It’s cliche to say that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, but in this instance, it’s a great example of exactly that.’

Game 2 also left Florida with an injury concern after forward Sam Reinhart exited in the first period and did not return. Reinhart, who led the team in scoring during the regular season with 81 points in 79 games, suffered a lower-body injury after taking a hit from Carolina’s Sebastian Aho near the blue line.

Panthers head coach Paul Maurice explained that the team has no ego thanks to long-time center Aleksander Barkov.

Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Florida Panthers and the Carolina Hurricanes was cut short for Brad Marchand.

Paul Maurice after witnessing the Marchand tradition firsthand Thursday: "They're shooting them as hard as they can … It is funny as hell."

Things have worked out very well for Jones, who singed some bridges on his way out of Chicago but now finds himself on the verge of the Cup Final mere months later.

He certainly is enjoying life, both on and off the ice. The hope is that another Stanley Cup is on the horizon. Lion and Adalee already got to experience it once, with Gadjovich and wife Allison putting both of them inside the Cup as the Panthers celebrated the victory last June.

Jones is in his 12th NHL season, having played 860 regular-season games since being drafted fourth overall by the Nashville Predators in 2013. Before this run with the Panthers, Jones had appeared in only 37 playoff games with Nashville and Columbus, having never made the postseason during his four seasons with the rebuilding Chicago Blackhawks.