The Florida Panthers defended home ice over the weekend and evened their best-of-seven series against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Both teams will head back north of the border Wednesday with a chance to seize control and move with a win of the Eastern Conference Final.
Game 5 is set for a 7 p.m. puck drop at Scotiabank Arena, where the Leafs jumped out to a 2-0 series lead. Florida regained momentum Friday courtesy of Brad Marchand’s Game 3 overtime winner, and the reigning Stanley Cup champs stifled Toronto in a physical 2-0 triumph in Game 4.
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Carter Verhaeghe opened the scoring in Sunday’s contest with a power play goal late in the first period, and Sam Bennett cashed in a two-on-one with 7:51 left in regulation to add an insurance marker. Sergei Bobrovsky stood tall between the pipes, stopping all 23 shots for his fifth career playoff shutout.
Both teams delivered their share of borderline — or downright illegal — hits throughout the evening.
Dmitry Kulikov got away with an apparent elbow to the head of Leafs winger Mitch Marner. Toronto’s Oliver Ekman-Larsson made contact with the head and neck area of Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues, a call later downgraded from a major penalty to a two-minute interference minor.
And frustration boiled over for Toronto when Max Domi boarded Aleksander Barkov in the dying seconds of the third period, igniting a scuffle that resulted in four players being dismissed early with 10-minute misconducts. Domi received a $5,000 fine Monday from the NHL’s Department of Player Safety, but was not suspended for the hit.
NHL suspends Panthers vice chairman after social media posts
The National Hockey League suspended a Florida Panthers minority owner after a profane social-media exchange echoing President Donald Trump’s call for Canada to become the 51st U.S. state and making politically charged statements about the Israel-Palestine War.
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Douglas Cifu of Jupiter posted his comments to a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs about an hour after the Panthers defeated them May 11 in the Stanley Cup playoffs and two weeks after Canada elected a new prime minister who has vowed to fight Trump’s plans to annex the nation. “Eat s*** 51st state anti-semite loser. Israel now and forever. Until ever (sic) last Hamas rat is eliminated,” read a post on the now-deleted X account to Cifu, the team’s vice chairman and a longtime Palm Beach County resident.
The comment followed a taunt by the fan accusing Israel of “using starvation as a weapon to win a war” in Gaza against the Palestinian state.
The suspension bars Cifu, a multimillionaire and the CEO of Virtu Financial, from being around the Panthers — the NHL’s defending champion — as they compete for a third straight trip to the finals.
May 11, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (16) shoots on Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll (60) during the second period in game four of the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
How can I watch Panthers vs. Maple Leafs
Here’s everything you need to know to watch the Panthers game, including time, TV schedule and streaming information:
Panthers vs. Maple Leafs odds
Florida enters Game 5 as the favorite as of Tuesday morning, according to BetMGM, with -145 odds on the moneyline. Toronto is a +120 underdog despite its 4-1 home record in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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Three of the four games have been decided by a single goal. The Panthers are listed as +170 underdogs to cover the 1.5-goal spread.
What time is Panthers vs. Maple Leafs?
The game starts at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May 14.
May 11, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov (7) and Toronto Maple Leafs center Bobby McMann (74) fight during the third period in game four of the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Panthers vs. Maple Leafs TV channel
Game 5 between the Panthers and Maple Leafs flips back to ESPN. Sean McDonough is on the play-by-play call, joined by color analyst Ray Ferraro and rinkside reporter Emily Kaplan.
Panthers vs. Maple Leafs live stream
Time: 7 p.m.
TV: ESPN
Streaming options: Fubo.
https://www.fubo.tv/stream/tv/?irad=343747&irmp=1205322&subId1=USATLocal&subId2=NHL&subId3=2024
Panthers vs. Maple Leafs series schedule
Game 1, Toronto: Maple Leafs 5, Panthers 4 (May 5)
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Game 2, Toronto: Maple Leafs 4, Panthers 3 (May 7)
Game 3, Sunrise: Panthers 5, Maple Leafs 4 (May 9)
Game 4, Sunrise: Panthers 2, Maple Leafs 0 (May 11)
Game 5, Toronto: May 14, 7 p.m.
Game 6, Sunrise: May 16, TBD
Game 7, Toronto*: May 18, TBD
* If necessary
— Tom D’Angelo of the Palm Beach Post contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Florida Panthers vs. Toronto Maple Leafs: How to watch Game 5 on TV