Hurricanes vs Panthers Series Odds, Preview, Schedule & Prediction
By Brady Trettenero in NHL Hockey
Updated: May 16, 2023 at 2:33 pm EDTPublished:
- The Carolina Hurricanes play the Florida Panthers in the 2023 Eastern Conference Final
- The Hurricanes have opened as sizeable favorites in the NHL series prices
- Read below for Hurricanes vs Panthers series odds, preview and prediction
The Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers will faceoff in the NHL Eastern Conference Final, with the winner earning a chance to play for the Stanley Cup. This best-of-seven ECF series is set to begin on Thursday in Raleigh.
Carolina has opened as considerable favorites in the NHL Conference Final odds after dismantling New Jersey in Round 2 of the postseason. The Panthers are offered as underdogs despite the team continuing its remarkable run by defeating Toronto in Round 2.
Let’s analyze the Hurricanes vs Panthers odds, preview the series and offer our official prediction.
Hurricanes vs Panthers Series Odds
| Team | Moneyline |
|---|---|
| Carolina Hurricanes | -140 |
| Florida Panthers | +120 |
The Hurricanes are listed at -140 moneyline favorite to win the Eastern Conference Final, meaning they have 58.3% implied win probability. The Panthers come back at +120 underdogs, meaning they have 45.6% implied win probability.
Considering the Canes are favored to advance, it also makes sense that they have better odds to win Lord Stanley. Carolina is the new favorite in the 2023 Stanley Cup odds at +235, while the Panthers are +350.
Odds as of May 12th at DraftKings Sportsbook.
When it comes to the series schedule, the NHL has announced the ECF will begin Thursday, with TNT broadcasting the action. Game 2 will be Saturday night. Carolina holds home-ice advantage as the higher seed, so Games 1-2 will be played at PNC Arena.
Hurricanes Decimate Devils
The Carolina Hurricanes punched their ticket to the Eastern Conference Final by defeating the New Jersey Devils in Round 2. Carolina eliminated New Jersey with a 3-2 overtime win in Game 5 on Thursday, meaning they’ll be the most-rested team in the Conference Finals.
The Hurricanes have been super impressive this postseason despite missing several key players. Star forwards Andrei Svechnikov and Max Pacioretty haven’t played in the playoffs due to injury, while Teuvo Teravainen hasn’t played since Game 2 against the New York Islanders.
The Hurricanes are led by Sebastian Aho, who has scored five goals and five assists in 11 postseason contests. The breakout star for the Canes is Jordan Martinook, who has registered three goals and seven assists in this postseason. Jesper Fast has also been an unsung hero with five goals.
In the goaltending crease, the Hurricanes have been getting reliable goaltending from ex-Leaf Frederik Andersen. In five postseason contests, Andersen is 5-0 with a 1.80 GAA and .931 save percentage. Antti Raanta has also made five appearances, posting a 2.59 GAA and .906 save percentage.
The Canes are arguably the best defensive team remaining in the playoffs. They are only allowing 27.8 shots per game while sporting a 90% penalty kill, both of which rank first among remaining playoff teams. Carolina’s top defensive pairing of Brent Burns and Jaccob Slavin has only been on the ice for three goals against.
Panthers Take Out Maple Leafs
The Florida Panthers advanced to the Eastern Conference Final by defeating the Toronto Maple Leafs in Round 2. Florida required only five games to eliminate the Maple Leafs after upsetting the No. 1 Boston Bruins in seven games during the opening round.
The Panthers are led by Matthew Tkachuk, who has notched five goals and 11 assists in 11 postseason contests. The ex-Flames recently earned a Hart Trophy nomination for an incredible regular season that saw him record a career-high 109 points.
A gamer. 👏 pic.twitter.com/uNI5dLwVx2
— Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) May 12, 2023
Aside from Tkachuk, the other big storyline for Florida has been the play of goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. The two-time Vezina winner has started nine straight games for Florida after opening the postseason as the backup to Alex Lyon. In nine 2023 playoff starts, Bobrosvky is 7-2-0 with a .910 save percentage.
The Panthers feature one of the more explosive offenses in the NHL Playoffs, with nine different players having scored multiple goals. Their breakout star is defenseman Brandon Montour, who has followed up an excellent regular season by scoring six goals in 11 postseason contests.
Hurricanes-Panthers Recent Head-to-Head History
When it comes to Hurricanes-Panthers history, one team has an edge. The Hurricanes went 2-1-0 against the Panthers during the regular season, including winning 6-4 in the most recent meeting on April 13th. Going back to 2021, however, the Canes have only taken eight of 14 meetings.
Carolina vs Florida Results
| Date | Home-Away | Moneyline | Puck Line | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04/13/2023 | FLA 4 – CAR 6 | CAR | CAR | Over |
| 12/31/2022 | CAR 4 – FLA 0 | CAR | CAR | Under |
| 11/09/2022 | FLA 3 – CAR 0 | FLA | FLA | Under |
| 02/16/2022 | CAR 2 – FLA 3 (OT) | FLA | FLA | Under |
| 01/08/2022 | CAR 3 – FLA 4 (OT) | FLA | FLA | Over |
What’s interesting to note is that Florida’s red-hot goalie Sergei Bobrovsky did not play against the Hurricanes during the regular season. Canes netminder Frederik Andersen, however, did play in the most recent meeting, making 30 saves in the 6-4 win.
This will be the first-ever playoff meeting between Carolina and Florida. Top performers to watch include Carolina blueliner Brent Burns, who had two goals and two assists against Florida during the regular. On the Florida side, rearguard Brandon Montour had three assists against the Canes during the regular season.
Hurricanes vs Panthers Series Prediction
Florida is enjoying a remarkable Cinderella run, but they’re about to run into a true powerhouse. The Hurricanes hold a matchup edge in almost every major category, although the Panthers have been defying the odds all postseason.
Hurricanes vs Panthers Head-to-Head Stats
| 2-1-0 | Head-To-Head | 1-2-0 |
| 52-21-9 | NHL Regular Season Record | 42-32-8 |
| 3.64 | Goals For/GP | 3.36 |
| 2.55 | Goals Against/GP | 3.18 |
| 18.9% | Power Play | 25.9% |
| 90% | Penalty Kill | 63.9% |
| 53.6% | Corsi Percentage | 49.4% |
Florida has one of the better power plays in these playoffs, but it might not matter much against Carolina’s excellent penalty kill. On the flip side, the Hurricanes have the offensive weapons to exploit Florida’s lackluster PK, which is only operating at 63.9%.
The Florida underdog value rests on Sergei Bobrovsky continuing his superb play from his 2013 Vezina days. But Carolina’s Andersen is also locked in, and the Canes surrender far fewer scoring chances. Take Carolina to keep rolling and advance to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2006.
Pick: Hurricanes Series Moneyline (-140)
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Lead NHL & NCAAF Editor
Brady is the lead NHL and College Football editor at Sports Betting Dime, where he specializes in betting odds and data-driven analysis. Brady has over 10 years experience working in sports media, with work published by outlets such as ESPN, CBS Sports, Yahoo! Sports and Fox Sports.
