Of the many takeaways one could take from the first two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, one of the biggest is that it will take a Herculean effort to knock off the Florida Panthers.

Starting with the battle of Florida, one of the most anticipated first-round matchups, the Panthers hardly broke a sweat while eliminating the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games. As impressive as that was, their second-round tilt with the Toronto Maple Leafs showed the difference between a group of skilled players and a true team.

In Games 5 and 7, both 6-1 wins for the Panthers on the road, 12 different skaters recorded goals en route to the wins. Most telling, the Panthers’ top four goal scorers- Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Matthew Tkachuk and Carter Verhaeghe- combined for just one.

Few people would deny that the Maple Leafs’ core players have more talent than the Panthers. However, Paul Maurice’s group plays arguably the best team game in the league. 

If the top line isn’t scoring, the middle six steps up. The fourth line struggled, so a new fourth line came in and they won four of five. Their defense is big, physical and skilled. When shots come his way, Sergei Bobrovsky has taken care of it.

Photo: Florida Panthers

If any player epitomizes the Panthers style of play, it has to be center Sam Bennett. In Calgary, Bennett had established himself as a miserable player to go against, but the offense didn’t get going until a trade to Sunrise at the 2021 trade deadline. Bennett’s Hockey-Reference page makes him look like a dead puck era star, a player capable of scoring 25 goals and recording 100 PIM.

Sure, he steps over the line sometimes, and drew major controversy when his elbow caught Anthony Stolarz. However, the Panthers will tell you the good with Bennett far outweighs the bad.

Bennett’s contract expires on July 1, and while the Panthers may extend him, teams in need of a second-line center will be lining up around the block for his services.

A second-line center, doesn’t that sound familiar? That’s one of the biggest holes the St. Louis Blues are looking to upgrade.

Many people have been linking the Blues and Bennett, including Andy Strickland. In theory, it makes sense. Bennett’s plays is similar to a younger Brayden Schenn, with Schenn having a slight edge in scoring and faceoff percentage.

The biggest issue in signing Bennett simply comes with the price.

Bennett is a prime candidate to receive the cup tax, a term given to players earning large contracts after they were key contributors to a Stanley Cup winner. With 38 points in 51 playoff games the last three seasons, not including the upcoming eastern conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes, Bennett has put himself in position to cash in this summer.

Early projections have Bennett, who turns 29 on June 20, signing a seven-year contract at around $7.5 million, a number that can skyrocket if Bennett hits the open market and/or if the Panthers win eight more games and win the Stanley Cup.

Photo: St. Louis Blues

That price may simply be too much for the Blues.

That’s not to say they won’t due their due diligence. The Blues were reportedly in on Chandler Stephenson last offseason before he signed a 7×6.25 in Seattle.

However, that was before Doug Armstrong made the moves for Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway. Both of them are eligible for extensions this offseason which would kick in for the 2026-27 season. This upcoming season, the Blues have under $6 million in space, and need to sign goaltender Joel Hofer, who becomes a restricted free agent this summer.

During the end of season media availability, Armstrong expressed his frustration with the continuous 6-on-5 goals allowed, saying it was a constant issue. One can easily perceive those comments as a sign that changes are coming.

However, if they are to come, it seems like they’re more likely to affect the defensive pairings than the forwards.

The Blues have a strength in numbers at forward, including Dalibor Dvorsky, whom Armstrong has said multiple times that the team won’t fail. Dvorsky will earn every chance to play. If Schenn and Dvorsky are the second and third line centers, they will likely combine to cost less than Bennett, whose cap hit could start with the number eight.

What the Blues can do is play Moneyball- recreate him in the aggregate.

Photo: St. Louis Blues

Having coached Jamie Benn and Brad Marchand, Jim Montgomery knows how to coach skilled players who can get under opponents’ skin. The Blues have some young players, in particular Jake Neighbours and Zack Bolduc, who have shown a knack for looking to mix it up when the time comes. Also familiar with the dirty side of playing forward is associate coach Steve Ott, one of the most frustrating opponents of his time.

Young players like Neighbours and Bolduc should study Bennett’s play style this offseason. They need to study his speed, forecheck, and purpose he has with every shift. See how his teammates are protected when he’s on the ice, even though Matthew Tkachuk and Aaron Ekblad need no help defending themselves. See how he plays physically without hurting his own team. Yes, Bennett steps over the line sometimes, but he seems to have mastered the art of not costing his team wins in the process.

It’s that last area that is of added importance, after the penalties Neighbours, Bolduc and Tyler Tucker took away from play during the series against the Winnipeg Jets. Protecting yourself and teammates is good, but there is an art to not getting penalized when at a bad time.

The Blues showed that they are not far off from competing in the arms race that is the NHL’s Western Conference. They are still young, and it’s the learning and growing that turns a group of 18 skaters into a team.