The Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said that the team wants to win the upcoming Stanley Cup for the new players in the squad. He said this after the team's first practice before the final on Saturday, in Fort Lauderdale.
What did head coach Paul Maurice say?
Not just this, Paul Maurice said that 90 percent of the squad have already experienced winning the Stanley Cup before but the there are few players who have not. He also said the whole group is pushing hard to help the players win their first Stanley Cup.
He even mentioned that Florida Panthers' forward Matthew Tkachuk gave a better answer when it came to the new guys.
I heard this secondhand, Maurice said. It was told to me—Matthew Tkachuk’s answer about the new guys. It was a better answer than I can give, because they’re in the room and I’m not. But we’re not here without those guys. That part is very, very true.
Maurice even mentioned that some of the new players suit the team's playing style as it took no time to adjust. The new players helped in a change of fortunes during the Toronto series and brought the group back to their identity.
Those new guys that came in did bring the energy, Maurice said. What’s interesting is toward the end, they became our identity. They were closer to our identity game than the guys that had been here for a couple of years. They got us back in that Toronto series.
Maurice further said that joining the team in today's time feels different from before. In the past, players used to push the team forward but this time around, new players came in not wanting to disturb the structure and the playing style.
They want it bad for those guys, because those guys got us here, Maurice said. There’s been an equitable exchange of effort here. We pushed so hard. You’ve earned the right because of what you’ve helped the group do. Then we want it for you.
The Florida Panthers are all set to join Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Final, which will commence on June 4 at 8:00 pm. The live broadcast of the Florida Panthers vs Edmonton Oilers will be available on TNT.
Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov wants Stanley Cup every year
The match between Florida Panthers vs Edmonton Oilers will be a rematch of the last year's final that was won by the Panthers in seven games. Florida managed to defeat Tampa Bay in five games, Toronto in seven and Carolina in five.
Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said that reaching three Stanley Cup finals on the trot is a big achievement. But, the ultimate goal is to win the Stanley Cup.
We want to win Stanley Cups. We want to compete for Stanley Cups every single year, Barkov said, via NHL.com. Obviously, there’s 31 other teams in the League, and it’s hard every single year; they want to do that too, so it’s not easy.
Barkov has 17 points in the ongoing playoffs. Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk each have 16 points. Carter Verhaeghe and Brad Marchand have 14 to their name. Their goalkeeper Sergei Bobrovsky has featured in every game and has played every minute. He has a record of 12-5 with a 2.11 goals-against average and three shutouts to his name.