NHL Notebook: Conference Finals Recap

Here’s our closing recap of the conference finals matchups in the NHL:

EASTERN CONFERENCE: Florida over Carolina 4-1

The first three games of this series were just a complete display of dominance. The Panthers outscored the Hurricanes 16-2 in taking a 3-0 series lead. That alone tells you how much better Florida was, but to watch it unfold was to see how completely the Panthers just took the ‘Canes out of their offense and really just sucked the life out of them. Carolina played more competitively in the final two games that they split, but by then it was way too late.

Andrei Svechnikov is a microcosm of the series. The Hurricane forward had been his team’s best offensive player as they rolled through the first two rounds of the playoffs. Against Florida, Svechnikov not only never scored, he was a complete non-factor in the offense, taking just five shots for the entire series. By contrast, Sam Bennett, the Panther center who stayed on the attack all series long, took five shots in Game 5 alone. On paper and during the regular season, these two teams look very even. The past week and a half, they looked anything but.

WESTERN CONFERENCE: Edmonton over Dallas 4-1

In the third period of Game 1, the Stars overcame a 3-1 deficit by scoring five times, including three consecutive power play conversions. It had the feel of that moment that swung a series before it even began. But this Oiler team is not lacking in resilience. As it turned out, that third-period outburst was Dallas’ last hurrah. Edmonton won the next two games comfortably. They sealed a closely fought 4-1 win in Game 4 with a couple of late empty-net goals. And in Game 5, playing on the road, they quieted the crowd with three goals in the first eight minutes.

The first period meltdown of Game 5 closed a tough series for Star goalie Jake Oettinger. By contrast, Stuart Skinner, even with the Game 1 collapse, ended up with a 92 percent save rate and was dominant in the Games 2-3-4 sequence that effectively settled this series. Defensively, Edmonton took Mikko Rantanen and Mikael Granlund completely out of the flow. While Star forward Jason Robertson had a nice series, he was a lonely warrior. The Oilers, meanwhile, showed good offensive balance with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on the attack throughout and augmenting the Connor McDavid-Leon Draisaitl combo.

The Stanley Cup Finals begin on Wednesday, June 4. We’ll have our preview up sometime early next week.