On Tap Sports Net continues the 2025 Stanley Cup Eastern Conference preview with the Carolina Hurricanes. Can the Canes finally break through to the Stanley Cup Final?

The Carolina Hurricanes have a daunting task ahead of them: survive past the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Florida Panthers. The last time the Canes were in this position, they were swept by the Panthers in the 2023 Eastern Conference Final. Since then, the Panthers have won a Stanley Cup, made two Stanley Cup Final appearances, and added key players to a deep roster. 

How do the Hurricanes look heading into this matchup?

The Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes are on their seventh consecutive playoff appearance, going back to 2019 (Boston swept them in the Conference Final that year, by the way). An impressive feat for head coach Rod Brind’Amour. All the Hurricanes needed was a bona fide superstar to push them to the next level. They had that in Mikko Rantanen when they traded Martin Necas to the Colorado Avalanche and received Taylor Hall from Chicago in a massive three-team deal. Unfortunately, Rantanen and the Canes weren’t a good fit for each other, and Rantanen was traded to the Dallas Stars for Logan Stankoven. 

The Hurricanes were the best 5-on-5 team during the regular season with a 59% shot attempt share (Corsi) and a 56% expected goals share (xG). A big part of that is their “run and gun” style of hockey. The Canes will dump the puck and forecheck you to death.

But there is an area that is a major weakness that the Panthers will exploit. The Hurricanes are one of the worst teams in defensive zone exits. The Maple Leafs’ inability to exit the zone against the Panthers was one of the reasons for their downfall. The chart below from All Three Zones shows how the Canes rank towards the bottom in defensive zone exits. While the Hurricanes are excellent in collecting loose pucks, they rely on flip-outs to exit the DZ.

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The Line Up

Andrei Svechnikov is having an excellent postseason. And it’s about time. Svechnikov is second in goals for all players in the playoffs with eight. His line, centered by Sebastian Aho and flanked by Seth Jarvis, has one of the best expected goals shares in the playoffs with 78%. 

Former Chicago Blackhawk Taylor Hall has found a home in Carolina. Hall was utilized in a bottom-six role in Chicago (a possible failure on the coaching staff’s part), but he has excelled in a top-six role in Carolina. Hall has two goals and four assists. Linemate Logan Stankoven has also carved himself a nice role on Carolina’s second line; he has three goals and two assists. 

Carolina boasts a mobile defensive core, or at least it should be. There hasn’t been much production from the blueliners. Shayne Gostisbehere leads Carolina defensemen with seven points. The next highest producing blueliner is Jaccob Slavin with four points. The top pairing of Slavin and Brent Burns has an unacceptable 50 xG%. 

The middle pairing of rookie Alexander Nikishin and Dmitry Orlov hasn’t been horrible. But Sean Walker has been interesting. Walker only has one goal and two assists, but his underlying numbers speak to his excellent performance. Walker ranks eighth overall among defensemen in expected goals share with 63%. 

Perhaps the biggest story of the Hurricanes is their goaltender, Frederik Andersen. Leading all goaltenders in goals against average (1.36) and save percentage (.937), Andersen has bailed out the Hurricanes at times to carry them to the Conference Final. 

The Hurricanes’ power play ranks fourth at 28.1% but will be tested against the postseason’s second-best penalty kill. The Canes also boast the league’s best PK in the postseason, with 93.3%. This will pose an issue for the middling Florida power play. 

What’s On Tap Next?

The best 5-on-5 team in the NHL will be put to the test against one of the most complete teams in the league. While Carolina generates puck possession numbers in their favor, their struggle with zone exits will be a problem against a high-caliber team in the Florida Panthers. Andersen has stood on his head, but Carolina’s top defensemen need to pick up their game if Carolina wants to win a Conference Final game for the first time in two appearances. 

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