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NHL Playoffs 2021: 3 reasons the Florida Panthers will win the Stanley Cup

By Brad Berreman

SUNRISE, FL - MAY 10: Teammates line up to congratulate Goaltender Chris Driedger #60 of the Florida Panthers after the shutout victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning at the BB&T Center on May 10, 2021 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)
SUNRISE, FL - MAY 10: Teammates line up to congratulate Goaltender Chris Driedger #60 of the Florida Panthers after the shutout victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning at the BB&T Center on May 10, 2021 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images) /
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Coming off the best regular season in franchise history, here’s why the Florida Panthers can win the Stanley Cup.

When three-time Stanley Cup champion Joel Quenneville was hired as head coach in 2019, expectations were naturally raised for the Florida Panthers. The first season with him behind the bench didn’t go that well, with a 35-26-8 record in the truncated season with a bow out in the playoff qualifying round.

But things have been different for the Panthers this season. After a win over the Tampa Bay Lightning Monday night, they will go into the playoffs on the heels of putting up the best point percentage in franchise history (37-14-5 record). They also clinched home ice for the first round, which will be against the defending Stanley Cup champion Lightning in the first-ever all-Florida NHL playoff series.

A few key players missed Monday night’s regular-season finale, but there doesn’t appear to be a major concern on those fronts heading into the playoff opener this weekend. So the Panthers will be at full strength for the grind of the playoffs, coming off a challenging shortened season.

The Panthers have been to the Stanley Cup Final once in their history (1996). But here’s why they’ll win the Cup this year.

3 reasons the Florida Panthers will win the Stanley Cup

3. Depth

The straws that stir the Panthers’ drink are Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov, who posted 61 and 58 points respectively during the regular season. But six other guys scored at least 10 goals, and only one (the injured and out for the season Aaron Ekblad) was a defenseman.

After being acquired from the Calgary Flames, Sam Bennett had 15 points with three game-winning goals in 10 regular-season games for the Panthers. He has been battling an upper-body injury lately, but some extended rest heading into the playoffs should be incredibly helpful.

Shifting to the blue line, Florida has six available defensemen (minus Ekblad) who averaged more than 17 minutes per game during the regular season. Four of them finished with a plus-minus of at least +4/.

To win the playoffs, contributions have to come from unexpected places sometimes. The Panthers can go deeper with their forward lines and defense pairings than a lot of teams can, which will help them weather the ups and downs that are sure to come.

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