The Florida Panthers and Seattle Kraken have largely been the story of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, as the first round saw the former eliminate the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Boston Bruins while the latter knocked out the defending Cup champion Colorado Avalanche. Their Cinderella stories don’t seem to be ending any time soon, either: Florida and Seattle both went on the road to take 1-0 leads in the second round and entered Thursday’s action with a chance to go up 2-0.
Florida came back from a two-goal deficit to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 in Game 2. Aleksander Barkov and Gustav Forsling spearheaded the Panthers’ come-from-behind effort by scoring a goal apiece within the first two minutes of the second period, giving Florida the lead it would hold for the rest of the game. The Panthers have now won five straight and head back to FLA Live Arena with a commanding 2-0 series lead.
The Kraken, meanwhile, are hoping to get one win closer to the conference finals in only their second season as an NHL franchise. Seattle topped the Dallas Stars 5-4 in Game 1 thanks to an overtime game-winner from Yanni Gourde, a result even more impressive considering Dallas’ Joe Pavelski scored four goals in a sensational return from injury.
Follow this page for updates on Thursday’s games, and here’s a look at all the scores for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Panthers ride second-period scoring binge to win over Leafs
The Panthers showed some serious playoff mettle in Game 2, overcoming a two-goal deficit to beat the Maple Leafs 3-2 in Scotiabank Arena. Florida will now head back home with a 2-0 series lead and a five-game winning streak, giving the team significant momentum as it hunts for its first Stanley Cup Final appearance since 1996.
Toronto’s Alexander Kerfoot and Ryan O’Reilly opened the game’s scoring with goals in the first 5:10, and it looked as if the Maple Leafs were well on their way to evening the series at 1-1. Florida answered with an Anton Lundell goal at 11:13 of the first, but the comeback effort truly ignited after the intermission.
Aleksander Barkov got the puck past Toronto goalie Ilya Samsonov with a gorgeous wrist shot only :19 into the second period, then less than minute later Gustav Forsling added a goal of his own to give Florida the 3-2 advantage it would ride until the final buzzer.
Florida’s comeback win likely would’ve been impossible without the monumental contributions of Sergei Bobrovsky, who recorded 34 saves and erased Toronto’s hopes for overtime time after time. Toronto will get another shot at Bobrovsky in Game 3, which is set to take place Sunday at FLA Live Arena.
Kraken vs. Stars
- Kraken lead series, 1-0
- Time: 9:30 p.m.
- TV channel: TNT
