The reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers wasted no time seizing home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference Final, powering past the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 in Game 1 on Tuesday night to take a 1-0 series lead.
Florida opened the game with urgency and precision, setting the tone early behind goals from Carter Verhaeghe and Aaron Ekblad in the first period. Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky stood tall once again, anchoring the Panthers with 31 saves — including a critical stretch spanning the second intermission in which Florida failed to record a shot for over 15 minutes.
The Panthers’ win comes just 48 hours after a grueling Game 7 road victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs and sets the tone in a rematch of the 2023 Eastern Conference Final — a series Florida swept with four consecutive one-goal wins, including a marathon four-overtime opener.
This time, there was no need for extra time. Florida came out fast, striking twice in the first nine minutes. Verhaeghe buried a power-play goal from close range after being left alone at the crease, capitalizing on a Carolina defensive breakdown. Ekblad followed with a point shot that beat Hurricanes goalie Frederik Andersen cleanly, putting the Panthers up 2-0 before the crowd at PNC Arena had settled in.
Carolina briefly found life when a Seth Jarvis pass ricocheted off Sebastian Aho’s skate and under Bobrovsky in the final seconds of the first period, trimming the deficit to 2-1. But that was as close as the Hurricanes would get.
Just 2:25 into the second period, A.J. Greer restored Florida’s two-goal cushion by finishing a flawless 2-on-1 break, burying a backhand feed from defenseman Niko Mikkola. The Panthers extended their lead further in the third when Sam Bennett scored through a screen — again on the power play — ending Florida’s prolonged shot drought in emphatic fashion. Eetu Luostarinen tacked on a fifth goal later in the period, leaving little doubt about the result.
Even Carolina’s elite penalty kill, which had surrendered only two goals on 30 attempts through two playoff rounds, couldn’t hold up against Florida’s opportunistic special teams. Both Verhaeghe’s and Bennett’s goals came with the man advantage.
Jackson Blake added a cosmetic goal late for Carolina, but it did little to soften another frustrating chapter in the team’s conference final history. The Hurricanes have now lost 13 straight games in the third round of the playoffs, having been swept in each of their last three appearances (2009, 2019, 2023).
Tensions flared in the final moments, as Panthers veteran Brad Marchand was assessed a game misconduct and escorted off the ice following a heated exchange with Carolina defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere.
With the win, Florida continues its postseason road dominance and snatches away Carolina’s perfect 5-0 home record in these playoffs. The Panthers now lead the series 1-0 with Game 2 set for Thursday night, again in Raleigh.
Game 2 promises to be a crucial test for the Hurricanes, who now face the daunting task of avoiding another early series hole against a Florida team that knows how to close.
