The Florida Panthers took Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final by a 3-0 margin thanks in large part to a sensational goaltending performance from Sergei Bobrovsky. He stopped all 32 shots he faced for his second shutout of the playoffs. Even though he has not been totally consistent this postseason, performances like that are going to put him at the top of the Conn Smythe discussion if the Panthers go on to win their first-ever Stanley Cup.
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But he is not the only player on the roster that is playing into that discussion. Center Aleksander Barkov will be there thanks to his stellar two-way play, as well center Matthew Tkachuk.
There is also another potential Conn Smythe contender who might not be getting the same attention despite putting up consistently strong numbers: forward Carter Verhaeghe.
Verhaeghe scored his 10th goal of the playoffs (tied for second in the NHL) to open the scoring in the series on Saturday night and is now the Panthers’ all-time leader in postseason goals.
It’s not just the number of goals he is scoring this postseason. It’s when he has scored them. He has already scored three game-winning goals in the playoffs and seems to have developed a knack for coming through in big moments.
The Panthers’ front office has done a sensational job using free agency, the waiver wire and blockbuster trades to build out their roster over the past couple of years. Verhaeghe’s addition in free agency from Tampa Bay has been one of their shrewdest moves.
He has blossomed into a 30-goal scorer during the regular season and is now proving to be a big-time player when the lights are shining brightest in the playoffs. If he has another big moment or two in him in this series he might have a pretty significant individual award to add to his resume as well.
Next up is Game 2 of the series on Monday.
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Edmonton Oilers at Florida Panthers — Game 2
How to watch: 8 p.m. ET on ABC, SN
Panthers lead series 1-0
Series odds: Panthers -250, Oilers +200
- The Oilers enter Game 2 of the series having scored just one 5-on-5 goal over the past three games, while being outscored 4-1 at 5-on-5 in those games. They actually won two of those games, which is a testament to how dominant their special teams have been. The power play did not bail them out in Game 1.
- With his Game 1 shutout, Bobrovsky raised his save percentage this postseason to .915, matching the number he had a year ago in the Panthers’ run to the finals. Over the past three playoff runs, his save percentage has been a robust .914, which is pretty much a complete 180 from his playoff numbers earlier in his career.
- The Darnell Nurse-Cody Ceci defense pairing was victimized two more times in Game 1 and remains one of the biggest weaknesses the Oilers have going right now. It is also a potential series-shifting weakness. They have been outscored 12-4 in only 167 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time. When neither is on the ice, the Oilers are outscoring teams 27-15 in 484 minutes.
- The Panthers were very fortunate not to allow Edmonton’s power play to take over in Game 1. There were only 14 instances all season when the Oilers had at least three power plays in a game and did not score at least one power-play goal. They have to stay out of the penalty box in Game 2.
- History is now on the Panthers’ side. Teams that win Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final go on to win the series more than 75 percent of the time.
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(Photo of Carter Verhaeghe: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)