Rachel Barkley
With the Carolina Hurricanes’ historic sweep over the Philadelphia Flyers, they earned themselves a spot in the Eastern Conference Final for the third time in four years. However, as they look at potentially 10 days off straight, it leaves time to wonder and contemplate whether they have what it takes to make the push past the round they’ve gone 1-16 in for the past 15 years.
So, what makes this Hurricanes team so special, and why does this postseason campaign feel…different?
The Hurricanes Have a Strong Sense of Identity, Experience, and Chemistry
This isn’t the Hurricanes’ first rodeo in the ECF; it is the third time in four years that they have made it this far. However, in their previous two shots, they were stonewalled by the Florida Panthers, with the first time against them having been all one-goal games, and the second having been a complete outplaying by their rivals from the Sunshine State.
The Panthers had little experience in that 2023 series and fell to the Vegas Golden Knights in five games in the Stanley Cup Final. But in the 2025 series, the Panthers already had a Cup to their name – they knew who they were.
The Hurricanes, however, did not yet know themselves.
The summer and season had brought significant change with the departure of seven core players between free agency and the Mikko Rantanen debacle. They had managed to play their game throughout the first two rounds, but upon clashing once more with the Panthers, their style quickly fell apart as they tried to emulate their opponent – forsaking their bread and butter in puck management and grinding to instead focus on physicality and finishing hits, something they weren’t especially proficient in at the time. Taylor Hall, who had only been on the team for a short time, described it best as ‘not dancing with the girl they brought’.
Since then, however, they have polished up on their physical nature while putting a heavy focus on adaptation without casting aside their own unique playing style – their hard-working team identity. There were few changes made throughout the latest free agency and trade deadline, allowing a stronger chemistry to build without the shakeups previously experienced.
As for experience, all main players except for Brandon Bussi have been on teams that have gone to conference finals. Even the two young guns of Carolina, 23-year-old Logan Stankoven and 22-year-old Jackson Blake, have notable experience at this stage of the postseason, with Stankoven having experienced the conference finals in the two latest postseasons (his only seasons in the NHL), and Blake having experienced it last season.
“The culture and the group we have this year, it’s another level, I think, from even last year,” Blake said after his series-clinching overtime goal against the Flyers. “I think last year we had a great group, and we were really tight-knit, but this year it just feels a little different. I don’t know what it is, but I like the way we’re rolling.”
Generally speaking, whether the Hurricanes will face the Buffalo Sabres or Montreal Canadiens, they should have the upper-hand in the two aspects of experience and identity – having recently been in this spot before, and having identified how they want to play and worked to meet those goals throughout season.
Contributions From Top to Bottom
The Hurricanes have had a theme this season with a ragged ol’ rope given to the player who dug in the hardest after each victory, selected by the player who was given it the win before – a metaphor to signify every man pulling their weight towards one unified goal. Truly, it has been a great example of how the team has operated in both the regular season and playoffs.
Currently, Carolina’s scoring leaders have not been Sebastian Aho’s first line, but rather Stankoven’s second line, followed by a pretty even distribution of goals and assists down the lineup. Depth players have been stepping up to the challenge, making matchups harder for opposing coaches to strategize to shut down scoring chances.
It has been incredibly similar to the 2023 Playoff Hurricanes, which also bore a heavy reliance on secondary scoring, and was their best of the two recent appearances in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Rest is a Huge Factor
Let’s be honest…no one foresaw the Hurricanes sweeping not just the first round, but the second round, as well. With that, they have only played eight games total this postseason compared to the average 12 that a team plays through two rounds. Less games played, less opportunities for early playoff injuries – something the Hurricanes have suffered in recent postseasons.
Clearly, the rest achieved by the consecutive sweeps is a luxury that the Hurricanes have not had in the past, and furthermore, is one their opponent will certainly lack.
Nonetheless, rest versus rust will always remain as a hotly debated topic – the go-to reason for any boon or bane after gameless stretches. However, for goaltender Frederik Andersen – who has been one of the best goalies of the postseason – rest has proven time and again to benefit his performances in the past, and the Hurricanes will need him at the top of his game against whichever powerhouse comes out of the Sabres-Canadiens series.
Time will only tell which way the Eastern Conference Final will go – whether the Hurricanes can finally break past it, or if the semi-finals curse will continue. Nonetheless, they have their best chance in a long time.
