"Paul Maurice was not given, let's say, a long leash by the fans," Viola said. The other big change last summer was hiring head coach Paul Maurice, another tough decision for Florida to make, especially after then-interim coach Andrew Brunette led the Panthers to the NHL's best regular-season record a year ago. And his relationship with Aleksander Barkov, it's like one and one makes four. He just is the quintessential modern hockey player leader. You could call him a unicorn, you can call him a generational talent, call him what you want. "We were really blessed by good fortune when we brought on a true champion in Matthew Tkachuk," Viola said. Viola called it "heartbreaking," but added that the team's ownership group, including his sons, and front office "had to think with our head, not our heart." Tkachuk had 109 points and 123 penalty minutes this season the last person to have 100 in each of those categories was Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby in 2006.įlorida nearly balked at making the deal, simply because they thought so highly of Huberdeau. One of those was trading Jonathan Huberdeau, then the franchise's all-time scoring leader, to Calgary as part of a package that brought Matthew Tkachuk to Florida. Sunday's victory further validated two big moves the Panthers made last summer. "We have people believing in this team," Viola said.įLA WINS 4-3 Panthers shock record-setting Bruins with Game 7 OT win, advance to face Leafs in 2nd round Florida got there most recently in that 1996 run, Toronto in 2002. A second-round meeting with Toronto awaits Florida now the winner will be going to the conference finals for the first time in a generation. Last year's first-round series win over Washington was the franchise's first playoff triumph since 1996. The Panthers, for years, made winning seem impossible. Now I feel we have an organization that they can be proud of." They kind of surrendered it to us on credit, and it took us a while to earn it. "They gave us a lot of confidence and a lot of support on credit. I truly feel that the fan base truly believes in a way, quite frankly, that was not warranted in the past. "And it means an awful lot because I see the confidence reflected in the fan base. It means an awful lot," he told The Associated Press on Monday. "We feel that we got through some pretty tough roller-coaster years. The dark days for the franchise are gone, and Viola feels like the team is getting closer on making good on its promise to bring a Stanley Cup to South Florida. For the first time, the Panthers have reached the NHL's second round in back-to-back years. And this weekend, with racing and hockey on his calendar, Viola might need to be in two places at once. He also owns the Panthers, who just knocked Boston, the favourites to win the Stanley Cup. Viola is one of the owners of Forte, the presumed favourite for Saturday's Kentucky Derby. No restrictions appeared to be in place on Canadian ticket purchases for games at T-Mobile Arena. The Edmonton Oilers, the other Canadian NHL team remaining in the post-season, were set to begin their second-round series Wednesday in Las Vegas against the Golden Knights.
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