Panthers HC Paul Maurice takes shot at Leafs’ fans ahead of Game 2!
Tensions are running high… even hours before puck drop. More below:
Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett is enemy number one in Toronto after taking out Maple Leafs goalie Anthony Stolarz in Game 1 on Monday.
Stolarz, who was hit in the head by Bennett’s forearm as he was skating past the crease, stayed on the ice a while, but remained in the game, only to head to the bench minutes later when he was seen vomiting. He was then transported by ambulance to a hospital for evaluation. He is not on the Leafs’ lineup for tonight’s Game 2, and doesn’t even have a stall in the dressing room. There is no timetable for his return.
No penalty was called on the play and Bennett was not given any supplemental discipline for the incident. Which has Leafs fans furious, with some even handing out Wanted dead or alive posters of Bennett.
When asked about how the Toronto crowd will likely treat Bennett tonight, Panthers head coach Paul Maurice told them off in his own way when speaking with TSN’s Mark Masters:
“Are they bringing their skates?”
He added: “He’s our leading scoring forward and he’ll play an honest hard game the way he always has.”
I feel like some Maple Leafs’ fans would love to answer that “challenge” by Maurice, who has defended Bennett from the start.
Meanwhile, the Maple Leafs themselves are trying to calm the storm around Bennett ahead of tonight’s Game 2. Per Jonas Siegel and Chris Johnston, Toronto wants to “try to keep the focus on the game and not on the possibility of a Bennett-related sideshow.”
Asking fans to move on from the Bennett controversy might be too much to ask, especially after Maurice’s comments.
And more especially since the hit on Stolarz came two years and one day after Bennett knocked Matthew Knies of the Maple Leafs out with a concussion when he body slammed him to the ice. Like the Bennett elbow on the Leafs’ netminder, there was no penalty called on the play.
Game 2 will be intense later on in Toronto, especially since Bennett is not likely to change his approach for the remainder of the series.
