Panthers rout Oilers 6-1 in Game 3 to take a 2-1 lead in the Stanley Cup Final

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Taking advantage of the Edmonton Oilers' worst performance in several weeks, the defending Florida Panthers pounced on mistakes to win Game 3 in a 6-1 rout Monday night and take a 2-1 series lead.

Brad Marchand became the oldest player to score in each of the first three games of a final, while Sam Bennett added his NHL playoff-leading 14th goal after making a big hit on Edmonton’s Vasily Podkolzin that contributed to the turnover to spring him on a breakaway. Marchand and Bennett have combined to score eight goals for Florida, which was dominant in just about every way.

"We ended up playing what Florida kind of wanted," said Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner, who got pulled after allowing five goals on 23 shots. “They were great tonight.”

And it was not just Bennett and Marchand. Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Reinhart each got his first goal of the series, Aaron Ekblad scored to chase Skinner and Evan Rodrigues added the exclamation point in the waning minutes.

“We’re a very deep team,” Marchand said. “That’s one of our strengths is the depth of the group from the front end to the back end to the goaltending.”

At the other end of the ice, Sergei Bobrovsky earned the “Bobby! Bobby!” chants from a fired up South Florida crowd. The two-time Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender known as “Bob” was on his game for the very few quality chances the discombobulated Oilers mustered, making 32 saves.

“Nothing’s going to be perfect in the way we play,” Reinhart said. “This time of year, you need some world-class goaltending and that’s what we get consistently.”

Perry — at 40 the oldest player in the series — beat Bobrovsky with some silky hands for a power-play goal, keeping up this final being a showcase of cagey veterans along with Marchand.

Connor McDavid could not get his team on track, and Edmonton took 15 minors — led by Evander Kane's three plus a misconduct to add up to 85 penalty minutes — including a brawl that ensued with less than 10 minutes left. Trent Frederic and Darnell Nurse, who fought Jonah Gadjovich, got misconducts that knocked them out of a game with an outcome determined long before.

“Emotions in all these games are extremely high,' Marchand said. ”This is the time of year you want to be playing, and you’re enjoying every minute."

After the final looked as evenly matched as can be with Games 1 and 2 each needing extra time, overtime and then double OT, Game 3 was a lopsided mismatch. The Oilers came unglued to the point Jake Walman resorted to squirting water on Panthers players on their bench from his spot on the visiting side.

The teams have some extra time off before Game 4 on Thursday night, when the Panthers have the chance to take a 3-1 lead and move to the verge of going back to back.

"Game 4 is a really big game," McDavid said. “It’s a big swing game.”

AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid (97) falls after a check from Florida Panthers' Aaron Ekblad (5) during the second period in Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup finals in Sunrise, Fla., Monday, June 9, 2025. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) celebrates after scoring a goal during the second period of Game 3 of the NHL Stanley Cup final against the Edmonton Oilers Monday, June 9, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Florida Panthers' Sam Reinhart (13) celebrates his goal against the Edmonton Oilers with Carter Verhaeghe (23) during the second period in Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup finals in Sunrise, Fla., Monday, June 9, 2025. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Florida Panthers' Brad Marchand (63) celebrates his goal against Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner (74) during the first period in Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup finals in Sunrise, Fla., Monday, June 9, 2025. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Florida Panthers center Sam Reinhart (13) skates to the bench after scoring a goal during the second period of Game 3 of the NHL Stanley Cup final against the Edmonton Oilers Monday, June 9, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Fans cheer as they wait to enter the Amerant Bank Arena for Game 3 of the NHL Stanley Cup final between the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers, June 9, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Fans arrive prior to Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup finals between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, Fla., Monday, June 9, 2025. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Edmonton Oilers' Leon Draisaitl, center, reaches for the puck after being checked to the ice behind Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky (72) as Aleksander Barkov (16) and Evan Rodrigues (17) defend during the first overtime period in Game 2 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final, in Edmonton, Alberta, Friday, June 6, 2025. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.

Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.

“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.

"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.

Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.

Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.

Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.

At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.

Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.

Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.

After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.

“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”

Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.

Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.

His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.

“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”

Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.

FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)