Panthers expect ‘hardest game’ from Edmonton with Stanley Cup at stake

Panthers coach Paul Maurice expects two contrasting emotions as his team tries to win the Stanley Cup in Game 4 on Saturday night in Edmonton.

EDMONTON, Alberta -— Paul Maurice expects two contrasting emotions as the Florida Panthers try to win the Stanley Cup on Saturday night in Edmonton.

“There’s desperation,” he said. “And there’s desire.”

Edmonton will tap into the desperation in Game 4 to extend the series. The Panthers will have the desire to close it out. History is on the Panthers’ side considering of the 29 teams facing a 3-0 deficit in the Stanley Cup Final only the Toronto Maple Leafs rallied to win the Cup. Twenty of those winning teams completed the sweep. Five won the series in five games.

“Obviously, it’s hard not to feel different we know what’s at stake,” forward Carter Verhaeghe said before Game 4. “It’s obviously a big game for us. Honestly, if we try to do anything special it doesn’t work in our favor. So, taking it one game at a time works for us.”

“We know it’s going to be the hardest game for sure,” Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said. “We don’t take anything for granted. Every single day is one day at a time. Whether it’s one period, one shift, we take it one at a time. That’s how we’ve been all year.”

Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch was going the optimistic route, saying, “I’m excited for the next 10 days.”

Free agency looms

The Panthers have two looming free-agent questions between the end of the Stanley Cup Final and the start of free agency on July 1. Both forward Sam Reinhart and defenseman Brandon Montour have played prominent roles on playoff run and could be playing their final days with the team.

“In just a matter of (days) it all can change,” Montour said. “But I’ve been dealing with it all year.”

Reinhart, at 28, probably is considered the higher Panthers priority because of his high-end offensive talent with 57 regular-season goals and nine more in the playoffs. He led the league in power-play and shorthanded goals.

Montour, 30, had a slower start to the season due to rehabilitating a shoulder injury from last season’s playoff run. He is a prime part of the Panthers’ power play, and the kind of top-four defensemen teams build with.

It will be hard for the Panthers to sign both players even with the bump of the salary cap to $88 million.

Special teams remain special

The Panthers had killed all 10 Edmonton power plays entering Saturday night’s game and had a 90.2 percentage in the playoffs. Only Edmonton (93.1 percent) had a better penalty kill this post-season. …

The Panther have 10 players with more than 10 playoff points. No other team has five.