Florida, United States.
The most talked-about situation of the second final of the NHL was missed by Finns. Edmonton’s star player, already hot before Leon Draisaitl your jump tackle Florida captain Alexander Barkov to the head in the middle of the final set. The Finnish center did not return to the ice in the match.
After the tackle, Barkov was frozen for a long time and felt very unwell.
Usually a relaxed and good-natured Florida pilot Paul Maurice appeared in front of the media after the match, despite the victory, really dull. It was clear that Taklaus’ attack on the captain brought out the emotions of the entire team. The head coach could not give any information about Barkov’s condition yet and did not want to comment on the tackle either.
– This is not the “Oprah Winfrey Show”. It doesn’t matter what I feel, Maurice snorted, referring to a famous American talk show from decades past.
Maurice had no information about Barkov’s condition until after the match. According to the Miami Herald, however, he said he did not keep Barkov on the sidelines for the rest of the game as a precaution.
– There are 9.5 minutes left in the game and the match is 2–1. I wouldn’t keep him on the sidelines if he could play, Maurice stated in a gloomy tone, according to the Florida newspaper.
Draisaitl said the tackle wasn’t about frustration.
– It was just a tackle. I don’t think there was anything dirty about it. Maybe I hit him a little high. My intention was not to cause injury or anything like that, the German star said to the American media For The Athletic.
The Finns of Florida did not complain
Also Eetu Luostarinen had his fair share of hard hits in Edmonton when Warren Foegele tackled him with a knee. The tackle was ugly and the shower command was deserved. Fortunately, Luostarinen returned to the game after visiting the locker room.
Played an excellent match and started two goals Anton Lundell did not go to assess the dirtiness of the situations after the match.
– Hard to say. Don’t the smarter gentlemen look at them and decide. It’s part of the playoffs, sometimes it rattles and sometimes you have to accept it. I hope both are fine, Lundell told after the fight stopped.
He wasn’t worried about the rush of emotions.
– I don’t think that there are any boundaries here. Emotions rose again today, but that’s part of the playoffs and playing. It’s nice to play when the emotions are in the game and both are trying their best, he says.
Florida quarterback Niko Mikkolawho scored a beautiful goal in the match, was on the same lines as his teammate.
– There is no comment on Draisaitl’s tackle, and I haven’t seen it properly yet. Let’s play hard, Mikkola said.
Veteran striker Kyle Okposo regretted the Finnish captain’s shock.
– No one wants to see anyone get hurt, he complained According to the Miami Herald.
Okposo emphasized Barkov’s importance in the team’s defense. According to him, the 28-year-old Finnish captain is the backbone of the team’s defensive game. In Okposo’s opinion, no player in the team can slack off when the captain is the Selke winner (the award given to the best defensive forward of the season).
– Everything starts with his desire to defend. “He’s a phenomenal player and leader,” Okposo gushed to The Athletic.
An exceptionally hot final series
The 23-year-old Lundell praised his team’s mental strength in an interview with . The hard grips of the opponent did not get under the skin of the Florida players. Lundell also got his share, because Edmonton Vincent Desharnais hit him at the end of the second period with an ugly cross stick to the hands after the situation.
– Of course, those Tackles slightly raised the mood on the bench, but we kept our composure quite well. We were able to continue playing and roll our own game, Lundell assessed his team’s performance.
Mikkola enjoys the physical challenge of the final series.
– A game that looks like ours is being played here, I have no complaints. We go hard and tackle hard. You can tear and grate, Mikkola analysed.
The NHL playoffs are always played hard, but usually the emotions are the hottest in the opening round and the weakest in the final games, where you can only focus on playing. The last time in the NHL finals there was a real fight in the summer of 2011 between Vancouver and Boston. Players were tackled out of games and opponents’ fingers were chewed.
This year’s final series has spilled. In the second match alone, 57 minutes of ice time were whistled. That’s a big number for the finals by NHL standards.
In addition to the whistled freezes, you can constantly see dogfights behind the game and booing after the whistles. In addition to the transverse of Desharnais Sam Carrick spearheaded by the Florida defender Dmitry Kulikov between the crotch. In the first match of Florida Sam Bennett made his trademark tackle: a hidden punch to the face just in time for the tackle.
Florida won the second final of the match 4–1 and now leads the final series with a 2–0 victory. The third match will be played early Friday morning Finnish time in Edmonton. Four wins are required for the championship