Latest news with #Verhaeghe
Miami Herald
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
‘That man is an enigma:' How Verhaeghe's game elevates in playoffs for Panthers
Paul Maurice was never really worried about Carter Verhaeghe. In fact, Verhaeghe wasn't even worried about Verhaeghe. The high-flying Florida Panthers winger had a rough go during the regular season, at least when it came to his goal scoring totals. Neither coach nor player denies that. But the looks were there. The attempts were there. The effort was there. Eventually, when the playoffs rolled around, when the production matters the most, things would start going Verhaeghe's way. He has earned a reputation for coming up in clutch moments over the past few seasons. And, lo and behold, he has risen to the occasion once again as the Panthers inch closer to repeating as Stanley Cup champions. Verhaeghe's power-play goal in the first period Monday, a wicked wrist shot from the left circle, held up as the eventual game-winning goal in Florida's 6-1 rout of the Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final, a victory that gave the Panthers a 2-1 lead in the best-of-7 series entering Game 4 on Thursday. The cross-ice pass from Evan Rodrigues had barely gotten onto his stick before he whizzed the shot past Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner with 2:15 left in the opening frame. 'That man is an enigma,'' Maurice said postgame with a grin. 'He scores goals exactly like that. It gets off his stick before it gets set. Coaching has nothing to do with that. He's gifted.' And ready for the moment. The goal was Verhaeghe's seventh of the postseason. Of those seven, three have been game-winners. In 89 career playoff games entering Thursday, Verhaeghe has 33 goals. Of those 33, 13 — nearly 40% — are game-winners. It's the second most of any active player behind only teammate Brad Marchand, who has 15 albeit in almost twice as many postseason games played (177). 'We knew as soon as the playoffs came, he was going to be able to elevate his game,' Panthers forward Sam Reinhart said. It's where Verhaeghe thrives. He scores in nearly any situation, from nearly any spot on the ice, but somehow has a knack for finding an extra gear in the bigger moments. 'That's the type of player he is,' Reinhart said. 'He has so much speed and he has one of the best releases in the game. And it seems the tighter everyone gets on the ice, there are times some guys get nervous. His heart rate might be 60 out there; he just skates around, going about his business and doing his thing. He is ready for playoff hockey and that's what brings out the best in him.' Even after a regular season that could be labeled as lackluster for the 29-year-old forward. Verhaeghe had just 20 goals in 81 games, his lowest total since only having 18 through 43 games in the shortened 2021 season. He went multiple extended stretches without finding the back of the net despite putting up his fair share of shot attempts each time. The worst drought of them all came from Feb. 4 to April 6, a 23-game run in which Verhaeghe scored just two goals and ended with a season-high 13-game stretch despite putting 68 shots on goal. That run eventually ended when he scored on an empty net on April 8. When asked at that time if Verhaeghe felt things would eventually turn for him, he answered rhetorically, 'It can't be worse, right?' 'It's hard,' Verhaeghe said, 'but I think it's honestly good because out of adversity, you always end up building something stronger than you had before. That's kind of how I've been looking at it a little bit. ... That's kind of how you find yourself and come out stronger.' Verhaeghe knows a thing or two about adversity when it comes to his hockey career. He toiled in the minor leagues for four seasons before eventually getting a shot in the NHL with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2019-20 season. He played on the fourth line for that Lightning team that wound up winning its first of two consecutive Stanley Cups. But after the season, the Lightning let him go, choosing not to offer him a deal as a restricted free agent. Enter the Panthers, who swooped in and signed Verhaeghe to a two-year deal with an average annual value of just $1 million. What a bargain that turned out to be. Verhaeghe scored 18 goals and tacked on another 18 assists through 43 games in the 2021 season. Florida promptly signed him to a three-year contract extension that would begin in the 2022-23 season. Verhaeghe only got better over each of the next three years. He combined to score 100 goals and log 200 total points during that span and transformed into one of the most clutch players in the playoffs that the NHL has seen. He scored 10 game-winning goals in 55 playoff games over that stretch, including five overtime goals — a feat that, at that time, was only accomplished by five other players in Joe Sakic, Maurice Richard, Glenn Anderson, Patrick Kane and Corey Perry in a fraction of the amount of games the others have played. During Florida's run to its first Stanley Cup last season, Verhaeghe led the Panthers with 11 goals, including scoring the opening goal in their Game 7 winner against the Oilers in the Stanley Cup Final. The Panthers rewarded Verhaeghe with an eight-year, $56 million contract extension that begins next season. But things didn't gone as smoothly for Verhaeghe this season. He didn't score in the Panthers' first eight games — the longest run of his NHL career to begin a season without scoring a goal — despite putting up 28 shots on goal in that span. The long spurts without goals or with minimal kept coming after that, too. He had six separate stretches of at least five games without scoring a goal, including that 13-game stretch toward the end of the season. All while leading Florida in shots on goal (243) and scoring chances (277). 'The regular season, we have played a lot of games over the years,' Verhaeghe said. 'Some games are tough to get your mind right, get into the fight and the battle. I think it was good for our group to really push and challenge ourselves.' Maurice is cognizant of that. He's also aware of the way Verhaeghe operates. He needs chaos. 'He operates incredibly well on a certain frequency,' Maurice said. 'If the game was played 10 on 10, he'd score 65 goals a year. ... He needs the intensity of the traffic and energy around him to get him to a certain speed level, and then everything falls in line.' Enter the playoffs, where every game his high-energy, every shift a critical moment. Verhaeghe has points in 12 of 20 games this postseason. He hasn't gone longer than a three-game stretch without a goal. He's scoring on 14.9% of his shots on goal — above his career average and much more in line with what to expect from him than the 8.3% shooting clip he posted in the regular season. He had the game-winner in Game 4 of the second round against the Toronto Maple Leafs and the series clincher against the Carolina Hurricanes. He's riding the high again in the postseason — just like he almost always does — and has the Panthers two wins away from hoisting another Stanley Cup. 'It feels good; I think our whole group was kind of waiting for the postseason,' Verhaeghe said. 'It adds some juice and excitement. It feels good to get the win, but the job is not done yet.'
The Star
11-06-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Americans find ways to not be 'too American' while travelling
As Franck Verhaeghe and two friends planned a March trip to Mexico City, Mexico they plotted out not only where they would stay and which museums they would visit but also the language they would speak: French. 'It's not that I think it's unsafe for Americans,' said Verhaeghe, 65, who lives in California, the United States, but '... I can imagine people there aren't very happy with us. 'So my friends and I decided that on this trip, we would all just speak French to each other.' Two months into his second term, US president Donald Trump has set off panic in Europe about the potential collapse of alliances; inspired boycotts of American products in Canada; heightened tensions between Denmark and Greenland over the island's independence; and prompted protests in Istanbul and Panama over the possibility of US territorial expansion. His proposals are also making some Americans reconsider their travel plans. Behaviour adjustments Since the inauguration, some agencies are noticing a drop in sales for international travel by Americans. Tour operators are fielding inquiries from customers concerned about how they will be received abroad. The risk management company Global Rescue recently conducted a survey that found that 72% of 'experienced' US travellers expected Americans to be less welcome abroad this year. The nervousness does not seem to have translated into widespread cancellations, but social media and travel forums are filled with Americans asking variations of, 'Will they hate us?' Christine Bauer, a retiree from New Hampshire who is planning a trip to France, asked travellers on a Rick Steves' Europe forum for insight into how the French were responding to American foreign policy changes. A few days later, she grew more worried when 'Trump and Musk began insulting NATO and allied countries'. She and her husband haven't made any changes 'at least for now', but they are 'hoping that travel doesn't become more unsafe'. Vicci Jaffe, 68, has second thoughts about an excursion to Berlin, Germany this fall. Her concern stems not only from the rise of the far right in Germany, but also from political changes at home. 'How will I be regarded while in Berlin?' she asked. 'At the very least, I am embarrassed, but also now afraid of retribution or violence.' Some people, including Verhaeghe, who is travelling to Mexico using his second passport (it's European), are adjusting their behaviour. Cheryl Carlson, 63, an educator in Chicago, Illinois, plans to reveal her nationality ahead of time to the owners of the accommodations she and her husband will be staying in during a trip to Canada. This is '... to make sure our presence would not cause a small business to feel uncomfortable hosting us.' Peter Serkian, 60, who travels to Canada twice a month from Michigan, pays in Canadian dollars, not US dollars. 'I try to hide that I am an American,' he said. Feeling spooked Those measures are preventive – none of the interviewees for this article have actually experienced anti-American sentiment. But the nervousness is taking its toll. Cameron Hewitt, content and editorial director for Rick Steves' Europe, has seen a dip in guidebook sales, 'literally starting the day of the inauguration', he said. Lisa Wirth, owner of Ataxito which offers tours to Oaxaca, Mexico, said that some prospective guests are feeling spooked. 'We had several American travellers decide to cancel a week-long tour in February, either because the travel partners they had planned on travelling with backed out due to concerns regarding safety in Mexico or because the current administration and their anxiety around it caused them to pause any trip decisions in the short term,' she said. Others are postponing because of 'concerns regarding inflation and job losses'. Jack Ezon, founder of Embark Beyond, a New York-based luxury travel company, had a client cancel a trip to Mexico. 'They were doing a birthday trip and had booked out the whole hotel,' he said. 'But this was right after the whole tariff thing, and their security team said, 'Don't go, there's anti-American sentiment, it's going to be too dangerous'.' That fear has not been borne out in the experience of other clients, said Ezon, who added that bookings to Mexico have rebounded. And sales to Europe are booming. 'Ever since Covid-19, the recovery from crisis is a lot faster,' he said. It's hard to pinpoint the cause for travellers' unease. Plane crashes, tariffs and stock market instability have contributed, said Jeff Roy, executive vice president of the tour company Collette. 'We've been a little bit behind for the last four to five weeks from what we were producing last year at this time,' Roy said. 'There's so much swirling around right now, it's really hard to know exactly what's causing the change.' What Roy describes as 'mild trepidation' is playing out more in nervous calls than in cancellations. And because many bookings are made far in advance, he's not too worried about this year. If the uncertainty continues, he said, 'I don't know about 2026.' Apparently, lots of people wanted to know more about Greenland after Trump announced that the US wanted to 'buy' the territory. Unexpected interest A few destinations have experienced increased interest since Trump took office. After he said that he wanted the US to 'buy' Greenland – one of The New York Times' '52 places to go in 2025' – the Greenland tourist authority said it was seeing evidence of 'piqued curiosity about the destination'. The new attention has had a similar effect on Panama, whose canal Trump has said he wants the US to 'reclaim'. Carlos Ivan Espinosa, the owner of Panama Canal Tours, said his company has experienced a significant increase in bookings by US tourists. 'Trump's declarations,' he said, 'are awakening curiosity.' That isn't to say there haven't been protests against American rhetoric, notably in Canada, where citizens have objected to Trump's tariffs as well as his expressed desire to turn the country into 'the 51st state'. But those protests aren't directed against American individuals, said Donna Salter, a retired journalist in Vancouver. She, like many Canadians, is swearing off travel to the US for the duration of this administration but welcomes Americans. 'We love Americans and we also love the American dollar, especially now,' Salter said. Not all foreigners are receptive. One TikTok user in Scotland told 'MAGA tourists' that they are not welcome, and a farmer on the Danish island of Bornholm terminated an agreement he had with a US travel agency to receive tourists in his home for coffee and a chat. Panama has experienced a significant increase in tour and hotel bookings from Americans. — Photos: Pixabay 'I would feel ridiculous if I had to discuss democracy with representatives of such a government,' Knud Andersen, the farmer, told the Danish broadcaster DR. On a trip to Italy, California-based Rebecca Andersons and her family had a taxi driver whose criticisms of American politics started with former US president Ronald Reagan and ended with Trump. Andersons told him they were 'too young to vote for Reagan and actually are Californians who voted for Harris'. Apparently forgiven, they later found themselves singing along with the driver to Volare. Other Americans are adopting tactics designed to deflect criticism, like answering the question 'Where are you from?' with their state's name. Sue Rook Nichols from California ordered buttons off Etsy that read, 'I didn't vote for him.' She plans to wear them on a trip to Europe. The tactics may not be necessary. Mariana Hamman, who owns a tour agency in Mexico, said that none of her colleagues had reported encountering anti-American sentiment. 'Sometimes you see 'Go home, gringo' graffiti,' she said. 'But that's about overtourism, not politics.' When David Rojas-Klein, of California, travelled to Mexico recently, his expectation that he would 'see something anti-American' never materialised. 'What I learned was that people make a distinction between the American people and the American government.' The fear that people in other countries will equate them with their politicians' actions is a peculiarly American anxiety, one that also surfaced during the Gulf War, said Hewitt of Rick Steves' Europe. 'If you look at history, most European countries have had experience with a ruler who, especially in retrospect, they're not particularly proud of.' Bo Albertus, a 57-year-old school principal in Denmark, agrees. He administers a Danish Facebook group, 89,000 strong, that is dedicated to boycotting American products. But American citizens are welcome in his country, Albertus said. 'The Danish people don't have a problem with Americans. We have a problem with the American administration.' Even a tourist in a MAGA hat would be treated fine, he added, 'Because in Denmark, we have freedom of speech.' – LISA ABEND/©2025 The New York Times Company This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
Miami Herald
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Those final 10 minutes of Game 3? ‘An unraveling' for Edmonton in Florida's blowout win
The Florida Panthers were well on their way to a blowout win over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday when things began to unravel. The Panthers were up four goals with just under 10 minutes left to play in their eventual 6-1 victory when Edmonton stopped focusing on the game and started going for the hits. The damage from the final 9:31 of game action: 110 penalty minutes, 80 of which came from eight misconducts (five for Edmonton, three for Florida). 'Definitely the third period's an unraveling,' Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. 'I think the game was out of hand. I don't think we would've acted or played like that had the game been a one-goal or a two-goal game. I think our guys were just trying to, I don't know, boys being boys — just trying to make investments for the next game. The first period, obviously the four penalties, which is way too many. We shouldn't have those. But I kind of question some of those penalties.' It began with Edmonton forward Trent Frederic trying to ambush Florida center Sam Bennett, who has been in the agitator role at several points throughout the Stanley Cup playoffs. A missed punch to the back of Bennett's head was followed by a cross-check. And then the slew of skirmishes broke out, the headliner being Florida's Jonah Gadjovich dropping the gloves with Edmonton's Darnell Nurse for a lengthy round of full-on punches. A half-dozen players — Florida's Gadjovich, Bennett and A.J. Greer; Edmonton's Frederic, Nurse and Mattias Ekholm — were ejected afterward. And then it just kept coming. Edmonton's Evander Kane was sent off a few minutes later after slashing Verhaeghe while Verhaeghe was down on the ice. A few more Edmonton cheap shots followed in the final minutes of the game, with the Oilers' Kasperi Kapanen the final player kicked out of the game after a cross-check to Eetu Luostarinen with 4:13 left to play. Through it all, the Panthers stayed composed. They weren't going to stoop to that level, not with the lead they had and with so little time left to play. They have a bigger goal in mind. 'We talked about it in the third,' star Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk said. 'If you have to take a punch, take a punch. If you have to take a cross-check, take a cross-check. Spear, slash in the face, whatever the case is, you've got to take it. We just played a really smart game.' Added captain Aleksander Barkov: 'It's a 60-minute game. We just want to keep doing the same things all over again and play our game. Stuff like that sometimes happens. But I think overall, pretty, pretty happy with the 60 minute effort.' The Oilers, naturally, saw things differently. Edmonton star Connor McDavid said they lost their composure at 'the very end there when we're trying to show a little bit of fight back.' 'When you get into garbage time, those things happen,' McDavid said. 'And I don't mind when those things happen. That's what good teams do — fight your way out of the rink. I don't mind that in garbage time.' Added defenseman Jake Walman: 'There's not an inch out there. Everybody's doing everything they can. That's a grown man's game out there. It's not for the faint of heart. Guys are putting everything on the line you know?' Kane, meanwhile, said the game 'obviously got out of hand' before saying the Panthers 'seem to get away with it more than we do.' 'It's tough to find the line,' Kane said. 'They're doing just as much stuff as we are. ... There seems to be a little bit more attention on our group.' Did the Panthers, with their aggressive, agitating style, get the Oilers to play into their hand? 'I don't think so,' Knoblauch said. 'We've got some guys maybe who love the drop the gloves a little more and get at it a little bit. We're a big, physical team. We do have some skilled guys, and I don't see our skilled guys getting distracted and getting into that. The guys who like it are getting into it.' As for how this could impact the series moving forward? The Panthers aren't focused on that. 'I just think emotions in all of these games are extremely high,' veteran forward Brad Marchand said. 'And obviously this is the time you're playing and you're enjoying every minute. So it doesn't really matter what happened tonight, we both have to reset, and we're [ready] for the next one now.'
Boston Globe
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Brad Marchand gets Panthers started in Game 3 rout of Oilers to take a 2-1 lead in the Stanley Cup Final
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up BRAD MARCHAND PICKS UP RIGHT WHERE HE LEFT OFF 😱 LESS THAN A MINUTE INTO GAME 3, IT'S 1-0 FOR THE CATS 😼 — Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) Advertisement But it was not just them this time. Verhaeghe buried a perfect shot into the net under the cross bar on the power play, Reinhart made up for missing the net on an earlier attempt, Aaron Ekblad scored to chase Stuart Skinner on the fifth goal on 23 shots, and Evan Rodrigues added the exclamation point in the waning minutes. At the other end of the ice, Sergei Bobrovsky earned the 'Bobby! Bobby!' chants from a fired up South Florida crowd. The two-time Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender known as 'Bob' was on his game for the very few quality chances the discombobulated Oilers mustered, making 32 saves. Perry — at 40 the oldest player in the series — beat Bobrovsky with some silky hands for a power-play goal, keeping up this final being a showcase of cagey veterans along with Marchand. Advertisement Connor McDavid could not get his team on track, and Edmonton took 15 minors — led by Evander Kane's three plus a misconduct to add up to 85 penalty minutes — including a brawl that ensued with 9:31 left. Trent Frederic and Darnell Nurse, who fought Jonah Gadjovich, got misconducts that knocked them out of a game with an outcome determined long before. CHAOS 😳 — Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) After the final looked as evenly matched as can be with Games 1 and 2 each needing extra time, overtime and then double OT, Game 3 was a lopsided mismatch. The Oilers came unglued to the point Jake Walman resorted to squirting water on Panthers players on their bench from his spot on the visiting side. The teams have some extra time off before Game 4 on Thursday night, when the Panthers have the chance to take a 3-1 lead and move to the verge of going back to back.
Miami Herald
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
See how the Panthers get under the Oilers' skin in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final
The Panthers raced to a quick lead en route to a 6-1 victory against the Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final. As the game continued to get away from the Oilers at Amerant Bank Arena, the frustration started to mount. By the third period, a full-out brawl ensued after Trent Frederic tried to punch Sam Bennett in the back of the head, missed and then cross-checked him. That set of a slew of skirmishes, with the headliner being Florida's Jonah Gadjovich dropping the gloves with Edmonton's Darnell Nurse. A half dozen players — Florida's Gadjovich, Bennett and A.J. Greer; Edmonton's Frederic, Nurse and Mattias Ekholm — were ejected afterward. A seventh in Edmonton's Evander Kane was sent off a few minutes later after slashing Verhaeghe while Verhaeghe was down on the ice. A few more Edmonton cheap shots followed in the final minutes of the game.
