Panthers, Hurricanes Eastern Conference Final Preview

Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, Matthew Tkachuk, Carter Verhaeghe, and Evan Rodrigues are almost unbeatable when supported by the likes of Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen, and Brad Marchand. The Panthers’ forward lines are stacked from top to bottom, and – if they’re all clicking – outclass the Hurricanes by a fairly wide margin (at least, on paper).

The Maple Leafs held the Reinhart – Barkov – Tkachuk trio to just four goals the entire series and still lost after taking a 2-0 series lead. A key player to watch is Luostarinen; the Finnish forward acquired from Carolina in 2020 via the Vincent Trocheck trade has blossomed into an absolute stud. Luostarinen leads all playoff point producers on the road with 10 points. Four of his points came in the first round, and two came in Game 7 against Toronto.

Again, the matchup here is the real kicker in determining how this series will play out. How well can Barkov counter Aho, and vice versa? Is there a way to shut down Jarvis? Will Verhaeghe fully return to form this series, or will he continue on his downward trajectory? All these burning questions leave the offense a toss-up, especially considering how sneaky and unpredictable both teams can be.

Panthers vs. Hurricanes: The Defense

Now for the defensive corps. The matchup here is going to be much more lopsided. The Panthers have one of the best – if not the best – defensive groups in the league. Spearheaded by Gustav Forsling and (yet another) trade deadline acquisition, Seth Jones, the Panthers’ defense is nigh impenetrable.

When they’re on, they’re on. In all my years watching hockey, I have never seen as cohesive a group as the Panthers’ blueliners. Even when the pairings are shaken up, the new lines mesh immediately and can play off of each other’s strengths and weaknesses. When sharing the ice with Forsling, for instance, Aaron Ekblad plays a more defensive brand of hockey. If sharing the ice with someone like Niko Mikkola (who has had a career resurgence in Sunrise) or Nate Schmidt, however, Ekblad turns into an offensive play-driving machine. The same can be said for Forsling, as well as Jones.

The Hurricanes, while having the best two-way defenseman in the league in Jaccob Slavin, don’t quite have as much cohesiveness or firepower in their defensive lineup. Brent Burns, in particular, is prone to the occasional mistake and has slowed significantly with age. Other than Slavin, standouts for the Canes’ blueliners include Florida-native Shayne Gostisbehere, Sean Walker, and Jalen Chatfield.

A key piece to keep an eye on in this series is Alexander Nikishin. The highly touted prospect made his NHL debut in the Hurricanes’ series-clinching game against the Capitals, fulfilling his lifelong dream of playing against Alex Ovechkin. Nikishin thrives in the chaos that the Panthers currently utilize to throw other teams off their game. Expect him to grow into his game in this series; the Panthers are all about wearing other teams down, but Nikishin is made of sterner stuff.

The key here is, again, the matchup. Does Jones continue gelling the way he has thus far? Is Schmidt going to put up some more bald-guy goals? Can Slavin continue to be the stalwart shutdown defender he has been for years? Expect the defense on both sides to show out and steal a game or two.

Panthers vs. Hurricanes: The Goaltenders

This is where things get really interesting. Both teams have operated on both ends of the spectrum in the crease. Frederik Andersen has stolen games for the Hurricanes this postseason, but a few of their losses have undoubtedly come as a result of him either faltering or missing time due to injury. If the latter is the case, Pyotr Kochetkov is a serviceable backup who has shown flashes of brilliance, especially in clutch moments.

On the other side of the coin, Sergei Bobrovsky has been both piping hot and freezing cold in the playoffs so far. Panthers’ backup netminder Vitek Vanecek has yet to see time in the postseason; when it comes to a battle of the backups, the Hurricanes win that battle ten times out of ten.

The kicker here is which goalie will settle in, dig their heels in, and take charge of the crease early on. Bobrovsky tends to be streaky, but when he’s on, he is unbelievably difficult to beat. As showcased in Round 1 of the playoffs, Bobrovsky can absolutely rise to the occasion and stymie even the hottest of goal scorers. That said, he has had a litany of off days that made Round 2, in particular, much closer than it could’ve been. When it comes down to the line, Bobrovsky isn’t a bad goaltender to bet on by any stretch, but his streakiness is becoming more and more pronounced as we move deeper into the playoffs.

Andersen is much, much more consistent between the pipes; what is not so consistent, however, is his health. After an unfortunate collision in Game 1 between Bennett and Anthony Stolarz led to the netminder missing the remainder of Round 2, something similar happening to Andersen would almost certainly end up the same way. Mind you, I think it would carry the same result for just about any goaltender; taking a shot directly to the front of the mask and then having a player run into your head minutes later is bound to result in a concussion. That, though, is another conversation.

All in all, both goalies have the potential and ability to be the real difference-makers in this series. Does Bobrovsky turn back into a pumpkin this series? Can Andersen stay healthy? Can Bennett avoid crashing the crease and injuring another goaltender? Better yet, does Svechnikov finally score a lacrosse goal on Bobrovsky this series? We’ll find out.

Panthers vs. Hurricanes: The Final Prediction

The logical conclusion here is that this series is Florida’s to lose by a thinner margin than most people think. The Hurricanes are admittedly a better team than they were in 2023, but so are the Panthers. The offensive and defensive matchups lean in favor of the Panthers, but the goaltending needle is much closer to the middle. There are too many question marks, even at this point, to accurately call how many games this series will last, but I will be very surprised if it is over in four or five games. I could easily see this series going the distance to another Game 7. In that case, it will be a complete toss-up.

Folks, this series is going to be nothing short of electric. I have watched both of these teams for a very, very long time; for those of you who don’t know, I have followed the Hurricanes basically since birth (with a hiatus for reasons from 2021-now), and the Panthers since mid-childhood. I have covered both teams extensively for various publications.

I was in the building when Rod Brind’Amour lifted the Cup. I was in the building when the Panthers fired Gerard Gallant and made him take a taxicab back to the airport. I know no other team(s) in the NHL as thoroughly and intimately as I know these two. The coaching is nearly a dead heat; both teams have fully bought into their respective systems, and what their coaches expect from them within those systems. On paper, the Panthers are simply a better team. The fun thing about hockey, though, is that it isn’t played on paper. Anything can happen, and it often does when these two teams are involved.