The Florida Panthers yet again dominated the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, this time in Game 2 by a score of 5-0. Headed back to Florida with two losses in hand puts the Hurricanes firmly into ‘sweep’ territory in yet another Eastern Conference Final; the Hurricanes (as of writing) have now lost all 14 of their Eastern Conference Final games since winning the Stanley Cup in 2006.
The Resurgence of Carter Verhaeghe
One player who has had a real resurgence in this series, particularly, is Carter Verhaeghe. After having an uncharacteristically down season and a mostly lackluster showing in Round 1 versus the Tampa Bay Lightning and Round 2 versus the Toronto Maple Leafs, Verhaeghe seems to have found his confidence and – more importantly – his goalscoring touch.
After recording only five points (two goals, three assists) against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Verhaeghe has shown up for the Panthers in Round 3, scoring a goal and an assist in Game 1, and setting up Matthew Tkachuk’s beauty of a goal in the first period. Verhaeghe was a huge offensive piece for the Panthers in their legendary Stanley Cup run in 2024. Most of the Panthers’ success in this year’s playoff run has come by committee, but Verhaeghe heating up at just the right time couldn’t be more concerning for anyone not wearing a giant feline on the front of their jersey.
Both Sides Suffer Significant Losses
Despite the lopsided scoreline, both sides suffered significant losses in Game 2. Sam Reinhart permanently left the game midway through the first period after Sebastian Aho hip-checked Reinhart’s knee. On the other side of the ice, Sean Walker permanently left the game after a collision with AJ Greer. Seth Jarvis also left the game in the third period after taking a hit from Niko Mikkola and shakily skating off, but returned before the end of the game; he’ll be a player to keep an eye on when considering availability for Game 3.
The Hurricanes’ beleaguered defensive corps undoubtedly gets the worst of the exchange here; Jalen Chatfield remains unavailable despite taking part in morning pre-game skates. Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour has had to resort to putting rookies Scott Morrow and Alexander Nikishin in to patch the proverbial holes for now. As for the Panthers, Reinhart – a constant Selke candidate – is a significant loss, but players like Mackie Samoskevich and Jesper Boqvist are ready and waiting in the wings to pick up what slack they can.
Sergei Bobrovsky Once Again in Full Playoff Form
Sergei Bobrovsky‘s less-than-stellar performance(s) early on in Round 2 versus the Maple Leafs were arguably a non-insignificant reason why that series ended up being much more competitive and much closer than most people initially believed. Luckily, Bobrovsky was able to right the ship and regain his form as time went on in that series, ultimately backstopping the Panthers to their third-straight Eastern Conference Final.
Related: 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Finals Hub
This round has been the polar opposite for Bobrovsky. Since the first puck-drop in the Eastern Conference Final, he has looked rock-solid, especially in times when he has to be. He hasn’t had to steal a game quite yet, but he looks much more poised to do so this series than the last.
The Panthers’ playoff hopes don’t necessarily live and die with Bobrovsky; again, their success so far has largely been by committee. After the events of Game 2 in this series, goaltending seems to be less and less of an issue and more of a pillar of confidence for the rest of the lineup to build and feed off of.
On the other side of the ice, the goaltending has been nothing short of a problem. In Game 1, Freddie Andersen was mostly a victim of the poor play of the defense in front of him. In Game 2, however, two of the Panthers’ four goals were ones you’d expect a goaltender of his caliber to handle with no issue. After allowing four goals on just 16 shots, Andersen was pulled in the third period in favor of up-and-coming netminder Pyotr Kochetkov.
Looking Ahead
The Panthers have every possibility to end this series in four games. If the Panthers’ stars and depth keep clicking along at the rate they’re going, I wouldn’t be surprised if they end up doing so. The Hurricanes are down, but not quite out – yet. The Panthers dug themselves out of a two-game hole versus the Maple Leafs; there are few reasons to believe the Hurricanes aren’t capable of doing the same. Brind’Amour is one of the best head coaches in the NHL, and the Hurricanes are an incredibly resilient team.
Personally, I would not be surprised to see a completely different version of the Hurricanes take the ice with a renewed sense of desperation and hope in Games 3 and 4 back in Sunrise.
