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Miami Herald
a day ago
- Sport
- Miami Herald
After ‘amazing feeling' of Stanley Cup win, Nosek and Panthers fourth line ready for more
The video has made its rounds. As the time wound down and the Florida Panthers closed in on their second consecutive Stanley Cup, Panthers coach Paul Maurice huddled together his fourth line of left wing A.J. Greer, center Tomas Nosek and right wing Jonah Gadjovich. He told them they were going onto the ice for the final shift of the game. They were going to be the ones who get to celebrate first. On a team filled with stars and bigger names, Maurice took the time to recognize the grinders who played a heavy part in Florida getting back to the pinnacle. 'It still gives me chills,' Nosek said, reflecting back on the moment from two weeks ago. 'I'm still trying to figure out the feelings and the emotions that I have. It was an emotional roller coaster for me. ... It's an amazing feeling.' It's also a shining example of what has been cultivated by this Panthers team: Everyone, from captain Aleksander Barkov and star winger Matthew Tkachuk to the fourth line forwards and the scratches who don't make the lineup on a nightly basis, are seen as equals. Their successes are celebrated. And their efforts are appreciated. It's why Nosek was eager to re-sign with the Panthers, with his deal becoming official on Tuesday. He'll make the league minimum again this season at $775,000, but the opportunity to chase another Stanley Cup with this team is one he didn't want to pass up. 'I can't wait to see those guys again,' Nosek said on a segment with NHL Tonight. 'We built such a strong chemistry, and it's a blessing to play here. I'm so happy to be back again and get a chance to make a run again.' Florida making the run this year came in large part to Nosek and Florida's fourth line. While a lot of attention, rightfully so, went to the likes of Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand and Sergei Bobrovsky for their heroic efforts throughout the postseason, Maurice points to Game 3 of the Panthers' second-round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs as an inflection point. Florida dropped the first two games of the series, and Maurice decided to flip his entire fourth line. Out came Mackie Samoskevich, Nico Sturm and Jesper Boqvist. In came Greer, Nosek and Gadjovich. Florida won the game 5-4 in overtime. The fourth line scored a critical goal in the second period. Their physical presence helped the Panthers get back to their identity. 'Those three guys came in,' Maurice said, 'and changed our fortune.' In the 70-plus minutes the three were on the ice together at five-on-five during the playoffs, Florida outscored opponents 4-1 and held opponents to just 29 shots on goal and 28 scoring chances. Nosek, who had three assists in the playoffs, was also integral on Florida's penalty kill — one of the team's biggest strengths — all season. 'Tomas did yeoman's work in the playoffs,' Panthers president of hockey operations and general manager Bill Zito said. 'We'd like to keep that line together.' The trio is together for at least one more year. Schmidt latest Panther paid elsewhere Nate Schmidt was due for a pay raise. The defenseman thrived in his lone season with the Panthers while making just above the league minimum. But with Florida's focus on re-signing its top three pending free agents in forwards Sam Bennett and Brad Marchand plus defenseman Aaron Ekblad, Schmidt knew he would almost assuredly need to get his money elsewhere. And he did. Schmidt on Tuesday signed a three-year deal with the Utah Mammoth that has an average annual value of $3.5 million. It makes Schmidt, who had 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) in 80 regular-season games and 12 (three goals, nine assists) in 23 playoff games with Florida, the latest defenseman to cash in after a strong showing with the Panthers during their recent run of success. Radko Gudas did it after the 2023 season when Florida reached the Cup Final. Brandon Montour and Oliver Ekman-Larsson did the same last year after the Panthers won their first Cup. Gudas turned a three-year stint with Florida that saw him make $7.5 million into a three-year, $12 million deal with the Anaheim Ducks. Montour turned a solid three-plus year run with Florida into a seven-year, $50 million deal with the Seattle Kraken. Ekman-Larsson parlayed a one-year deal with the Panthers after being bought out by Vancouver into a three-year deal with Toronto that, like Schmidt, has a $3.5 million annual cap hit. As for the landing spots of other players from Florida's Stanley Cup team ... ▪ Goaltender Vitek Vanecek signed a one-year deal with Utah. ▪ Center Nico Sturm signed a two-year deal with the Minnesota Wild. ▪ Defenseman Jaycob Megna signed a two-year deal with the Vegas Golden Knights. More Panthers signings Florida's lone external one-way contract handed out in free agency on Tuesday was to defenseman Jeff Petry, who will be making the league minimum $775,000 with the chance to earn more through performance bonuses. Petry, 37, has played in 981 career games over 15 seasons including stops with the Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings. He has 385 career points (96 goals, 289 assists). Petry and Uvis Balinskis will be Florida's primary players competing for the sixth defenseman spot which will play with Dmitry Kulikov on Florida's third pair. Gustav Forsling and Ekblad will continue as Florida's top pair, while Niko Mikkola and Seth Jones are the second pairing. Florida also agreed to a $1.05 million salary for backup goaltender Daniil Tarasov, who they acquired in a trade last week with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Additionally, the Panthers signed goaltender Brandon Bussi and forwards Nolan Foote and Jack Studnicka to two-way contracts. They will most likely be destined for the Charlotte Checkers, the Panthers' American Hockey League affiliate.
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
NHL Robs Flames Player Of First Career Hat Trick
Matthew Coronato collected his first NHL hat trick on Thursday night as the Calgary Flames defeated the Anaheim Ducks 4-1 at the Saddledome. However, shortly after the game ended, the NHL adjusted one of the goals, awarding it to Blake Coleman, thus robbing Coronato of his hat trick accomplishment. OFFICIAL SCORING CHANGE - Game 818@AnaheimDucks at @NHLFlames Goal at 19:16 of the second period now reads Blake Coleman from Matt Coronato. #NHLStats — NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) January 31, 2025 Down 1-0 going into the second period, Adam Klapka evened things up just 15 seconds into the middle frame before Coronato took over the scoring. At 19:16, the 22-year-old fired a shot from the slot that beat John Gibson to give Calgary their first lead. Although Coleman picked up the initial assist on the play, further review showed that Coronato's shot deflected off Coleman and past the Ducks goalie, resulting in a goal change. However, in real-time, Coronato scored his first goal and added his second, an insurance tally, in the third with 3:40 to go. As time ticked down and the Ducks opted to pull their goalie, Coronato fired the puck the length of the ice into an empty net as hat rained down the standings. Matt Coronato picks up his first career hat trick!!!@NHLFlames | #Flames | #NHLTonight — NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) January 31, 2025 At the buzzer, everyone in attendance believed that Coronato had just scored his first hat trick since the 2020-21 season when he was with the Chicago Steel in the USHL, but by the time they got home, the NHL had adjusted the goal. Despite losing out on a milestone hat trick on Thursday, the next time Coronato scores three goals, it will be an even more memorable moment that everyone can look back on with a chuckle. In 45 games this season, the former 13th overall pick (2021) has 13 goals and 14 assists for 27 points.
