Expanded playoffs format could help Cats
The Florida Panthers’ splashy offseason was all leading up to this — sort of.
The Panthers hired Joel Quenneville, the hottest coach on the market, and signed Sergei Bobrovsky, the top goaltender on the market. Florida’s grand plan was not only to reach the postseason for just the sixth time in franchise history, but to advance in the Stanley Cup playoffs for only the second time.
It didn’t go exactly according to plan, but the Panthers officially advanced past the regular season Tuesday when the NHL announced its returnto-play plan amid the COVID-19 pandemic, consisting of an expanded 24team postseason field with a qualifying round to trim the playoff field to its usual 16-team size.
Whatever this tournament is officially considered, Florida is playing in the tournament which will award the Stanley Cup.
“The one thing we talked about at the top of the season as a team was we want to be in a position playing meaningful games,” Quenneville said Thursday. “This is our opportunity now.”
A few things in the format are still being worked out — namely, the start date, the locations, and whether the first- and second-round series will be best-of-5 or best-of-7 — but the Panthers path to a championship is clear. Now one of just 24 teams left in title contention, Florida has seldom been closer to winning a championship.
“The guys are excited because now you see it. It’s right in front of you. There was doubt before. We had 13 games left in the regular season. We probably had to win eight or nine of those to get into the regular playoffs scenario and now we