NHL Playoffs: Panthers defeat Rangers to reach second consecutive Stanley Cup Final

The Florida Panthers are back in the Stanley Cup Final, hoping for a different result this time.

A year after losing to the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2023 final, the Panthers defeated the New York Rangers 2-1 to eliminate the Presidents’ Trophy winner in six games in the Eastern Conference final.

They will await the winner of the Western Conference final between the Dallas Stars and Edmonton Oilers, with Game 1 scheduled for Saturday night at 8pm ET (ABC, ESPN+) in Florida or Dallas. The Oilers currently lead the Stars 3-2 with a chance to close out the series on Sunday.

Sam Bennett got the Panthers on the board first, turning a mistake by Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba into a mismatch by Evan Rodrigues, who collected the assist.

More replay showed the disc only reached the goal by a few centimeters.

Vladimir Tarasenko followed midway through the third period, assisted by Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen.

The Panthers ended up defeating the Rangers 34-22 and had more significant scoring chances, but the Rangers weren’t without opportunities. It turns out the threat was often gone after one shot, with the Panthers consistently winning loose puck battles and avoiding second-chance shots.

The Rangers pulled goaltender Igor Shesterkin with just over two minutes remaining and finally found the net on a shot from Artemi Panariin with 1:40 remaining. That was all they got, leaving the Amerant Bank Arena to celebrate a few minutes later.

Panthers back to Stanley Cup Final

The Panthers are in the Stanley Cup Final for the second consecutive season and third time in franchise history. After losing to the Golden Knights last year, Florida bounced back and improved with 10 wins and 18 points to win the Atlantic Division title.

After dismissing their intrastate rivals, the Tampa Bay Lightning, in five games in the first round, the Panthers needed six games to eliminate the Boston Bruins and Rangers.

A balanced attack led the Panthers to four wins for the franchise’s first Stanley Cup title. It wasn’t just the stars, like Matthew Tkachuk (19 points), Aleksander Barkov (17 points), Sam Reinhart (eight goals) and Carter Verhaeghe (nine goals) they produced. Bennett (six goals) and Lundell (12 points) contributed up front, and from the blue line, Gustav Forsling (four goals) and Brandon Montour (nine points) were vital contributions.

Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky has one loss and is 7-3 this postseason in one-goal games. He hasn’t outperformed Shesterkin or Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger, but he’s been solid enough and received plenty of support from the offense.

They also aren’t shy about playing physical, leading all playoff teams in penalty minutes (205) and misconduct (eight).

Where do the Rangers go from here?

This is the second time in three seasons that the Rangers have been eliminated in the Eastern Conference finals. General manager Chris Drury spent and made shrewd moves to get the team into contender status. They won the Presidents’ Trophy this season with the best regular season record, but like the previous 10 teams to win the award, the offseason will begin without achieving their ultimate goal.

What kind of work do we have ahead for Drury this summer? Trade deadline acquisitions Alexander Wennberg and Jack Roslovic are among the team’s unrestricted free agents, as is veteran wing Blake Wheeler, who missed most of the second half of the regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs after suffering a serious leg injury in February.

Heart-and-soul defenseman Ryan Lindgren, young blue liner Braden Schneider and 2019 second overall pick Kaapo Kakko are set for restricted free agency. Lindgren and Kakko retain arbitration rights.

There’s also the impending extension for Shesterkin, whose contract will expire after next season. The 28-year-old Russian provided stability in net following Henrik Lundqvist’s departure from the franchise. And even with a rising salary cap, the timeframe and dollar amount he may be seeking could hurt other areas that may need to be supported or improved.

The Rangers currently have just over $10 million in salary cap space, with a projected cap hit of $87.7 million for 2024-25, by friendly limit.

Rangers fans know the team will spend, but some of their offensive leaders are pushing 30. Their window remains open, so now it’s a question of what moves Drury can make to determine how long they will maintain the title of Cup contender.