SUNRISE — A year ago, the Panthers were swept out of the Stanley Cup playoffs in the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.
History may be about to repeat – but this time, it’s favoring Florida.
The Panthers defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 in overtime Sunday night to take a commanding 3-0 series lead. Game 4 is Wednesday night in Sunrise.
Sam Reinhart beat goaltender Joseph Woll with a wrap-around 3:02 into OT.
The game had been tied at 2 since the second period after Carter Verhaeghe scored by deflecting a Radko Gudas shot past backup goaltender Joseph Woll with his backside. Woll was in the game after starter Ilya Samsonov was injured earlier in the period.
The Maple Leafs jumped ahead quickly Sunday night, taking a 1-0 lead 2:26 into the game with a one-timer from David Kampf to Sam Lafferty on their first shot. But they could not take advantage of the momentum swing the goal caused.
Florida kept the puck in Toronto’s zone for the majority of the first period and held the Leafs without a shot for 13 minutes. And the Panthers built on their hard, forechecking game in the second period.
Sam Reinhart nearly tied the game 37 seconds into the second period after springing onto a rebound in front of the net, but he was tripped into the crease by defender Luke Schenn. Samsonov was injured and the Panthers went to the power play.
Anthony Duclair beat Woll, with a slick deke on a breakaway with one second to go on the ensuing man advantage to tie the game 2:36 into the period.
The Panthers had their first big gaffe since the opening minutes of the game 7:32 into the second period to let the Maple Leafs back into it. Marc Staal knocked in a cross-ice feed from Erik Gustafsson into his own net with goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky out of position and Kampf alone in the crease awaiting the pass.
Here are three takeaways from the game.
Duclair’s speed and hustle created chances for Florida
Duclair spent countless time studying head coach Paul Maurice’s hard-checking system while he was out for the first five months of the season. And it was apparent in Sunday night’s Game 3 win.
He used his top-end speed to spring out on a breakaway off of a feed from Aaron Ekblad to score Florida’s first goal. He created a couple more breakaways by forcing turnovers at the blue line and getting his stick into passing lanes.
His breakaway with 8:10 to go in the second period helped spring the possession that saw the Panthers tie the game. After Woll’s save on him, he got the puck back by winning a battle behind the net.
Panthers much more disciplined in Game 3
Florida came into Sunday leading the NHL in penalties during the 2023 postseason. The Panthers took seven penalties in the first two games of the Toronto series. While their penalty kill responded with a 6-for-7 showing, undisciplined play like that could not be sustainable.
The Panthers played a much more disciplined game on Sunday and made it through regulation without taking a penalty.
It allowed the Panthers to distribute minutes evenly and it gave them the energy they needed to strike early in overtime.
Bobrovsky calmed down after early mistakes
Sunday could very well have been one of those days where Bobrovsky let his mistakes dictate the game, but he recovered easily. After allowing the first shot of the game to go in, Bobrovksy made a couple of key glove saves later in the first period to help get him into the game.
Even after getting caught out of position on Staal’s own-goal in the second period, Bobrovsky came back and made 18 consecutive saves to send the game into overtime.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida Panthers defeat Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 in OT for 3-0 series lead
