“The Cinderella story continues,” Panthers sweep Hurricanes advancing to Stanley Cup Finals for 1st-time since 1996, NHL Twitter reacts

It seems the clock has not yet struck 12 for the Florida Panthers as they continue their Cinderella story amid Stanley Cup Finals. The team wiped out the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 4 of the final round with a 4-3 record, advancing to the finals with a 4-0 Eastern Conference lead.

It’s the first time since 1996 that the Cats advanced to the playoff finals. The NHL underdogs successfully demolished the Presidents Trophy winner – the Boston Bruins, and one of the league’s top teams the Toronto Maple Leafs in Round 1 and 2 to advance further.

In the final round Game 1, the Cats recorded NHL’s 6th longest game to carry on for 4-OT rounds, leading to Matthew Tkachuk’s victory goal. Both Tkachuk and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky were phenomenal in their games, leading the team to their final-round victory in ages.

Related: “He changed their franchise,” Wayne Gretzky states how Matthew Tkachuk ‘become the face of the Florida Panthers’ in recent year

Florida Panthers win The Prince of Wales trophy after Game 4 sweep

It seems the Panthers trade of Matthew Tkachuk in exchange for Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar to the Flames was indeed the right move. With 4.9 seconds left in the final period, Tkachuk shot the game-winner, leading the Cats to end their 27 years Stanley Cup finals qualification drought.

The Cats will now be facing either the Dallas Stars or the Vegas Golden Knights in their final series. As of now, the Knights are leading the Western Conference with a 3-0 record. Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 36 shots to cap off his stellar playoff performance. 

Ultimately, the Canes were unable to figure out the goalie leading to their team’s demise. Bobrovsky noted, “It’s amazing”. “We showed the resilience … and we’re lucky to have Chucky on our side. He knows how to score big goals.” Unfortunately for the Canes, they lost a few of their players to injury during Game 4.

Anthony Duclair shot the first Cats goal and within seconds the Canes lost their defenceman Jaccob Slavin to a massive hit by forward Sam Bennett. Slavin blacked out for seconds after hitting his head first on the boards and then on the ice. He was helped by his teammates to the locker room, and clearly seemed out of it. 

Later the Canes declared Slavin to be in IL due to upper-body injury. Furthermore, around the same time, the team also lost Stefan Noesen. Although he was back on the bench in the second round. The team lost their third player Martin Necas after a shot by his own teammate Brent Burns.

Necas was visibly in pain and was unable to stand properly as his teammates carried him off the ice. During the handshake after the game, the Staal brothers appeared to share a hug. The Canes captain Jordan Staal congratulated and hugged his brother Panthers defenceman Marc Staal sharing a bittersweet moment.

In case you missed:

Was Brooks Koepka Panthers ‘lucky star’ as Cats’ take 1-0 lead over Hurricanes in Game 3?

Aleksander Barkov  suffers lower-body injury after getting smashed onto boards by Jack Drury in Game 3 against Hurricanes

Stay Updated!

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW