SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — In a single shift, Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett showed why he’s been one of the most unstoppable players in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
In Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final, Bennett knocked Vasily Podkolzin off his feet with a huge hit in the defensive zone, then buried a breakaway goal on the other end moments later.
After the goal, which put the Florida Panthers up 4-1 in the second period against the Edmonton Oilers on Monday night, Bennett pumped his fist and hugged teammate Matthew Tkachuk, whose mouth was wide open, as if neither could believe what had just happened.
That’s who Bennett has been throughout out the postseason — a hard-hitting, goal-guzzling centerpiece to Florida’s third straight run to the Stanley Cup Final. His 20 points lead the Panthers. He has more goals — 14 — than any other player in the playoffs and has scored in each of the first three games of the Cup final.
He scored twice in Florida’s 4-3 overtime loss at Edmonton in the series opener and opened scoring just two minutes into the Panthers’ 5-4 double overtime win in Game 2.
Bennett’s breakaway goal, which came on an assist from Eetu Luostarinen on Monday, stretched his goal streak to four games, which is a Panthers’ postseason record.
His playoff scoring surge couldn’t have come at a better time, with Bennett set to hit free agency at the end of the season.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice, fully aware of Bennett’s pending free agency, made sure to issue a warning to any teams interested in his squad’s leading postseason scorer.
“Horrible attitude,” Maurice quipped during a midgame television interview. “I think he’s got bubonic plague. Dengue fever. He’s got a whole bunch of things. We’re not sure he can be cured.”
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AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
