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Greg Wyshynski
EDMONTON, Alberta — Brad Marchand scored the final two Florida Panthers targets on breakaways of their 5-4 double-overtime victory in Sport 2 of the Stanley Cup Remaining on Friday evening. He stated had just one factor working by means of his thoughts on each scoring possibilities.
“Simply do not forget the puck,” he stated. “That is the principle factor. I’ve completed that earlier than. It isn’t an excellent feeling.”
The Panthers, the defending Stanley Cup champions, evened their collection with the Edmonton Oilers at 1-1 in an exhilarating, typically chaotic playoff battle.
Marchand grew to become the primary participant in Stanley Cup Remaining historical past to attain a shorthanded objective in regulation after which an additional time game-winning objective.
“He simply finds a means,” Florida defenseman Nate Schmidt stated. “I do not assume the second ever will get too huge for him.”
Marchand’s breakaway shorthanded tally within the second interval, coming 3:46 after defenseman Dmitry Kulikov tied the rating for Florida at 3-3. Middle Anton Lundell‘s move discovered Marchand behind the Oilers’ protection and he beat goalie Stuart Skinner for his sixth of the playoffs.
The objective got here 14 years to the day after he scored a shorthanded objective within the 2011 Stanley Cup Remaining for the Boston Bruins. The Vancouver Canucks goalie he beat was Roberto Luongo, who’s now a hockey operations govt for the Panthers and wrote on social media that Marchand was his “favourite participant of all time” after Sport 2.
That 4-3 rating held till the Oilers’ Corey Perry scored with lower than 18 seconds left in regulation to power additional time for the second straight sport within the Remaining, marking simply the sixth time in NHL historical past that the primary two video games of a Stanley Cup championship collection wanted additional time.
Quite than panic about one other squandered lead and the potential for being down 2-0 within the collection, the Panthers had been free of their dressing room.
“We’re coming in right here. We’re hooting and hollering. We’re having some enjoyable,” stated winger Matthew Tkachuk. “We had been selecting guys that we thought had been going to attain. I am positive lots of guys had Marchy.”
Marchand’s second breakaway objective ended the sport at 8:05 of the second additional time. Once more, it was Lundell who discovered his linemate with a move. The Oilers caught as much as him, however Marchand was capable of preserve possession of the puck and have it slide by means of Skinner.
“I feel the timing was thrown off a little bit bit perhaps for the goalie as a result of Bouchard gave me a whack. I do not actually know what occurred. However lucky it went in,” Marchand stated.
It was his fifth profession playoff OT objective, tied for third-most in Stanley Cup Playoffs historical past. He now has 63 profession playoff targets, fourth-most amongst energetic gamers behind Alex Ovechkin (77), Sidney Crosby (71) and Evgeni Malkin (67).
“His anticipation and his hockey sense is unbelievable,” Tkachuk stated. “You see it tonight with two breakaway targets: Simply seeing the play and he is gone. I noticed {that a} ton with him enjoying in Boston. Means higher seeing it now.”
Sport 2 began with probably the most chaotic opening intervals in Stanley Cup Playoff historical past. The groups mixed for 5 targets within the first 12:37 of play, the third-fastest to succeed in 5 targets to start a Stanley Cup Remaining sport in NHL historical past. Solely Sport 4 between Pittsburgh and Chicago (10:13) in 1992 and Montreal and Chicago in 1973 (12:07) had been quicker.
“It was nuts,” Schmidt stated. “Quite a lot of particular groups, lots of 4 on 4.”
The scoring opened with a Sam Bennett power-play objective at 2:07, arrange by Schmidt. The Oilers responded with two targets in 1:40: Evander Kane beating Florida goalie Sergei Bobrovsky cleanly after which defenseman Evan Bouchard recovering the puck after a blocked shot to fireplace it previous Bobrovsky, his seventh objective of the playoffs at 9:19.
Florida answered on a beautiful passing play between Schmidt, Eetu Luostarinen and Seth Jones, who transformed for his fourth of the playoffs.
Edmonton regained the lead on a controversial goalie interference penalty on Bennett, who found prime of Skinner. Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm pushed Bennett into the crease, and he appeared to journey over the outstretched leg of Skinner. Bennett has a historical past of shedding his footing across the crease, comparable to in Sport 1, when a Carter Verhaeghe shot deflected off Bennett whereas he was on his knees in entrance of Skinner. However Bennett stated after the sport that he disagreed with the decision.
“I used to be pushed after which I feel the goalie kicked out my heel,” he stated. “So, I did not agree with that one, however I am going to transfer on from that.”
On the following energy play, McDavid had one other masterful second, sliding previous Aleksander Barkov, badly deking out defenseman Aaron Ekblad after which sending a fast move to Draisaitl for the lead at 12:37.
Kulikov knotted the rating at 3-3 with a shot that deflected off Bouchard behind Skinner at 8:23. The Oilers had an opportunity to take the lead once more on an influence play, however Marchand scored shorthanded at 12:09.
It remained 4-3 till 19:43 of the third interval, with Skinner pulled, when the Oilers lastly discovered a approach to break by means of in opposition to the Panthers and Bobrovsky, who made 17 saves for the reason that first interval. Jake Walman’s shot was deflected in entrance to the slot, the place Perry outmuscled Luostarinen and despatched a shot that discovered the again of the online.
“Clearly you are dissatisfied they tied it up like that, however the emotion on the bench and within the room after the third, we have at all times had a really calm crew,” stated Marchand. “I feel you draw out of your experiences. We do a extremely good job of specializing in the second. Quite a lot of guys have been by means of huge moments, and we’ve got lots of actually good leaders on this crew, so that you simply strive to attract on that. It did not look like there’s any panic.”
Time beyond regulation noticed Marchand and ahead Sam Reinhart fail to transform on breakaway possibilities, whereas Bobrovsky (42 saves) needed to stand tall in opposition to Edmonton’s offensive assault, making 14 of his saves within the further periods.
Coach Paul Maurice stated his crew maintained the suitable mindset.
“It by no means went to despair. It was at all times ‘keep within the battle,'” he stated. “I feel expertise is wholly overvalued on the earth, however I feel in sort of playoff hockey it is nice. No person’s crushed about it. No person’s attempting to kill who missed the puck on the final objective. They are not seeking to blame anyone.”
Marchand is among the many most skilled gamers within the collection, now in his sixteenth NHL season and having received the Stanley Cup with Boston in 2011.
“He may play until he is 47 the way in which he is going,” Tkachuk stated. “Unreal participant, unreal competitor.”
Sport 3 of the Stanley Cup Remaining is scheduled for Monday in Dawn, Florida.
