The Florida Panthers imposed their will early and often on the Edmonton Oilers, defeating them by a 6-1 final score in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida.
They now enjoy a two-games-to-one series lead and are just two victories away from a second consecutive Stanley Cup win.
As it often does in the final period of blowout games, the physicality was ramped up between both clubs as the frustration for the Oilers began to boil over.
Brawl Between the Oilers and Panthers in Game 3 Calls for Multiple Penalties
At about the midway point of the third period, with the outcome of the game all but officially decided, several players squared off with one another, resulting in multiple penalties being called.
Right in front of the Oilers’ bench, just about every player on the ice began squaring off with one another. Florida’s Jonah Gadjovich dropped the gloves against Edmonton’s Darnell Nurse in what was a prolonged fight; both players got several punches in.
Nate Schmidt went at it with Connor Brown, though it was more of a shoving match. Meanwhile, Viktor Arvidsson scuffled with Dmitry Kulikov, while Sam Bennett got several punches in on Trent Frederic.
The officials had a rough time restoring order on the ice and took several minutes to determine the total number of penalties.
Just minutes later, another scuffle broke out in the corner, as Edmonton’s Jake Walman threw several jabs at Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk, who was then restrained by John Klingberg. Aaron Ekblad immediately rushed in to defend his teammate, leading to more pushing and shoving between players from both sides.
As time expired, a scuffle again broke out, this time between Corey Perry and Tomáš Nosek that was quickly broken up by the officials.
The Panthers Dominated the Oilers and Now Lead the Series Two Games to One
The Panthers scored early and often on the Oilers, including the game’s opening goal just 58 seconds after the opening face-off at center ice.
Brad Marchand, playing in his fourth career Stanley Cup Final, scored his fourth goal of the series to give the Panthers the 1-0 lead.
The Panthers would later get goals from Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, and Aaron Ekblad. Evan Rodrigues scored a power-play goal late in the third period for good measure, increasing the Florida lead to 6-1.
The only goal for the Oilers was scored in the second period by Corey Perry, a power-play goal and his ninth of the postseason.
The talent and depth of the Panthers was on full display Monday night, and it will be up to the Oilers to respond in Game 4 if they want to avoid falling into a 3-1 series hole.