Evacuate! Panthers Start Game 2 Fast and Furious, Run Hurricanes

The Florida Panthers have evacuated the Carolinas, and are headed home with a commanding lead after controlling Game 2 of the 2025 Eastern Conference finals against the Hurricanes.

The Panthers scored three in the first period, again hearing the home team booed off the ice.

Florida kept up the pressure on Carolina and won 5-0 to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series.

The Panthers have won six straight against the Hurricanes in the ECF dating to 2023 — with Carolina now having lost an NHL-record 14 straight in the ECF since winning the Stanley Cup in 2006.

Of the Panthers’ 10 playoff wins this year, seven have come on the road — and they have outscored Toronto and Carolina 22-4 in their past four wins.

Florida came out hot from the start, Gus Forsling — who was waived by the Hurricanes in 2021, then claimed by the Panthers — making it 1-0 at 1:17.

The Panthers got a goal from Matthew Tkachuk off the left post at 11:41; Sam Bennett deflected a Carter Verhaeghe power-play shot at 15:50 for the 3-0 lead.

Bennett got his second late in the second — off another Verhaeghe wraparound.

Verhaeghe (three assists) and Bennett (goal, two assists) had three-point nights; Tkachuk and Aaron Ekblad each had two points.

Sergei Bobrovsky only faced three shots in the first, and, aside for a few Grade-As, had a quiet night.

Still, 17 saves or not, it is his third shutout of these playoffs — most in a single postseason since Andrei Vasilevskiy had five in 2021.

Andersen left after the second period down 4-0. After giving up 10 goals in his first nine playoff games, he allowed nine to the Panthers in just two.

Sasha Barkov made it 5-0 on a power-play deflection of a point shot from Ekblad in the third.

Game 3 is on Saturday night in Sunrise.

ECF GAME 2: PANTHERS @ HURRICANES

• The Panthers played much of Thursday without top scorer Sam Reinhart (lower body) after he collided with Sebastian Aho in the first.
• Florida is the sixth team in Stanley Cup playoff history to score five or more goals in four consecutive road games. The 2022 Oilers and Avalanche did it last.
• Tkachuk has recorded a point in all six playoff games against the Hurricanes dating to 2023. Only three players in Panthers history have posted a run of that length in the playoffs against one opponent: Barkov (seven vs. BOS 2023-24) and Verhaeghe (six vs. TBL 2024-25). Tkachuk also had a six-game scoring streak against Tampa Bay (2024-25).
• Forsling became the 18th different Florida player with a goal this postseason. The only teams in NHL history with more through 14 games in a playoff year are the 1988 Bruins, 1987 Flyers and 1984 Oilers (all with 19).
• Forsling’s goal was also the fastest by a Florida defenseman in postseason history, and he was the seventh different Panthers defenseman with a goal this postseason. That matches an NHL record — with the 2021 Golden Knights doing it last.
• The Panthers have scored three or more goals in seven consecutive road games dating to Game 5 of the First Round against the Lightning. The only team with a longer streak in NHL history — not counting the Toronto bubble — is the Avalanche (eight in 1996).

SCORING: PANTHERS @ HURRICANES

• Florida 1, Carolina 0 (1:17 1st): Andrei Svechnikov turns over the puck, Matthew Tkachuk gets it to Gus Forsling who whips it through traffic and gets this thing going.
• Florida 2, Carolina 0 (11:41 1st): Carter Verhaeghe does a nice job of getting the puck behind the net; he comes in on a wraparound attempt but puts the puck across the goalmouth and onto the stick of Tkachuk
• Florida 3, Carolina 0 (15:50 1st PP): Veraheghe throws up a wrister from the left circle and Sam Bennett deflects it past Frederik Andersen. 
• Florida 4, Carolina 0 (19:21 2nd): Another wraparound from Verhaeghe goes off Andersen’s paddle — and Bennett is right there for his second of the night.
• Florida 5, Carolina 0 (13:49 3rd PP): Sasha Barkov gets low and deflects a point shot from Aaron Ekblad.

FHN’S 3 STARS OF GAME 2

• 1. Sam Bennett, Florida
• 2. Carter Verhaeghe, Florida
• 3. Sergei Bobrovsky, Florida

2025 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL: GAME 3

CAROLINA HURRICANES @ FLORIDA PANTHERS

Panthers lead Best-of-7 Series 2-0

• When: Saturday, 8 p.m. 
• Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
• National TV: TNT/truTV
• National Streaming: Max
• Radio: WQAM 560-AM; WPOW 96.5-FM2; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932, NHL App
• Series Schedule (all games on TNT/tru, 8 p.m.) — Game 1: Florida 5, Carolina 2; Game 2: Florida 5, Carolina 0; Game 3: Saturday @Florida; Game 4: Monday @Florida; Game 5*: Wednesday @Carolina; Game 6*: Friday, May 30 @Florida; Game 7*: Sunday, June 1 @Carolina
• Regular Season: Panthers Won 2-1
• How They Got Here: Carolina d. New Jersey (5), Washington (5); Florida d. Tampa Bay (5), Toronto (7).
• All-Time Regular Season Series: Carolina/Hartford leads 74-49-10, 11 ties
• Postseason History: Florida 1-0 (2023 ECF in 4)