Sam Bennett has earned the nickname: The Road Warrior.
The star forward for the Florida Panthers is having an exceptional playoff run and achieved a new NHL record on Friday night in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers by scoring his 12th road goal of the single playoff year.
Demonstrating his characteristic tenacious style in the first period, Bennett scored during the power play. This goal, which was the team`s opener, came after he appeared to displace Mattias Ekholm`s stick, creating space to fire a one-timer from the middle of the offensive zone.
This goal was Bennett`s 13th overall of the postseason and specifically his 12th scored in an away game, accomplished in his 12th road appearance. In total, he has registered 13 goals and 19 points across 19 playoff games.
The goal surpassed the previous record of 11 road goals in a single playoff run. That mark was held by Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Scheifele, who set it in eight away games during his 2018 playoff performance. Scheifele concluded that run with 14 goals in 17 games overall.
Bennett`s scoring production has significantly increased under the bright lights of the playoffs. In the regular season, he finished with just 25 goals and 51 points in 76 games. His goals-per-game average has effectively doubled from 0.33 in the regular season to 0.67 heading into Game 2 of the playoffs.
The Florida Panthers team has also been remarkably effective in away games throughout these playoffs. In Game 1 of the Final, they established an NHL record for the most away goals by a team in a single playoff year with 51, surpassing the mark set by the 1993 Los Angeles Kings. Florida currently holds an impressive 8-3 record when competing away from their home arena in Sunrise.
Tristan Blackwood