The Panthers continued their title defense with a five-goal showing in Carolina to open the Conference Finals. Their 4.75 road goals per game is currently the League’s fifth-highest average by a team in a single postseason (min. 5 GP).
* Five of the 10 highest-scoring Finnish players in Stanley Cup Playoffs history are competing in the 2025 Conference Finals – Florida’s Aleksander Barkov and Carolina’s Sebastian Aho, who both recorded a point Tuesday, as well as Mikko Rantanen, Roope Hintz and Miro Heiskanen, who will all take to the ice with Dallas tonight.
* Connor McDavid and Mikko Rantanen can join rare franchise and NHL company when the Stars and Oilers open their second straight Western Conference Final series tonight (8 p.m. ET on ESPN, ESPN+, SN, CBC, TVAS).
PANTHERS SKATE TO 1-0 SERIES LEAD IN 2025 EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL
Aleksander Barkov factored on Carter Verhaeghe’s game-opening goal before the Panthers went on to score five and take a 1-0 series lead in the 2025 Eastern Conference Final. In doing so, Florida handed Carolina its first home loss of the postseason. Teams that win Game 1 of a best-of-seven series own an all-time series record of 534-250 (.681), including 9-3 during the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
* WATCH HERE for full highlights from Panthers–Hurricanes Game 1.
* Florida has scored 38 goals through its first eight road games of the playoffs, tied with Colorado (38 in 2022) for the most by a team through that game count of a postseason in NHL history. The most through 10 contests is 43, achieved by the Avalanche in 2022 en route to the franchise’s third Stanley Cup.
* The Panthers are currently leading all teams in wins as visitors so far this postseason with six – two ahead of the next-closest team (EDM w/ 4) – and have wins in each of their past three, outscoring opponents 17-4 over that stretch. Florida has had more road victories in a single postseason twice: 2023 (8) and 2024 (7).
* The Panthers extended their playoff winning streak against the Hurricanes to five games dating to Game 1 of the 2023 Conference Final. The last team to earn five consecutive wins against a single opponent in the round before the Final was the Red Wings against the Blackhawks (6 GP from Game 4 of 1966 SF to Game 3 of 1995 CF).
* Barkov (0-1—1) became the first player in Panthers history with 70 career postseason points (22-48—70) and the seventh Finnish player to reach the mark. The list is topped by Jari Kurri (233), Esa Tikkanen (132), Mikko Rantanen (120), Teemu Selanne (88), Valtteri Filppula (86) and Sebastian Aho (81).
QUICK CLICKS
* Western Conference Final between Oilers, Stars poised to be great series
* Bruins sign GM Don Sweeney through 2027-28 season
* Sky Deutschland and the NHL extend partnership
* Kraken, NHL, One Roof Foundation officially launched Verlo Sport Courta, a legacy to 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic
* Nearly 19 million Canadians watched Second Round of 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Dallas entertains Edmonton in Game 1 of Western Conference Final tonight
Evan Bouchard, Connor McDavid and the Oilers visit Thomas Harley, Mikko Rantanen and the Stars to open the second straight Western Conference Final series between the franchises tonight. The contest starts at 8 p.m. ET and is available on ESPN and ESPN+ in the U.S. as well as on Sportsnet, CBC and TVA Sports in Canada.
* Bouchard (17-53—70 in 64 GP), who was chosen with the No. 10 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft at American Airlines Center, has career averages of 1.09 points per game in the playoffs and 0.69 during the regular season. The difference of 0.40 is by far the highest in NHL history (min. 50 GP in playoffs & regular season), ahead of forward Jude Drouin (0.94 in playoffs; 0.68 in regular season) who ranks second.
* McDavid leads Edmonton into its third Western Conference Final appearance over the past four seasons after defeating Dallas in 2024 and falling to Rantanen and Colorado in 2022. McDavid bookended the series against the Stars with the double-overtime winner in Game 1 and the primary assist on the clinching goal during Game 6.
* Harley (4-7—11 in 13 GP) had the overtime clincher in Game 6 of the Second Round and ranks second in points among defensemen this postseason behind Bouchard (4-8—12 in 11 GP). Harley has scored 11 goals (regular season & playoffs) since being added to Canada’s 4 Nations Face-Off roster on Feb. 15, which marks the highest combined total among all blueliners in that span.
* Rantanen recorded a goal in each of his first four playoff games against the Oilers. He can become the fourth active player to tally in each of his first five career postseason contests versus a franchise, following Valeri Nichushkin against the Jets (5 GP in 2024 R1), Zach Hyman against the Flames (5 GP in 2022 R2) and Jake Guentzel against the Rangers (5 GP in 2022 R1).
