Matthew Tkachuk, Sebastian Aho discuss physical play during Eastern Conference Final

The physicality over the first four games of the Eastern Conference Final has been interesting to see play out.

There have been some intense moments and questionable hits that have led to some nasty post-whistle scrums between the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes.

Perhaps the most highlighted of the controversial hits, as there have been several, was a check by Sebastian Aho on Sam Reinhart during Game 2 in Raleigh.

Aho caught Reinhart in the lower body as the Panthers sniper crossed Carolina’s blue line while Florida was on the power play.

Reinhart missed the remainder of Game 2 and has not played since, but he is expected to be in Florida’s lineup for Game 5 on Wednesday after skating the past two days.

“You never like to see anyone injured, and there’s definitely no intention to do that,” Aho told THN Florida before Game 5. “I hope it is nothing too serious. It’s unfortunate. It’s so quick, it happens, but there’s no (bad intent), it’s just a hockey play.”

Aho is not known as a dirty player and has a reputation as a good person, so his words on the matter are likely as genuine as you can get.

Still, that didn’t stop the Panthers from seeking out some retribution, which came in the form of Matthew Tkachuk during Game 3.

Toward the end of the game, with Florida handily leading, Tkachuk seemingly chased Aho around the ice for a shift before finally taking the young Finn violently to the ice.

“Our team will stick up for each other,” Tkachuk said. “We’ve got a great bond in that room. We’ve gone through so much, this year and years prior, that we’ve become a family.”

While the extracurricular activities at the end of Game 3 were fun to see play out from a fan perspective, it’s just part of the game as far as the players on the ice are concerned.

“That game was over,” Aho said of his exchange with Tkachuk. “There’s nothing really (to it), I think that was the last shift for both of us. You just do what you do normally, it didn’t really change our mentality or anything, at least for myself. I just tried to treat Game 4 like a new day and a new game. We were just trying to win a hockey game. All that matters is winning a hockey game right now. (Game 5) is no different. We try to go and do whatever we can to win the game and stay alive.”

The ongoing novela between stars is a fun little microcosm of what makes the Stanley Cup Playoffs the best postseason in all of professional sports.

Sure, all playoffs will have drama, but when you add the emotion and physicality that comes with the game of hockey, the way players will all, to a man, give every last ounce of their being, every single game, until they’re either knocked out or holding the Cup, there is nothing that comes close.

“You’ve got to be able to stay focused,” said Aho. “It’s playoff hockey, it’s intense, it’s physical, it’s all that. All my focus goes into winning the hockey game, right? That’s how I’ve been approaching the game, and I will always do it, because that’s the only way, in my opinion, to do it.”

At this point, there isn’t much beyond leaving everything on the ice and seeing how the chips fall.

Florida has to be feeling good, knowing how well they were able to play against Carolina during the first three games of the series, but the Hurricanes will have confidence and momentum after a strong shutout victory in Game 4.

There wasn’t much of that after the whistle activity in Game 4, so we’ll see if Florida tries to get back to the physical side of things on Wednesday, or if both teams are just laser-focused on simply scoring more than the other.

“The only goal right now is winning,” Tkachuk said. “The only mental edge you can have right now is just playing as hard as you can to frustrate them. There’s nothing else that goes into it.”

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Photo caption: May 20, 2023; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho (20) pushes the puck up the ice against Florida Panthers left wing Matthew Tkachuk (19) in game two of the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at PNC Arena. (James Guillory-Imagn Images)