Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Reinhart and Evan Rodrigues each had a goal and an assist for the Florida Panthers in a 6-1 win against the visiting Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night in Sunrise, Fla.
The Panthers hold a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series heading to Game 4 on Thursday night in Sunrise.
Brad Marchand, Aaron Ekblad and Sam Bennett also scored, Eetu Luostarinen had two assists and Sergei Bobrovsky made 32 saves for the Panthers, who are trying to become the third team to repeat as Stanley Cup champion in the past 10 years.
Corey Perry scored for the Oilers, who are hoping to become the first franchise from Canada to win the Cup since the Montreal Canadiens in 1993.
Stuart Skinner surrendered five goals on 23 shots before he was replaced early in the third period by Calvin Pickard, who finished with seven saves.
Marchand scored his fourth goal of the series 56 seconds into the game.
The puck caromed to Marchand in the slot and he brought it back to the inside edge of the right circle before scoring with a snap shot. Skinner was off balance in front of the crease when the puck hit the net to give Florida a 1-0 lead.
The teams combined for seven power plays in the opening period and the Panthers scored on the last when the Oilers left room for Verhaeghe to skate into the right circle and score with a wrist shot for a 2-0 lead at 17:45.
Edmonton was on the eighth power play to start the second period when Perry scored a rebound to cut the lead to 2-1 at 1:40.
Florida answered 1:20 later when Reinhart shot the puck between the legs of Oilers defenseman John Klingberg from the left faceoff circle and past Skinner to re-establish the two-goal lead at 3-1.
Bennett and Luostarinen then sprung loose on a 2-on-0 break and Bennett finished it off for his fourth goal of the series and 14th of the postseason to make it 4-1 at 7:26.
Florida added another power-play goal at 3:27 of the third period to stretch the lead to 5-1. Ekblad took a feed from Reinhart and scored with a one-timer from the inside edge of the right circle, ending the night for Skinner.
Rodrigues scored with a one-timer during a 5-on-3 power play with 3:50 left to make it 6-1.
The teams combined for 140 penalty minutes.
–Field Level Media
