RECAP: Panthers look to future after quest for Stanley Cup falls short

LAS VEGAS -- The Florida Panthers will keep so much of this.

Even though bruises will fade, broken bones will heal and the sting of elimination will eventually subside, every player in the locker room will be forever changed by these last few months.

After going from dead in the water in December to piecing together a playoff run for the ages, the Panthers left the rink with their heads held high after the Vegas Golden Knights claimed their first-ever championship with a 9-3 win in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena on Tuesday.

"It's definitely tough right now to look back at anything," captain Aleksander Barkov said. "I know it's been amazing. This group of guys just gave it all out there every single night. It's hard right now, but for sure it's something that I'll remember for the rest of my life. Every time I step on the ice, whether it's a practice or a game, I'll remember this group. Hell of a journey."

After taking out three of the top-five teams in the NHL en route to their second Eastern Conference championship, this year's Panthers brought a buzz back to South Florida for hockey that had not been seen since the franchise's first run to the Stanley Cup Final in 1996.

Sold-out crowds showered the rink with plastic rats after every win at FLA Live Arena. More than 12,000 fans packed the stands for a watch party during Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. Lifetime fans got a renewed sense of vigor and new fans flocked to show their support.

Despite their season ending, the Panthers are very much alive and well.

"I don't know how many people in the hockey world thought we were going to be in this position," defenseman Brandon Montour said. "We've got a talented group. … This organization has grown dramatically over the last couple years. I think the hockey world knows now that we're for real. Obviously it's tough right now, but we'll be back."

Playing more than 100 games between the regular season and playoffs before finally hanging up their skates, here's how the final game in an unforgettable campaign played out for the Panthers.

First, it started with the absence of Matthew Tkachuk.

Described as a "heart and soul player" by his teammates, the Panthers superstar forward couldn't take the ice for Game 5 after suffering an injury in Game 3 of the series. After the game, head coach Paul Maurice revealed that Tkachuk had been dealing with a fractured sternum.

"He'll heal fine from it," Maurice said.

"These guys gave everything they had," he later added.

But even without their top scorer, the Panthers still did everything they could to keep their season alive.

Following a big save from Adin Hill on the penalty kill, the Knights opened the scoring in Game 5 when Vegas captain Mark Stone kept the puck himself on a 2-on-1 rush, walked into the slot and beat Sergei Bobrovsky with a wrist shot to make it 1-0 at 11:52 of the first period.

Adding to their early lead less than two minutes later, the Knights found the back of the net again when Nicolas Hague recognized some chaos around the crease, crashed the net and sent a loose puck past Bobrovsky, who was sprawled out on the ice, to make it 2-0 at 13:41.

On the play, the whistle appeared to blow before the puck crossed the goal line.

Getting the Panthers on the board in the second period, Aaron Ekblad, who Maurice revealed had broken his foot in Round 1 against the Boston Bruins, recognized some thick traffic in front of the net and fired a shot from the point that sailed past a screened Hill to trim the deficit to 2-1 at 2:15.

After that, the floodgates opened for Vegas.

Jumpstarting a sequence of sustained pressure in Florida's zone, the Knights extended their lead to 3-1 when Alec Martinez took a drop pass from Jack Eichel and roofed a goal at 10:28. Not slowing down from there, Vegas then made it 4-1 when Reilly Smith lit the lamp at 12:13.

Touching twine a second time, Stone buried a one-timer from the left circle to push the lead to 5-1 for the Knights at 17:15. Refusing to give the Panthers any opening for a comeback, Vegas then made it 6-1 when Michael Amadio cashed in on his own rebound with 1.2 seconds left in the period.

Trading goals in the third period, Ivan Barbashev scored to put the Knights up 7-1 at 8:22. Just 25 seconds later, Sam Reinhart responded with a goal for the Panthers to make it 7-2 at 8:47. At 11:39, Sam Bennett's point shot went off the stick of a Vegas skater and in to cut the deficit to 7-3 with one last goal for Florida.

At 14:06, Stone completed his hat trick with an empty-net goal to put the Knights up 8-3.

Tacking one more for the home crowd, Nicolas Roy scored with 1:02 left to make it 9-3.

While the final horn marked the end of the season, it didn't signal the end for the Panthers.

In speaking with players after the game, they all agreed on one thing.

This is just the beginning.

"There's no stopping here," Ekblad stated confidently. "Bump in the road. It's going to sting. It stings now, but we'll find a way to come back next year and be stronger because of it."

CATS QUOTES

"We want to be that team who wins and celebrates. I want to say everything, that we're going to be back here and lift the Cup. We'll forget this bad feeling in a couple of weeks and get back to work with this same group. It'll be fun again." - captain Aleksander Barkov

"It's a huge step. Not only with what we learned those two months, but how close to each other we [got]. We won together and we lose together. I'm proud guys competed all the way."- goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky

"You grind all this way, there's bound to be some injuries. Most of the guys are banged up. It's over 100 games of hockey. It's a grind. No matter the outcome, whether we had a couple guys hurt or they had a couple guys hurt, they obviously won. It's tough right now." - defenseman Brandon Montour

"Remember the feeling. It's not the moments or the goals, as a matter of fact, at all with these guys. They just care about each other. They love each other. They treat each other so well. They all had fun and worked their butts off every day. It was truly a special year." - head coach Paul Maurice

CATS NOTES

• Matthew Tkachuk led the Panthers in goals (11) and assists (13) in the playoffs.

• Aleksander Barkov led all NHL players in the postseason with 225 faceoff wins.

• Radko Gudas led all NHL players in the postseason with 91 hits.

• Brandon Montour and Sam Bennett led Florida with four points each in the Stanley Cup Final.

• Ten different players scored a goal for the Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final.

WHAT'S NEXT?

That's it for the 2022-23 season.

In roughly four months, the Panthers will kick off their next quest for the Stanley Cup.

Looking to build off their deepest playoff run yet, there's only one question left to ask.

Is it October yet?