Summary:
- The Florida Panthers proudly displayed a Stanley Cup title winner banner during a celebratory ceremony on Tuesday’s Opening Night.
- The Panthers opened the defense of their first-ever Stanley Cup title in great form.
- The team defeated the Boston Bruins 6-4 win, asserting dominance throughout the entire game.
The Florida Panthers kicked off their Stanley Cup title defense in style, defeating the Boston Bruins 6-4 on Opening Night.
Despite a delayed start due to the banner-raising ceremony once again celebrating last season’s championship win, the Panthers wasted no time asserting their dominance.
After he raised the Stanley Cup high above his head one last time this year, Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov placed it next to the large case that read “STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS“.
Soon after, the crowd at the the Amerant Bank Arena witnessed a banner popping out of the case, as a forever reminder of the iconic season celebrated by the franchise.
Once the banner reached its new home, players saluted the crowd and gathered for another photo op with the championship trophies.
“It’s an emotional start to the season“, commented Sam Bennett, who scored twice in his team’s victory over the Bruins.
Bennett, who opened the scoring just 6:27 into the first period after pouncing on the rebound of an Evan Rodrigues shot to beat Bruins goaltender Joonas Korpisalo, added that seeing the banner go up, “shoulder-to-shoulder with all the guys”, represented a “pretty special moment” that gave them “a little juice to start the season off“.
Only 64 seconds later, Eetu Luostarinen found a loose puck in the Bruins’ crease and tucked it in, giving Florida a 2-0 lead. By the midway point of the first period, the Panthers were in full control, outshooting Boston 12-1.
The Bruins briefly cut into the lead with a shorthanded goal from Pavel Zacha, following an offensive zone draw after Adam Boqvist was injured by a puck to the face.
Undeterred, the Panthers responded with two more quick goals before the first intermission.
Sam Reinhart scored a stunning shorthanded goal to restore the two-goal cushion, and Bennett netted his second of the night to make it 4-1 in favor of Florida.
The second period saw Florida continue their dominance as Jonah Gadjovich extended the lead to 5-1, finishing off a perfect pass from Jesper Boqvist on an odd-man rush.
Boston managed to pull one back with Jake DeBrusk scoring for the Bruins, but it was not enough to shift momentum.
In the third period, Rodrigues struck again for Florida, making it 6-2 and effectively ending any hopes of a Bruins comeback.
Although Boston managed two late goals, one from Trent Frederick and another from David Pastrnak, Florida’s lead was insurmountable.
The Panthers are now getting ready to embark on a four-game road trip starting Thursday in Ottawa.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice commented at the end of the game, calling the banner “a great buzz in the building” and adding the team “looked right and fast and skated very well“, something he attributed to both the banner and the fans.
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