Stanley Cup Final Game Two: So Much Misconduct, So Little Time

You know, when a team loses Game One of a series, it's often followed by said losing team usually learning from whatever mistakes they make, but even then, the outcome is fluid. Said team could end up winning Game Two and evening things up. Or...they could still lose, but still leave their game playing much better than they did before. What we saw from the Florida Panthers in Game Two of this year's Stanley Cup Final was the absolute opposite of either of the outcomes I mentioned.

So the game started with both teams tied in shots after six minutes, then a scrum happens. Despite both teams getting rough, only one Panther goes to the box, resulting in a Vegas power play (where have we heard this before?). Of course, Vegas capitalizes, and of course, it's Jonathan Marchessault. His 11th of the playoffs makes it 1-0, so Vegas scores first in Game Two--was not the case in Game One. Florida went on a shot drought, which continued when they became shorthanded again. However, they did get a power play right after, and while their shots came up with nothing, Alec Martinez's did, and that made it 2-0.

The amazing thing about Martinez's goal, it appeared to be from the exact same sweet spot where he scored his famous Cup clincher for the Los Angeles Kings in 2014. So Vegas was up 2-0 after 20 minutes, and it continued on in the second period. Two more goals in the second frame, and the Panthers came unglued again. Another game misconduct for Matthew Tkachuk. Yikes. 4-0 after 40 minutes, and Sergei Bobrosky's night was done. The Panthers did get on the board very early in the 3rd; Anton Lundell hatching the goose egg, Anthony Duclair with the assist--second point of the Final for both men. Vegas regained their four-goal lead right after, but later on, Matthew Tkachuk finally got on the board with a goal--and he followed that up with his second game misconduct of the game following his hit that leveled Jack Eichel. Brett Howden added one to go with his second period goal, and the rout was completed: a 7-2 final score in favor of the Vegas Golden Knights.

Seriously, what in the holy hell is going on with Matthew Tkachuk? I should be asking that about the whole team, but the main problem has been the Panthers' top player. He is really going from sugar to shit in a matter of days. Tkachuk's been the unsung hero for the Panthers all season and all playoffs. Three game-winning goals: the Game Five winner vs the Bruins that began the comeback, the quadruple OT winner from Game One vs the Hurricanes, and the series clincher with less than five seconds left in regulation. I was expecting that Matt Tkachuk in this series. But what do we get? A very ornery player who is more bent on collecting heads than picking up points. He has more game misconducts than points in this year's Final. One goal, 36 penalty minutes! That just will not do.

The Golden Knights are now two wins away from their first Stanley Cup, and with this win, this is now their most successful run in their six-year franchise history. Their inaugural season saw them win 13 playoff games; this win is the team's 14th playoff win this season. Jack Eichel, who added two more points tonight, is two wins away from winning his first Cup and making the cities of Edmonton and Buffalo cry.

Game Three is Thursday in Sunrise. The Panthers are now 0-6 in Cup Final games. They have two guaranteed games on home ice. If they want to make any semblance of a dent in this Final, they need to act right, chill out, and be absolutely focused. No Cup Final has ended in a four game sweep since 1998. If things do not change for the Panthers, that skid will be broken.

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