next game, trying to win that one.”

The Golden Knights certainly could have won Game 3 and taken a stranglehold on the series. Thanks to a pair of power-play goals — the fifth and sixth Vegas has scored in the series — the Golden Knights earned their lead in the tight affair.

It took a late Matthew Tkachuk goal to tie it while the Panthers had their goaltender pulled for the extra attacker, and then Carter Verhaeghe’s overtime winner to turn it into a defeat.

Had it not been for fantastic goaltending by Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky, the result would have been a one-sided Golden Knights victory.

“We’re playing against a really good goaltender and a good hockey team. That’s how it goes,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “We’re not going to beat ourselves up over (Thursday’s) game. We’re going to do what we’ve always done. We’re going to look at what we can do to get better and keep growing our game.

That said, another Panthers win on Saturday, and the Golden Knights may not be so relaxed, which is exactly Florida’s quest going into the affair.

As exciting and entertaining as their victory was, the Panthers cannot spend their time relishing it but must build on it. After all, a loss on Saturday would have Vegas looking to clinch the franchise’s first championship on home ice.

In the Panthers’ favor is the fact some of their big guns finally had an impact on the series.

Tkachuk recorded more misconducts than points in the first two games, but he responded with his clutch goal in a two-point outing. Verhaeghe then scored his fourth career overtime winner, and second of this year’s playoffs — with the other the Game 7 opening-round winner against the Boston Bruins.

“He’s one of those guys who just has that in him,” Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said of Verhaeghe. “He has an incredible shot. Whenever he shoots, it’s dangerous, no matter from where he’s shooting. To have that guy on the ice in overtime is always dangerous. I will give the puck to him any time.”

And if that’s not enough for the Panthers to go into the clash with a boosted confidence, they can also look at their overtime success. With Thursday’s win, they boast a 7-0 record in overtime playoff games this year.

“Everybody will probably say how they were leading most of game, which they were, but at the end of the day, nobody cares how we got here,” Tkachuk said. “It’s a 2-1 series. We came into (the) game just to win one game, and we did that, and we’re going to do the exact same thing going into Game 4.”

–Field Level Media

Toronto-based billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos has withdrawn from the bidding process to purchase the Senators, the Ottawa Sun reported on Friday.

Per the newspaper, Apostolopoulos informed the officials with the Melnyk estate, the NHL and Galatioto Sports Partners after growing frustrated with the ongoing negotiations.

Apostolopoulos, who reportedly made the highest bid for the team at more than $1 billion, is the founder of the private equity firm Six Ventures Inc.

Per the newspaper, bids by Michael Andlauer and a joint effort by Jeffrey and Michael Kimel of Harlo Capital are the realistic options remaining to purchase the Senators. The Ottawa Sun reported the bid submitted by Los Angeles-based producer Neko Sparks is “underfunded and doesn’t stand much of a chance of winning.”

Previous owner Eugene Melnyk died in March 2022, and his daughters Anna and Olivia Melnyk inherited the franchise. In November, a process for the team’s sale was initiated. Keeping the team in Ottawa is a precondition of any sale.

–Field Level Media