‘Us against world’: Panthers gird for key road G2

EDMONTON, Alberta — When Matthew Tkachuk looks around Edmonton before a Stanley Cup Final game, he believes the Florida Panthers aren’t just battling the Oilers.

“It’s us against the 20-plus guys you’re playing against, the 20,000 that are in the rink, the 20,000 that are outside the rink. It’s just us against everybody,” he said on Thursday. “That’s what makes playing on the road so fun and rewarding when you can get a win.”

Tkachuk’s Panthers trail the Oilers 1-0 in their series after Wednesday night’s 4-3 overtime loss in Edmonton. It was only their third loss on the road in 11 playoff games, having started each of their previous three playoff series away from South Florida.

“We’ve said it a bunch. It’s that ‘us against the world’ mindset, but you especially feel it being down in a series,” said Tkachuk. “Your back’s not necessarily against the wall, but you treat it as a big-time, must win [game] in a hostile environment. I feel like that’s when we’re at our best. So, hopefully we can use that to our advantage.”

This Stanley Cup Final rematch is already feeling different than last season’s, which saw the Panthers build a 3-0 series lead. While defending champion Florida believes they’ve improved since last season, Tkachuk noted that this was a different Oilers team than the one that the Panthers defeated in seven games.

“I think everybody saw last night, including us, they are a very, very, very good team. They have some dangerous players. Even when their top guys are playing together, they have other lines that can play. That hasn’t always been the case there,” he said. “They defend hard, block shots, their goalie’s playing well. They’re better. We’re better. I think it’s going to be a great series.”

One point of concern for Florida after Game 1 was how they squandered a two-goal lead over the Oilers, who rallied to tie the game in the third before Leon Draisaitl’s overtime goal ended it. The Panthers had been 31-0 under head coach Paul Maurice in the playoffs when leading after the first period or the second period in a game.

“We went through some video and saw the things we can do better through the neutral zone. Maybe a little bit more offensive zone time,” said defenseman Seth Jones. “But they played a good game. They were solid defensively. They blocked a lot of shots. We knew that coming in that there’s not a lot of space out there, not a lot of plays to be made, really. So when we do get those opportunities, we have to try to hold on to the puck and capitalize.”

Tkachuk said the Panthers could be more consistent on the forecheck and earn more zone time to keep the Oilers from counterattacking.

“We did some really good things that we’re going to just have to do for longer stretches of time tomorrow,” said Tkachuk. “They definitely finished better than we did in the game and probably earned that win. They dictated more of the game than we did. It is what it is. Back to the drawing board. Just try to play better than them tomorrow.”

Game 2 is scheduled for Friday night in Edmonton. The winner of Game 1 in a best-of-seven Stanley Cup Final has won the series 76% of the time. The Game 1 winner has won 10 of the last 13 Stanley Cup Final series, including the last four straight.