Florida has yet again laid claim to being a hockey state after the Florida Panthers clinched their third consecutive Stanley Cup Final appearance following a 5-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final on Wednesday.
Florida has yet again laid claim to being a hockey state after the Florida Panthers clinched their third consecutive Stanley Cup Final appearance following a 5-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final on Wednesday.
The Panthers got off to an inauspicious start, quickly finding themselves down 2-0 after the first period. The Hurricanes, who were coming off a huge Game 4 victory that got the proverbial monkey of losing 15 straight ECF games off their back, appeared to be storming to a second consecutive win to get back into the series – but the defending Cup champions had other plans. Florida responded with three second period goals to suck the life out of the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. With the Panthers riding the momentum with 20 minutes to go, Carolina’s Seth Jarvis beat Florida goalie Sergei Bobrovsky to tie the game at 3-3 with 11:30 left. About four minutes later, the Panthers’ Carter Verhaeghe got a clean feed across the crease from team captain Aleksander Barkov and found the back of the net against Canes goalie Frederik Andersen. Sam Bennett would later add an empty-net goal to hammer down the victory and put Florida in prime position to achieve potential dynasty status. Verhaeghe, who scored his 12th career postseason game-winning goal, told the TNT Sports broadcast that the team is “pulling the rope together.” “It’s a team effort every night … It’s just sticking to our system,” Verhaeghe added. After the game, the Panthers were presented with the Prince of Wales trophy, awarded to the Eastern Conference champions. With the trophy curse in mind, Florida players did not touch it while posing for pictures. It is a common superstition amongst fans, players and coaches that touching the trophy can jinx the team from winning the Cup. In 2023, after the Panthers clinched their first Cup appearance since 1996, players touched the trophy and went on to lose to the Vegas Golden Knights. However, last year, the players learned from the experience and went on to beat the Edmonton Oilers to win their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. The Panthers will play the winner of the Western Conference Final between the Oilers and Dallas Stars. Edmonton leads the series 3-1 with Game 5 scheduled for Thursday at the American Airlines Center.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes meet again in Eastern finalThe reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers meet the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference final for the second time in three seasons. The teams open the series Tuesday at Carolina. The Panthers are coming off a rout of Toronto in Sunday's Game 7 of that series.
Read more »
Florida Panthers vs Carolina Hurricanes NHL Playoffs Series Odds, Picks & PreviewMike DiStefano breaks down the Eastern Conference Finals between the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes.
Read more »
Reigning Stanley Cup champ Florida Panthers beat Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 in Eastern final openerCarter Verhaeghe and Aaron Ekblad scored two tone-setting first-period goals while Sergei Bobrovsky remained strong in net as the reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 in Tuesday night’s opener of their Eastern Conference final series. A.J.
Read more »
Reigning Stanley Cup champ Florida Panthers beat Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 in Eastern final openerThe reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers wasted no time snatching home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference final.
Read more »
Panthers' Brad Marchand leans into dessert drama as Florida looks to advance to Stanley Cup FinalFlorida Panthers winger Brad Marchand fueled Dairy Queen Blizzard rumors after being seen licking a spoon in the locker room during an intermission in Game 3.
Read more »
Carolina Hurricanes vs. Florida Panthers FREE LIVE STREAM (5/28/25): Watch Game 5 onlineThe Carolina Hurricanes face the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals of the 2025 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on Wednesday, May 28, 2025 (5/28/25) at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Read more »