“Nope,” Maurice said.
Hagel drew a 5-minute major for interference on the play. Florida led 1-0 at the time, and an empty-netter by Sam Bennett with about 3 seconds remaining gave the Panthers a 2-0 win in the game and 2-0 lead in the series.
“Refs made the call,” said Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper, who pleaded his case unsuccessfully after the penalty on Hagel was called. “I was a little surprised it was a (major) ... five minutes in a 1-0 game with eight minutes to play, nine minutes to play, that's a tough situation to be in.”
Barkov has three assists so far in the series, including one on Florida's opening goal Thursday by defenseman Nate Schmidt — who got the winning goals in both games at Tampa. Schmidt scored twice in Florida's 6-2 win in the series opener on Tuesday.
The question now becomes if Barkov will miss time going forward. Game 3 of the series is Saturday afternoon on the Panthers' ice in Sunrise, where they'll play a home playoff game for the first time since June 24, 2024 — when they beat Edmonton in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.
“He's irreplaceable,” Panthers defenseman Seth Jones said. “He's an irreplaceable player. Face-offs, power play, penalty kill, 5-on-5, playing against their top lines, one of the best centermen in the league. He's obviously super-important to our team.”
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP