True, Florida did put six on the Leafs when wrapping up that series on Sunday (and another six past Toronto in the Game Five win), but the playoff trend the past two week has been lower-scoring. The Canes reflected as much vs. Washington, keeping the Alex Ovechkin line mostly in check the whole series and making it very tough for the Caps to score as they spent much of the game hemmed in their own zone. When the Caps did venture up ice there was always Freddy Andersen, looking comfy in goal, as the last blockade. Sergei Bobrovsky was also hot in the Florida goal as the Toronto series progressed and expect this East final to be a succession of defensive battles. Play Panthers-Canes Under

I'm still pretty flabbergasted how bad Florida made the Maple Leafs look on their own ice in Game 7 on Sunday night. So impressive for the Cats but utterly depressing yet again for those of us tired of watching Toronto Game 7 meltdowns. I've had a pretty good NHL season but seems like I don't do well fading the Panthers. The only reason I will in Game 1 is that they have to turn around and play so soon after a long series. Carolina is well-rested and the only team without a home loss this postseason. Frederik Andersen leads all goalies in GAA and SV as well. This series will probably be a slugfest full of 2-1 or 3-2 games.

The Hurricanes have been dominant at home, with a 36-9-1 record this season. The Panthers are coming off a challenging seven-game series and will play their eighth game in 15 days, which includes four games in six days. Historically, the Hurricanes have fared well at Lenovo Center in the postseason, holding a 14-5 record since 2022, although two losses have been to Florida. The Panthers defeated the Hurricanes in four overtimes two seasons ago in Carolina and then went on to win the next three games to complete the sweep. The Hurricanes should be highly motivated to prevent the Panthers from stealing Game 1 on the road again. I respect the Hurricanes' suffocating defense, especially with extra preparation time against the fatigued Panthers.