"It is a little different, we've been kind of in playoff mode] for two months," forward Sam Reinhart said. "Last year, you're almost preparing for it so long, there might have been a few more distractions on the outside part of it.
"We like [where]*
The Panthers found that out the hard way last spring, when they were swept in the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning after setting a franchise record in the regular season with 122 points.
This season, the road to the playoffs wasn't nearly as smooth for Florida, which was in 11th place in the East on Jan. 28. It didn't clinch a playoff berth until April 11, three days before the regular season ended, thanks in part to a 6-1-1 run in their final eight games.
By comparison, last season the Panthers were the first team in the League to clinch a playoff berth. They did so on April 2, when they had 14 games remaining on the schedule.
"We're going in with some scars, which is good, but they've healed, right? We survived them," coach Paul Maurice said April 15. "We had some tough stretches this year where there was a lot of mental toughness needed. … So we've got some miles on us. It's a good way."
Florida hired Maurice as coach following their exit last season, hoping he would instill a more defensive-minded approach that would serve the team better in the playoffs.
Maurice said his players got progressively better throughout the season at playing that style and hopes they'll continue doing the same against Boston.
"I use the word 'hard' all the time but being completely competitive in the five-foot circle (around the net) for 60 straight minutes, that's the challenge and we found a way," Maurice said. "I think our December (6-8-0) you couldn't see it because we were so banged up and so fatigued, but I felt it was coming. January (8-5-2), you saw it and then the push (12-6-2 in March and April) saw it.
"We at least don't have to explain to our team what the playoff hardness is all about because we've lived it twice. And we've got guys now that have at least three series in the last two years under their belt that they understand what this is going to look like."
The Panthers finished one point ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres for the final playoff spot in the East. In 2021-22, they finished six points in front of the East's No. 2 team, the Carolina Hurricanes, and three points ahead of the best team in the Western Conference, the Colorado Avalanche, who would go on to win the Stanley Cup.
Forward Carter Verhaeghe believes Florida already having been battle-tested ahead of the postseason should be beneficial.
"It felt like we've been in the playoffs for at least a couple of weeks now," Verhaeghe said. "And I think playing important games coming down the stretch, it definitely plays a big, big impact.
"Last year is kind of the opposite; we're just waiting … [then] all of a sudden, the games are important. So, I think it gives us a little bit of advantage in that sense."
