TORONTO — On June 30 of last year, Steven Lorentz, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Anthony Stolarz joined fellow Florida Panthers like Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk to party on Fort Lauderdale Beach as part of their Stanley Cup parade.
One day later, they were no longer teammates.
What a difference 24 hours makes.
“It’s crazy,” Lorentz said Saturday. “We went through so much with those guys. You’re on the high of highs. You’re hoisting the Cup together, drinking out of it.
“And then, the next day, July 1, you’re a free agent and no longer a part of the team.”
The same Panthers team that Lorentz, Ekman-Larsson and Stolarz, now members of the Toronto Maple Leafs, are preparing to face in the Eastern Conference Second Round beginning with Game 1 of the best-of-7 series at Scotiabank Arena on Monday (8 p.m. ET; CBC, SN, TVAS, ESPN).
“Here’s the thing,” Lorentz said. “Sam and I are still friends. But I know once the puck is dropped, he’s going to try to take my head off.
“We know how that team plays. We know what they bring to the table.”
So much so that Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube already has picked the brains of the three former Panthers as part of his pre-scout research for the series.
“Yeah, I’ve had discussions with them,” Berube said, breaking into a wry grin. “There are things you might not know. Or more mindset stuff for me, with those guys being in the locker room and being around the organization.”
Ekman-Larsson was the first of the three to join the Maple Leafs, signing a four-year contract with an average annual value of $3.5 million just one day after the Panthers parade. On July 2, it was Stolarz’s turn to join Toronto, signing a two-year contract with an AAV of $2.5 million.
Lorentz attended Maple Leafs training camp on a professional tryout agreement and subsequently signed a one-year, $775,000 contract on Oct. 7.
“We’ll always be part of that special journey, even after we retire,” Lorentz said. “But right now, obviously, friendships go out the window. That’s the competitive side here. Obviously when you’re trying to chase that Cup down, you are doing whatever you can, whatever it takes — it doesn’t matter if that’s your buddy on the other side.
“I know they’ve had some ups and downs this year, and it’s tough when you’ve made back-to-back runs to the Final and play into June every year; it’s obviously such a grind. But I tip my cap to them that they’re still in the position they’re in, because I think they’ve done a great job, top to bottom.”
