SUNRISE, Fla. – They call the road to 16 wins a war of attrition, so health is king.
And in a series with margins as slim as this one — 1-1 in games, 2-2 in even-strength goals, 141-141 in shot attempts — every play, every player matters.
Jimmy Vesey has only missed a total of three games over the past two seasons.
But the reliable New York Rangers forward is on the shelf for at least that many now, sidelined for the series and potentially the season after getting sideswiped by a “Lombergini” midway through Game 2.
Florida Panthers forward Ryan Lomberg is a bulldog on the forecheck and one of linemate Nick Cousin’s favourite teammates, and the stern head/shoulder blow he delivered to Vesey behind the play and without a puck in frame Friday has sent Vesey out week-to-week with an upper-body injury.
“We know when you go through the whole thing, it’s a long grind and things pop up like it did last night, and you need a lot of players available,” Laviolette told reporters Saturday, after touching down in Fort Lauderdale.
“So, we’ve got a lot of guys who are ready to jump back into the lineup, and that’s a good thing for us. We were getting healthy, and so we take a little bit of a hit last night, but it’s nice to have the players that are ready to go.”
One of those players — and our choice as next man up — is veteran Blake Wheeler.
Laviolette’s simplest option is to go back to the struggling Kaapo Kakko, who was healthy-scratched in a victorious Game 2 in favour of Matt Rempe. The longshot is Jonny Brodzinski, who has appeared in two games this postseason.
Wheeler (21 points in 54 games) was more productive than both Kakko and Brodzinski (19 points each) this season, despite appearing in fewer games. The first-time Ranger has been rehabbing a gruesome leg injury since mid-February but is now medically cleared.
He also took warmups before Game 2, another hint that he could enter the series.
Wheeler, 37, put up six points in five playoff games for the Winnipeg Jets in the 2023 playoffs, and has 45 in 65 career postseason appearances. Goals have been hard to come by in this organized, disciplined matchup.
“Everybody when they come back from a substantial injury, at some point they’re cleared, but there’s parts where they have to make sure that their game is there as well, based on whatever they’re dealing with,” cautioned Laviolette, not tipping his hand.
“I’m not talking about Blake, but it could be conditioning, it could be game play, it could be your hands. It could be anything just to try to get up to speed and get into the playoffs.”
Does anyone have a replay?
Paul Maurice is genuinely hilarious. He is also an absolute master of distraction.
Following Game 2’s overtime loss at Madison Square Garden, the Panthers head coach was asked where he saw the breakdown on Barclay Goodrow’s clutch game-winner.
Instead of pointing a finger at his defence or criticizing a dialed-in Sergei Bobrovsky for a rare gaffe, Maurice said: “I truly have not seen the goal.” (No cellphone in the pocket? No iPad on the bench?)
Maurice then proceeded to go full Comedy Cellar. The man is funny, truly. But also smart:
Baby Barkov
You wouldn’t know it from his playoff “beard” (which looks stuck on Game 82), but baby-faced Anton Lundell already has 43 postseason games (and 21 playoff points) under his belt.
“I mean, it’s been awesome so far. You know, I was pretty lucky to be able to come to a team who’s already built to win,” says the aw-shucks 22-year-old centre. “I feel like every year, every game you learn something. My first playoff [as a rookie in 2022], I had no idea what to expect. Then last year, going from the start all the way to the finals, it was huge for me.
“I learned so much about the whole process, about different moments in series. Down 3-1 or up 3-0, nothing should change. But it’s something you learn going through it. And now I feel way more confident, way more ready to play these games.”
Make no mistake: Florida’s 12th-overall pick in 2020 plays a game much more mature than his follicles. And he’s quick to give an assist to mentor and fellow Finn Aleksander Barkov.
Lundell’s conscience to put his defensive game first while still chipping in offence (10 points in these playoffs, already matching last spring’s high) has earned him the nickname “Baby Barkov” in these parts.
“I can’t say that,” smiles the Selke champ, who welcomed Lundell to live with him when he first arrived to Florida. “He’s his own type. Obviously, there are similarities in our games. Both players want to play a two-way game, and he’s elite at that. He’s really good on every aspect of the game, so that’s the similarity.
“But I think he’s walking his own path.”
Lundell has never scored more than 18 goals or 46 points in a season, but Maurice wonders if we are seeing an offensive breakout in the makings — not unlike the one Sam Reinhart is experiencing in his late 20s.
“Anton, we don’t know how good he is yet. We really don’t. I know that from the draft and talking to Bill Zito, they believed at that time, and they still believe, there is an incredible offensive upside there. And, God, in the first 10-15 games, he had some incredible chances and just couldn’t get it to go,” Maurice says.
As for the “Baby Barkov” moniker, the coach spots an imperfect doppelganger.
“Both will look at the exact same play, and Barkov doesn’t have a choice in the decision he makes. It’s going to be: What’s the best thing for the team? Defence first. Lundy sees it the exact same way, but he’s also got an offensive side where maybe one eyebrow would go up: Maybe I could get on the other side of that one,” Maurice says.
“He is the perfect understudy to Barkov — works hard, countryman. For a young player coming in, [we have]Barkov, [defenceman Gustav]Forsling, and Bob — hyper conditioned and hyper focused. Young guys have amazing mentors at every position.”
One-Timers: Aaron Ekblad was asked what feels different about this conference final compared to the last one: “Well, not walking on one foot and struggling.”… The Panthers are 3-0 following a loss in these playoffs…. New York entered with the most dangerous power-play in the East but has gone 0-for-6 with the man advantage. “They are checking a lot,” Rangers defenceman Erik Gustafsson notes. “They’re coming with all four guys, so it’s hard. We’ve got to make fast, quick plays.”… Both goaltenders have been otherworldly in this series. Bobrovsky’s save percentage is .963, and Igor Shesterkin is right behind him with a .943.
Rangers projected lineup
Chris Kreider – Mika Zibanejad – Filip Chytil
Artemi Panarin – Vincent Trocheck – Alexis Lafreniere
Jack Roslovic – Alex Wennberg – Kaapo Kakko*
Will Cuylle – Barclay Goodrow – Matt Rempe
Ryan Lindgren – Adam Fox
K’Andre Miller – Jacob Trouba
Erik Gustafsson – Braden Schneider
Igor Shesterkin starts
Jonathan Quick
Panthers projected lineup
Vladimir Tarasenko – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe – Anton Lundell – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Sam Bennett – Evan Rodrigues
Ryan Lomberg – Kevin Stenlund – Nick Cousins
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Brandon Montour
Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Dmitry Kulikov
Sergei Bobrovsky starts
Anthony Stolarz
