‘It’s still raw and painful’: Panthers coming to grips with Stanley Cup Final loss
The Florida Panthers stayed the night in Las Vegas after Tuesday’s Game 5 loss in the Stanley Cup Final that ended their title hopes. They gathered in each other’s hotel rooms, played poker, slugged beers and enjoyed the group’s last night together.
There were no visits to the casinos or partying at the nightclubs, like the champion Vegas Golden Knights did. They were at hockey’s pinnacle, just hours after winning the Stanley Cup in dominant fashion on home ice. It was exactly what the Panthers dreamed of and were just a few wins from achieving.
Less than 48 hours later, the Panthers were still struggling to stomach the loss.
“I wanted it so bad for them, but it didn’t happen,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said Thursday morning during the team’s locker-cleanout day. “It’s still raw and painful.”
It wasn’t a regular season defeat with a quick turnaround. There aren’t any more games to prepare for, to help turn the page quickly. The Panthers won’t play another game for months and will be left thinking about the last five games against Vegas until then.
“It doesn’t get any easier,” defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. “Instagram sucks. It’s all you see is them lifting the cup. It hurts for sure. It’s been a tough day, but it is what it is, and the sun comes up.”
Maurice, who landed his first NHL head coaching gig in 1995 with the Hartford Whalers, said throughout the Panthers playoff run that this group was a different one to him. He arrived in South Florida one year ago with a hard-nosed mentality and a plan to flip the culture 180 degrees after interim coach Andrew Brunette was not retained.
There were growing pains at first, and it was reflected in the standings. A corner was turned in January, and the Panthers began to rally. They snuck into the playoffs by a nail’s edge, overcame a 3-1 series deficit to the mighty Boston Bruins, then rode the wave all the way to the Cup Final.
“I had a different experience this year than any other year in hockey,” Maurice said. “I can also say that’s true of any other year, but I got an unbelievable seat watching a group of men come together and do something I think is special.”
Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky lost his starting job to Alex Lyon before the playoffs. He wasn’t inserted into the net until Game 3 of the first round in relief of Lyon. Bobrovsky and the Panthers never looked back. He started every single playoff game the rest of the way, posting a 12-6 record with him as the starter.
It was a path nobody would’ve predicted for the 34-year-old.
“I would say, for those two months that I played in the playoffs, I learned a lot more than for the 13 years of my NHL career,” the two-time Vezina Trophy winner said.
But as the Final progressed, it became more difficult. The Panthers fought to get some of their top players dressed. Some were able to play through it, with the Stanley Cup so close.
Others, like Matthew Tkachuk, gave it all they had until it was no longer possible. He could only watch as the Panthers were systematically dismantled in Game 5.
“The end result isn’t what we wanted, but it was such an amazing year,” Tkachuk said. “The way it ended is going to sting, but I’m sure in a week, a month, whatever, we’ll have so many great memories. It was a helluva run.”
Team captain Aleksander Barkov said he still hasn’t been able to fully process the grind of the past two months.
“I’m sure like in a couple days or a couple of weeks, even months, you’re gonna realize what actually happened and how far we got and how close we were to the ultimate goal that we have in this organization,” Barkov said.
Most of this year’s team will return next season, with 16 of the 23 roster spots signed for at least one more year. The group of players won’t be exactly the same, but the goal will still be.
“We all want a little break after a long season, but we’re really, really excited to come into next season and just try to start things on the same way we ended them,” second-year forward Anton Lundell said.