{"id":2394,"date":"2025-05-29T13:17:44","date_gmt":"2025-05-29T10:17:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vsaworld.com\/blog\/?p=2394"},"modified":"2025-05-29T13:17:45","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T10:17:45","slug":"panthers-secure-third-straight-stanley-cup-final-berth-with-dramatic-game-5-win-over-hurricanes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vsaworld.com\/blog\/panthers-secure-third-straight-stanley-cup-final-berth-with-dramatic-game-5-win-over-hurricanes\/","title":{"rendered":"Panthers Secure Third Straight Stanley Cup Final Berth with Dramatic Game 5 Win Over Hurricanes"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Florida Panthers clinched their third consecutive Stanley Cup Final appearance with a hard-fought 5-3 victory<\/a> over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final at Lenovo Center on Wednesday, May 28, 2025. Carter Verhaeghe\u2019s tiebreaking goal in the third period, set up by a brilliant play from captain Aleksander Barkov, propelled the defending champions to a 4-1 series win. The Panthers, who are the No. 3 seed from the Atlantic Division, now await the winner of the Western Conference Final, where the Edmonton Oilers lead the Dallas Stars 3-1, with Game 5 set for Thursday in Dallas (8:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+, ESPN, SN, TVAS, CBC). As Barkov said, \u201cWe\u2019re in the Final once again, and we want to win the Stanley Cup just like any other team.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Game of Resilience and Clutch Moments<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Panthers faced a formidable challenge early, falling behind 2-0 in the first period after Sebastian Aho capitalized on turnovers by Gustav Forsling and Niko Mikkola to score at 4:12 and 18:54. Despite the deficit and the loss of forward Eetu Luostarinen to an injury after the first period, Florida regrouped in the second, tying the game with two goals 30 seconds apart. Matthew Tkachuk tipped in a power-play shot from Aaron Ekblad at 7:12, and Sam Bennett scored on a give-and-go with Evan Rodrigues at 7:42. Anton Lundell then gave Florida a 3-2 lead at 11:59, redirecting a pass from Brad Marchand after winning an offensive-zone face-off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carolina fought back, with Seth Jarvis tying the game 3-3 at 8:30 of the third period on a shot assisted by Andrei Svechnikov. However, Barkov\u2019s heroics at 12:21 turned the tide. Battling Hurricanes defenseman Dmitry Orlov along the boards, Barkov circled the net, evaded Eric Robinson, and delivered a backhand pass across the crease to Verhaeghe, who scored into an open net. \u201cHe took on one guy, then two guys and then gave the puck to me with a pretty open net,\u201d Verhaeghe said. \u201cIt was an unbelievable play by \u2018Barkie\u2019 at a critical point.\u201d Sam Bennett sealed the 5-3 win with an empty-net goal at 19:06, his NHL-leading 10th playoff goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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