Panthers Praised by NHL Fans After Dominant ECF Game 1 Win vs. Hurricanes

After a dominant 6-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 7 of the second round, the Florida Panthers’ offense kept rolling into the Eastern Conference Finals.

Florida crushed the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 in Game 1 on Tuesday, handing the Canes their first loss on home ice so far this postseason.

The Panthers took an early 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Carter Verhaeghe and Aaron Ekblad, but Sebastian Aho gave Carolina a first-period goal to keep things from getting too out of hand.

From there, it was all Florida.

A.J. Greer made it 3-1 early in the second period, and Sam Bennett and Eetu Luostarinen each added a goal in the third period, leaving the Hurricanes with a four-goal deficit and little time to mount a comeback.

Carolina added a power play goal in the final minutes, but it was too little, too late.

After the win, fans praised the Panthers for setting the tone with a dominant Game 1.

The Hurricanes are looking to avoid a repeat of the 2023 conference finals when they lost to the Panthers in just four games, but the first game of the series suggests Florida is going to have its way against Carolina.

The series is far from over, but the Canes need to make some major adjustments before Game 2.