Miles Morrisseau
ICT
They should be called the Cardiac Cats because the Florida Panthers have a flair for the dramatic when it comes to winning. Now the team led on offense by Mathew Tkachuk, Serge Bobrovsky in net and Brandon Montour, Mohawk, on defense, is on their way to the Stanley Cup finals.
The Panthers closed out the series sweep on Wednesday over the Carolina Hurricanes when Tkachuk scored the game winner in a 4-3 win with only five seconds remaining on the clock in the final period.
Montour, who was on the ice at the time, as he has been for so many big goals during this historic run to the cup final, was the first to leap onto the assistant captain in celebration. It has been a record-breaking season for Montour who set the record for most goals by a defenseman in Panthers’ franchise history and he set the record this season for most game winning goals.
His six goals continue to lead all defensemen in the Stanley Cup playoffs and it is a record he will likely own at the end of the playoffs whether he scores another goal because the next defender on the list still playing hockey is teammate Gustov Forsling, who has two.
(Previous: Indigenous hockey players close in on Stanley Cup finals)
Starting off with one of the greatest upsets in the history of the NHL, the Panthers. who had snuck into the playoffs as the last Wild Card team, matched up with the undisputed best team in the NHL, the Boston Bruins. The Bruins had finished at the top of the league with most points and were awarded the Presidents Cup for their efforts. The Panthers finished 42 points behind the Bruin’s 135 but that wouldn’t matter. The Panthers won in a dramatic game seven overtime after coming back from a 3-1 series deficit.
The Panthers dispatched of the highly favored Toronto Maple Leafs in five games, also winning the decider in overtime.
Game 1 with the Carolina Hurricanes ended up being another one for the books. Florida won in quadruple overtime, setting franchise records for both teams for longest games played. Montour played more than anyone on both teams and now holds another Panthers record — most minutes played in a game. The Panthers outlasted this battle of attrition with a walk off goal by Tkachuk.
In game 2, Florida won in overtime. Again tying the record for most overtime wins on the road during the NHL playoffs at six games. Tkachuk potted his second overtime winner in as many games. It put the Panthers in control of the series heading back home for games 3 and 4. Montour led all players on both teams in ice-time again and his role as offensive quarterback of the power play is clear in the numbers. Within his nearly 25 minutes of ice-time, the man they call “Money,” racked up 3:42 during Florida’s plays, the next nearest defenseman was Aaron Ekblad who had less than half the time at 1:48.
In a pre-game interview before game 3 with Sportsnet, the member of the Six Nations of Grand River in Ontario talked about the keys to this breakout season. “My mindset is the same heading into every year. I love to train, prepare myself in the best way I can and the opportunity showed up, I just wanted to stick with it and run with it,” said Montour. “I knew I was gonna play bigger minutes, bigger role and no matter how long it took seven, eight years I tried to play the same way. I tried to play competitive, play hard. And then when the offense is there to use my strengths.”
It has been Montour’s offensive production that has lifted him up to the levels of some of the best in the game. It is his ability to make the right decision under pressure that is an essential part of his job, he can’t sacrifice a goal when trying to get one or set one up. “I think that’s my biggest thing is, obviously I want to be patient. But once I see a play that I could jump up and make some plays, I’m definitely gonna do that.”
Montour is getting noticed not only for his offensive numbers and physical fitness and stamina but also the smile he has on his face during the most desperate moments.
The Panthers await the winner of the Western Conference finals where the Vegas Golden Knights hold a commanding 3-0 series lead over the Dallas Stars.. Zach Whitecloud, Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, has been stalwart on defense for Vegas. If the Knights win it will set up the first matchup between two Indigenous players in the Stanley Cup Finals since 1980 when Denis Potvin, Metis Nation and his New York Islanders took on Reggie Leach, Ojibwe, and the Philadelphia Flyers. The Cup could begin sometime after Memorial Day.
