The Florida Panthers advanced to the Stanley Cup Final after a thrilling 5-3 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals. The Panthers, who have now reached the championship round for the third consecutive season, are set to face the winner of the Oilers Stars series. This year’s win followed in the footsteps of their 2022 championship run, where they defeated the Edmonton Oilers in a gritty Game 6. However, the Panthers’ celebration after the win was notably subdued compared to past victories.
The game started with the Hurricanes taking an early 2-0 lead in the first period, capitalizing on Panthers giveaways. The Panthers responded with three second-period goals to take a 3-2 lead. Despite a late third-period tying goal by Hurricanes’ Seth Jarvis, the Panthers maintained their lead. The pivotal moment came when center Aleksander Barkov set up Carter Verhaeghe for a game-tying goal, and then Sam Bennett sealed the win with an empty-net goal with 54 seconds left. “He took on one guy, then two guys and then gave the puck to me with a pretty open net,” Verhaeghe said of Barkov’s key assist. “So it was an unbelievable play by Barky at a critical time.”
The Panthers’ head coach, Paul Maurice, praised the team’s ability to overcome the early deficit, calling it one of the elements that make hockey great. “That was all the elements that make our sport great,” Maurice said. “They’re all over us. And we’re serving up pizzas, and we don’t look like we should’ve made the playoffs, and then the next thing you know we look pretty good.” The Panthers now face the winner of the Oilers and Stars series, with the Oilers holding a 3-1 lead heading into Game 5. If the Oilers advance, they have a chance to get revenge on the Panthers for their loss in last year’s Stanley Cup Final.