Tag: Stanley Cup Playoffs

Former Notre Dame players score for Islanders in Stanley Cup playoffs

Sadly, they weren’t enough for a win.

The Stanley Cup playoffs have been underway for a few days now. One team competing for the grandest trophy in sports is the New York Islanders, who happen to have two former Notre Dame players on their roster. Both scored in Game 2 of their best-of-7 first-round series with the Carolina Hurricanes.

[autotag]Kyle Palmieri[/autotag] drew first blood in the game on a four-on-four late in the first period:

Early in the second period, [autotag]Anders Lee[/autotag] extended the Islanders’ lead further by scoring on a power play:

As nice as it would be to say they made the difference in this game, it proved to be the high mark for the Islanders. The Carolina Hurricanes proceeded to score five unanswered goals to win, 5-3, and take a 2-0 lead in the series.

The good news for the Islanders is that they’re going home for two straight games. However, they surely didn’t want to be in this hole, and a loss like this can be devastating to a team. Stranger things have happened in the playoffs though, so the chance always is there.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Watch: Jalen Ramsey bangs the drum before Panthers’ first playoff game

Jalen Ramsey fired up the crowd at Amerant Bank Arena before the Panthers’ playoff game against the Lightning.

The Florida Panthers’ pursuit of the Stanley Cup started Sunday with Game 1 against the Tampa Bay Lightning and Jalen Ramsey was there to cheer on the home team.

The Miami Dolphins cornerback got things started at Amerant Bank Arena with some hits on the Panthers’ drum.

Ramsey is far from the first Dolphins star to bang the drum before a Panthers game.

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Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa did it before a regular season game in 2022, head coach Mike McDaniel got the crowd fired up before an Eastern Conference Finals game last year, and Dolphins legend Dan Marino banged the drum before a Stanley Cup Finals game.

Ramsey, who was acquired by the Dolphins in a March 2023, has been soaking up the South Florida sports scene in his first full offseason with the team. On Friday night, he was courtside at the Heat’s play-in game against the Chicago Bulls at Kaseya Center.

Earlier this offseason, the Dolphins restructured Ramsey’s contract to clear nearly $20 million in salary cap space.

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WATCH: Baker Mayfield narrates epic Tampa Bay Lightning playoff hype video

Check out this awesome hype video for the Tampa Bay Lightning’s latest playoff run, narrated by Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield

The Tampa Bay Lightning are back where they usually are, heading to the Stanley Cup Playoffs with hopes of lifting the legendary trophy for the fourth time in franchise history.

After winning back-to-back Stanley Cups, the Bolts fell just short two years ago, and were bounced from the first round last season. While many wonder if this is the end of their dynasty, the team has reloaded with hopes of proving the doubters wrong.

Somebody else that knows a thing or two about doing silencing the doubters? Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield, who narrated this epic hype video for the Bolts’ upcoming playoff run:

Yeah, I’m gonna need a wall to run through.

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Why Florida Panthers fans throw toy rats on the ice

Panthers fans love their rats!

Welcome to FTW Explains, a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. Are you wondering why Florida Panthers fans are throwing rats onto the ice? We’re here to help.

Every sports team has their own traditions. Many times, traditions take the form of a victory song, like the Colorado Avalanche with “All the Small Things” and the Philadelphia Phillies with “Dancing on My Own“.

The Florida Panthers, however, have rats as their victory tradition.

No, not real rats! Thankfully, these ones are of the plastic variety and are often seen thrown onto the ice after a Panthers’ win. So, how did the Panthers’ tradition of throwing rats onto the ice begin? Let’s dig in!

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Why these 6 players are the most important to watch during the 2023 Stanley Cup Final

The stars will be out during the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.

It’s safe to say no one was expecting this matchup in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.

For the first time since 2019, we’ll have a first-time Stanley Cup champion after the Vegas Golden Knights and Florida Panthers battle it out to decide the victor. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are never without surprises, but you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who could have predicted this matchup at the end of the day.

MORE STANLEY CUP: The 12 NHL teams that have never won a Stanley Cup.

Even still, Vegas and Florida are as star-studded as they come in this league, with playmakers up and down the lineup. The Panthers have, without a doubt, been the most fun team to follow in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with their newfound penchant for dramatic finishes. The Golden Knights, on the other hand, have been a strong — but steady — ship, even going back to the regular season.

But, if you’re a casual hockey fan tuning in for the first time these playoffs, you might be wondering which players are set to make the most impact on hockey’s biggest stage. So, to get you ready, here the six most important players you need to watch out for during the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.

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See Matthew Tkachuk’s stunning last-second goal to clinch a Stanley Cup Final berth

THE PANTHERS CINDERELLA PLAYOFF RUN CONTINUES!

The Florida Panthers are going to the Stanley Cup Final and Matthew Tkachuk is — of course! — the one that got them there.

The Panthers eliminated the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday in an unthinkable sweep of the Eastern Conference Final. Game 4 seemed destined for overtime after the Hurricanes tied up the game 3-3 late in the third period. Tkachuk, however, had other plans.

With less than a minute left in the third, the Panthers were given a rare power play opportunity to put the series away. And with just 4.3 seconds remaining in the period, Tkachuk cashed in to give the Panthers the 4-3 lead and the win.

While the NHL reviewed the play, Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen was not interfered with in his attempt to save the puck.

What a goal! Once Tkachuk saw the empty net in front of him with Andersen out of position, it was all over for the Hurricanes.

With the sweep, the Panthers now advance to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1996, marking their second overall appearance in the final round. Florida will now have to wait to see which team will be their opponent out of the West, but what an exhilarating run this has been for the Panthers!

Stars captain Jamie Benn rightfully tossed from Game 3 early for terribly unnecessary cross-check

Jamie Benn deserved to be ejected from the game after this horrendous cross-check.

This isn’t what you want to see from your captain in a must-win playoff series.

On Tuesday, the Dallas Stars were hosting the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Final. After losing both games on the road in Vegas, the Stars looked to get off on a better foot at home in front of a Dallas crowd. Instead, captain Jamie Benn took himself out of the game mere minutes in after an extremely unnecessary cross-check.

With less than two minutes gone by in the first period and the Stars already down 1-0, Benn laid a hit into Mark Stone. The Stars captain then gave Stone a rough cross-check to the face while the Vegas player was down on the ice, drawing a five-minute major and a game misconduct on the play.

Benn very well could get another game or two on top as well given how reckless this cross-check was. And on the ensuing five-minute power play, the Golden Knights scored to double their lead. By first period’s end? The Stars were facing a 3-0 deficit and one of their leaders carelessly took themselves out of the game.

NHL fans tore into Benn for the reckless cross-check that cost the Stars one of their best players in Game 3.

NHL fans couldn’t believe there was no penalty on this late high stick during Hurricanes-Panthers Game 3

Did the referees miss this late high stick on Shayne Gostisbehere?

The Florida Panthers are now one win away from their first Stanley Cup Final berth since 1996, but some NHL fans have questions as to how Game 3 ended.

On Monday, the Panthers bested the Carolina Hurricanes 1-0 to take a commanding 3-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference Final. Despite the Hurricanes outshooting the Panthers 32-17, Florida held strong off the back of Sergei Bobrovsky’s fantastic performance in net.

However, the ending of Game 3 didn’t sit well with many NHL fans. With the goaltender pulled in the final few minutes of the game, the Hurricanes were breaking out of their own zone when Shayne Gostisbehere was hit with a high stick from Sam Reinhart. Play was stopped before the Panthers scored an empty netter, but after some deliberation, the referees decided that no penalty should be called and that play should continue 1-0.

Here’s how the play went down.

While Gostisbehere exaggerates it, the Hurricanes’ defenseman still gets hit up high with a stick, which is a penalty regardless of the reaction. Of course, the Hurricanes didn’t lose Game 3 because of the no penalty call, but going on a late power play with the chance to tie the game would have benefited them greatly.

NHL fans could not believe this high stick on Gostisbehere was not called a penalty late in Game 3.

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Florida Panthers superfan Brooks Koepka was in attendance at Game 3 day after winning the PGA Championship

Not even a major golf tournament could stop Brooks Koepka from cheering on the Panthers.

It’s been a busy week for Brooks Koepka.

After winning the 2023 PGA Championship on Sunday — his third victory in the tournament — Koepka high-tailed it out of Oak Hill to make his way to Sunrise, Florida. The reason? So he could catch Game 3 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes.

Koepka is quite the Panthers superfan, as he famously heckled Aaron Ekblad with an orange traffic cone at a game not too long ago! Thankfully, it seems Koepka has cooled off a bit now that the Panthers have embarked on this surprising underdog run in the playoffs, as he’s back to cheering on his favorite NHL team.

MORE PGA CHAMPIONSHIP: Brooks Koepka had a great exchange with Michael Block after the club pro’s fairytale PGA Championship.

No surprise, then, that the TNT broadcast caught Koepka in the midst of an intense moment of clapping late in the second period.

Koepka even brought the Wanamaker Trophy with him for the occasion!

We’ll have to see if Koepka’s championship pedigree can rub off on the Panthers in their quest for their first Stanley Cup.

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2023 Stanley Cup Playoff power rankings: Expect the unexpected in the Conference Finals

Chaos is king in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and the Conference Finals will be no exception.

And then there were four!

The 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs are officially at their midpoint as the Conference Finals loom. The second round of the playoffs saw more heavyweight favorites in the Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers fall, making way for the most unconventional Conference Finals hockey fans have seen in some time.

Chaos is king in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but things have been taken to a new level this season. The last time any of the four teams remaining won a Stanley Cup? The Carolina Hurricanes way back in 2006. Not only that, two of the remaining teams haven’t even won a Stanley Cup in franchise history!

Expect the unexpected really is the name of the game here as the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs begin to wind down. After all, there are only a finite number of hockey games left in the season before a long summer, so why not enjoy it all while it lasts?

Here’s how we rank the four teams remaining in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, with a final eulogy for the ones left behind.

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