from Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic,

Sam Reinhart came darting into the Vegas zone early in the third period Thursday, and for a brief moment, there appeared to be some daylight to get around Nicolas Hague.

But like so many instances involving Golden Knights defenders in this Stanley Cup Final, it came to nothing. Hague used his reach to deftly push the Panthers forward to the outside and nullify the threat.

It was a simple play, one which wasn’t otherwise noteworthy, but it’s something we’ve seen again and again in this championship series. The Panthers are struggling to get to the inside, Vegas’ big-six D imposing their size and strength to limit any sustained pressure near the Golden Knights net.

All of which made Florida’s Game 3 comeback win even more impressive, because again for long stretches Thursday night, the Panthers were kept to the outside, and 31 of their shots blocked.

It’s been a daunting task for Panthers forwards.

“Your (scoring) opportunities might not be 10 a game; there might be five to seven,” Reinhart said after the game Thursday. “We’re able to adjust a little as the series goes on. Try and play with a little more pace. They’re collapsing to the goalie. They’re collapsing to the slot. They make it difficult. So I think just timing and pace and getting pucks to the net at the right time is going to benefit us.”

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