The Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers played Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night in Sunrise.
It did not feel like a normal Stanley Cup Final game.
There were multiple fights, a line brawl and cheap shots left and right.
When the dust settled, officials had called 140 minutes of penalties, which is the fourth-most ever in a Stanley Cup Final game.
Many of the physical interactions were either instigated or exacerbated by the Oilers as Florida’s lead ballooned from three to four to five.
While there were plenty of questionable decisions, a couple by Oilers defenseman Jake Walman caught the attention of the NHL Department of Player Safety.
Walman was fined a total of $10,000 by the NHL DOPS for two separate incidents that occurred during Game 3.
One came after he and Florida’s A.J. Greer had a little run-in, which ended up with Greer skating away and to his bench with Walman’s glove.
Walman responded by taking a water bottle from the Oilers bench and spraying it several times at Florida’s bench.
Walman was spraying water at the Panthers bench 👀 pic.twitter.com/gzuvCi9WJM
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) June 10, 2025
That “incident involving Florida’s bench” cost Walman $5,000, the maximum allowable fine under the collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and NHLPA.
“I obviously did that for a reason,” Walman said after the game. “I won’t go into the details. It’s just gamesmanship, I guess. I’ve just got to realize there’s cameras everywhere and they see that stuff.”
The second $5,000 fine stemmed from an altercation with Matthew Tkachuk in front of Edmonton’s net.
While Tkachuk’s arms were being held by Oilers blueliner John Klingberg, Walman laid several punches to Tkachuk’s face and head.
Officials gave Wallman a double minor for roughing and a minor penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Jake Walman just gave a couple rights to Matthew Tkachuk 😳👊 pic.twitter.com/gSv9SgT33Z
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) June 10, 2025
Tkachuk, who finished the game with an assist and, surprisingly, no penalty minutes,
“We just went out there and played hockey,” he said. “We talked about it in the third (period), if you have to take a punch, you take a punch. If you have to take a cross-check, take a cross-check. A spear or a slash in the face, whatever the case is.”
It will be interesting to see how the Oilers respond after such an undisciplined performance.
Game 4 between Florida and Edmonton is set for Thursday at 8 p.m. from Amerant Bank Arena.
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Photo caption:Â Jun 9, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues (17) fights Edmonton Oilers right wing Corey Perry (90) during the third period in game three of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena. (Jim Rassol-Imagn Images)
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