Florida Panthers: Forecheck
The bread and butter to Florida's game is their forecheck.
While Florida has a ton of skill on the offensive side of things, they have a clear identity to their game. Their skill guys play a hard-nosed, gritty style of game and bottom six forwards really push the pace of play when it comes to forechecking. Florida has made a name for themselves throughout the league this season and for the past several seasons as being a physical, chippy team that will wear you down physically and out chance you offensively.
As Florida advances onto the Eastern Conference Finals (ECF) the one part of their game that will suffocate New York if the Rangers do not adjust quickly is Florida’s forecheck. You will see below in a few clips while they may not get offensive zone pressure out of the forecheck every time, the sheer fact of taking contact below the goal line and along the walls every time you touch a puck is going to wear and tear on a team. Yet when their forecheck does sustain pressure Florida does a great job gaining possession and using their defenseman from a low to high situation. Four of Florida’s six defenseman have one or more goals through their 11 playoff games thus far. Florida loves to send two forwards at the puck and or low below the goal line, they get on top of pucks very quickly, do a great job of having a second quick and their defenseman are typically very active, stepping on the wing or holding the blue.
Florida’s forecheck is a constant slew of bodies coming at you, F1 is always hard and finishing checks, F2 is always in position to support and win a loose puck battle and F3 is off high ready to engage low and or on a change sides situation. Florida generates a lot of their offense off their forecheck, what really crushed Boston was even on their exit situations they pressed Boston in the neutral zone forcing turnovers in the neutral zone or a step or two behind the defenseman resulting in a quick transition and the puck being force right back into their Boston’s defensive zone. Which would either be a transition situation to a zone entry or a chance for Florida to again forecheck. Florida does a great job of even if they do not get sustained offensive zone pressure off their forecheck, they recover pucks very quickly in the neutral zone and transition quickly and or close space quickly on Boston within the neutral zone, forcing turnovers or icings.
Florida loves their hard rim play, where the strong side puck carrier rims the puck hard around to the other side of the ice, as Florida has one streaking into the zone hard on the puck and two ready to engage on a loose puck situation. If you watch a full 60:00-minute game of Florida in the playoffs you will notice this hard rim play very often throughout the game. These plays put the goaltender in a tough situation, if the goaltender comes out and tries to stop it, it could lead to an awkward bounce and or if he comes out and stops it, he could mishandle the puck.
Florida’s offense is heavily run through their ability to wear teams down on the forecheck, force icings, bad chips out of the zone and counterattack in the transition game catching the other team in a change and the opposing teams defense too low in the defensive zone as they rush into the zone.
A team like Florida that forechecks very well against a New York team that does not forecheck too well, all signs are pointing to this series coming down to goaltending and who can capitalize on the rush and special teams.