DARRAGH: How was your first experience with the Battle of Florida and getting that first-round win?
EKMAN-LARSSON: It feels good. It’s a rivalry that’s been building up over the course of the last few years and it’s nice to get past a really good team. That’s what is so much fun about playoffs, there’s good teams that you need to play your best against every single night if you’re going to win and move on. I think it’s special to do it against Tampa in the first round and build that momentum for the second round.
DARRAGH: You always hear that everything gets amped up in the playoffs. How do you control that energy to still be able to stick to your game as a team?
EKMAN-LARSSON: It’s a fine line. You want to be skating, hitting, and being in the right spots at the right time, but there’s also a lot going on – loud fans, sold out building, and guys playing their hearts out. You want to find that fine line and not get too low or too high, keeping it even keel is the key.
DARRAGH: As far as playing for Florida, what would you say went as expected and something that was different?
EKMAN-LARSSON: I think I had a pretty good picture of what I was getting into. You hear a lot of different things about the team, so I had a good sense of what I was getting into. The guys have been great. I heard that before I signed, it’s something special in here. I don’t know if there’s anything I didn’t expect. It’s been a great overall experience.
DARRAGH: What's been the best thing for you living in Florida and what’s surprised you the most?
EKMAN-LARSSON: I thought it was going to rain a little bit less, but it’s not a bad thing really. The weather has been great. You wake up and it’s beautiful every single day, so that’s a plus. It’s been pretty easy. I love it.
DARRAGH: What can you say about the Panthers’ depth on defense?
EKMAN-LARSSON: I think overall the team is deep. Our D-core is deep, so it doesn’t really matter who you play with. I’ve played with (Dmitry) Kulikov, (Josh) Mahura, and pretty much everybody. We have so many guys that can play. It doesn’t really matter what the lineup is. They’re all great guys, they play hard, and have all boughten into their role.
DARRAGH: Playing out west your whole career until this season, was there someone on the team that's skill level surprised you the most once you saw them on a more daily basis?
EKMAN-LARSSON: There’s a lot of guys. I played against (Aleksander) Barkov. I played against Chucky (Matthew Tkachuk) a lot when he was in Calgary and it’s a better feeling to be on the same team, for sure. Benny (Sam Bennett) and (Sam) Reinhart. A guy like (Gustav) Forsling, too, when you see how hard he works every single day and how good he is with the stick, there’s a lot of guys that once you get to see them every single day you understand why they’re good players in this league.
