Sights, sounds, highlights from Amerant Bank Arena
© Bill Price
Welcome to Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final from Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida. The best-of-7 series is tied entering the second leg of the Final.
NHL.com Editor-in-Chief Bill Price is high atop the arena to provide all the sights, sounds and color with our Stanley Cup Final live blog.
Welcome to hot, sunny and hockey-crazed South Florida. In addition to the humidity, you can feel the tension in the air around here with Game 3 about an hour away and the series and Cup clearly up for grabs.
Last year for Game 3, the Panthers were up 2-0 and had shown early who the better team was. This year, it’s anyone’s guess. Two games each decided in overtime and really no difference at all between the two teams.
The fans who have been partying in the parking lot, will start to file in soon. No joke, but it’s really chilly in the arena and while you certainly don’t need any kind of jacket outside, a little covering inside would help.
Still, it will be hot fun in the summertime tonight (that’s my little tribute to Sly Stone).
What each fan will have is a rally town the Panthers left on every seat. It says “Rats Rule,” with a picture of a rat in a Panthers uniform. Book closely and you can see the logos of the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Carolina Hurricanes — the three teams Florida beat on the road to the Final — hidden in the photo.
© Bill Price
One question that will be answered soon is the status of Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who was listed as a game-time decision Sunday and was on the ice for the Oilers morning skate Monday.
As for the Panthers, A.J. Greer is back in. The forward hasn’t played since Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Carolina Hurricanes on May 28, when he was limited to 4:22 of ice time. Greer missed Game 4 of that series.
He has three points (two goals, one assist) in 12 Stanley Cup Playoff games after he had 17 points (six goals, 11 assists) in 81 regular-season games.
Jesper Boqvist will be scratched with Greer able to return. Boqvist, a forward, has five points (two goals, three assists) in 13 games this postseason.
While you get ready for the game, here is some required reading from the NHL.com staff.
Here is Game 3 preview from Dan Rosen.
Here’s Mike Zeisberger with a story on how the Oilers are approaching their first playoff game in Florida since losing Game 7 of the Final last season.
Some of the top prospects in the NHL Draft were in Florida on Monday. Nick Cotsonika details their big day.
FLA vs. EDM
FLA vs. CAR | EDM vs. DAL
FLA vs. TOR | CAR vs. WSH | DAL vs. WPG | EDM vs. VGK
OTT vs. TOR | FLA vs. TBL | MTL vs. WSH | NJD vs. CAR
STL vs. WPG | COL vs. DAL | MIN vs. VGK | EDM vs. LAK
