Florida Panthers fans are going to have a lot to like about the new behind-the-scenes NHL series debuting on Amazon this week.
The six-episode series called Faceoff: Inside the NHL will be available to stream on Amazon starting Friday, Oct. 4.
Three of the six episodes will surround the Panthers.
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Episode Three centers on Florida forward Matthew Tkachuk and Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman, while Episodes Five and Six are all about the Stanley Cup Final between the Panthers and Edmonton Oilers.
First, let’s dive into Episode Three, titled Learning to Win.
Some of the highlights include Tkachuk driving his golf cart around Fort Lauderdale, his routine of taking a dip in the ocean before games and a putting contest with his brother Brady while their father cooked dinner on the BBQ at Tkachuk’s Fort Lauderdale home.
The episode also focuses on the playoff series between the Bruins and Panthers last season.
There were some fun moments showing Tkachuk chirping Swayman, Bruins captain Brad Marchand and others, but perhaps the most memorable segment came during Game 5, which Florida lost at home despite holding a 3-1 lead in the series.
Early in the game, Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice absolutely let his team have it from the bench, in his usual, profanity-laced way.
“You f—kers, pay attention,” Maurice yelled through a scratchy voice. “Nobody’s hit a f—ing thing. You get a 3-1 lead and now you wanna make plays. F—k the plays. Pound their f—ing D so in Game 7 they’ve got nothing left.”
I promise, nothing about reading the words makes it nearly as good as it will be when you watch it, and see how everyone around Maurice – the players, the coaches, the equipment guys, even the fans who couldn’t hear a word – were all silent with their eyes locked onto him.
There was also a good amount of focus spent on Swayman’s contract situation, which nobody knew at the time would become the mess that it current sits at.
He did acknowledge thinking whether Game 6 would be the last time he wore a Bruins sweater.
“That’s when I was like, ‘Woah,’” he said. “You’re skating around the Garden, you’re looking up and you’re hearing your name chanted and it’s like, ‘Woah.’ Like…f—k.”
The realness of this series is spectacular.
Now to Episodes Five and Six, called Cup or Bust Parts I and II.
Episode Five begins with Edmonton leaving the ice after losing Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final in Sunrise.
Connor McDavid is seen walking into the Oilers locker room. As he’s taking his gear off, he sits at his stall and begins to cry.
“Get the f—king cameras out of here,” someone says before the scene cuts to black.
Wow.
This episode takes this from the Oilers perspective, specifically McDavid, as they defeated the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final.
Toward the end, there is more attention paid to Tkachuk and the Panthers, with the standout moment coming inside Florida’s dressing room.
That’s when Maurice grabbed backup goalie Anthony Stolarz’s gloves and pretended to be Igor Shesterkin while demonstrating a coaching tactic to the team.
The episode ends after Game 2 of the Final, with McDavid’s now-viral f-bomb filled messages to his teammates in the locker room.
He addresses that “meltdown” (his word, not mine) in the opening of Episode Six.
The majority of the final episode was about Game 7, and rightly so.
One cool thing that we got to see was the giant ice-shaped display board in the Panthers locker room, which on that night featured everyone’s signature surrounding the words “Brothers for life.”
I was really glad to see a some attention paid to Florida’s immensely important penalty kill during the second period in which Kevin Stenlund went an extended period of time without a stick.
That segment of penalty killing by the Panthers against Edmonton’s otherworldly power play was something to behold. It was a kill worthy of a Stanley Cup Final Game 7.
After the game were some great, candid moments, from the Tkachuk family bawling in the stands to McDavid saying he wouldn’t have gone out to accept the Conn Smythe Trophy for a million dollars.
The full series is absolutely worth a watch, but it should be an especially special experience for Panthers fans.
Enjoy!
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