Florida Panthers Win Eastern Conference Final, Advance to Third Straight Stanley Cup

RALEIGH, North Carolina — The Florida Panthers defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 5-3 in Game 5 on May 28, securing a spot in the Stanley Cup Final for the third consecutive year.

Carter Verhaeghe scored the game-winning goal with under eight minutes left in the third period, assisted by Sam Bennett. Carolina initially took a 2-0 lead in the first period with two goals from Andrei Svechnikov. However, Florida responded fiercely in the second period, scoring three goals within just over four minutes to take a 3-2 lead into the final period.

The Hurricanes equalized midway through the third, only for Verhaeghe to net the decisive goal shortly after. Bennett added an empty-net goal in the final seconds, marking his 10th goal of the postseason.

This advance to the finals is historic, marking not only Florida’s third consecutive trip but also continuing a trend of teams reaching the finals without home-ice advantage. In the last five seasons, this feat has been achieved four times—a rare occurrence in the NHL. The Panthers’ journey to this point has included winning 10 playoff series in the past three seasons, up from just four in their first 28 seasons.

The Panthers await the winner of the Western Conference final between the Edmonton Oilers and the Dallas Stars. If the Oilers win tomorrow, they will meet the Panthers in a Stanley Cup Final rematch.

Despite their playoff success, the Hurricanes fell short again, having lost all four of their recent Eastern Conference finals appearances since their 2006 Stanley Cup victory.

After the victory, Panthers coach Paul Maurice acknowledged the team’s accomplishment while looking ahead to the final. “We’ve done some incredible things, but we still have more to achieve,” he said.

As the Panthers celebrate, fans are already speculating about a potential rematch with Edmonton, adding even more excitement as the Stanley Cup Final approaches.