Florida Panthers advance to Ea...

TORONTO — A second-period scoring blitz, another outstanding game in net for Sergei Brobrovsky and the Florida Panthers are back in the conference finals for the third straight season.

The Panthers blitzed the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-1 in Game 7 on May 18 and advance to face the Carolina Hurricanes in the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference finals. That series starts May 20 in Raleigh, N.C.

The Maple Leafs had hoped to give the home crowd something to cheer about after stunning the Panthers in Game 6 in Sunrise. But goals by Seth Jones, Anton Lundell and Jonah Gadjovich in the second period pretty much ended any thoughts of that.

The Maple Leafs, who once led the series 2-0 and had a 3-0 lead in Game 3, gave a flicker of hope on a goal by Max Domi early in the third period to cut the lead to two goals. But the Panthers quickly added two more goals as well as the final goal on an empty-netter by Brad Marchand with 3:03 remaining.

The Panthers took control in the second period, outshooting the Maple Leafs 17-5, wearing them down on the forecheck and pouring on pressure in waves.

Jones broke the seal 3:15 into the period, beating Joseph Woll with a quick wrist shot from the circle after jumping up on the rush. Lundell gave Florida a two-goal lead just over five minutes later by banging home the rebound of a blocked Eetu Luostarinen shot. Gadjovich completed the three-goal onslaught with 10:21 to go in the middle frame by potting home a feed from A.J. Greer.

Domi gave the Maple Leafs some life 2:07 into the third period — beating Bobrovsky five-hole with a quick snap shot — but it was short-lived. Luostarinen tipped home a Marchand one-timer 47 seconds later to restore Florida’s three-goal lead.

Sam Reinhart put the Panthers ahead 5-1 with a quick shot off a face-off win by Aleksander Barkov 9:24 into the third period. Marchand tacked on an empty-netter with 3:03 to go to put the game away.

Bobrovsky stopped 20 of the 21 shots in the victory to send Florida to the Eastern Conference final for the third year in a row.

Here are three takeaways from Florida’s Game 7 victory:

Panthers ride hot start, stick with it to win in dominating fashion

The Panthers were absolutely hounding the Maple Leafs to start the game.

Florida outshot the Toronto 7-0 in the first 10 minutes, holding Toronto without a shot attempt for the first 8:23. Even when the Maple Leafs provided some pushback, the Panthers stepped right back up and dominated even further.

The Panthers led 75-32 in shot attempts through the first two periods, finding a way around the Leafs defense that caved in to block 31 shots in Game 6. It took until the second period to break through with a goal, but they won the game by sticking to what works.

“I like how we kept our game right to the end,” Reinhart said. “We didn’t change anything, we were on our toes, our gap is tight and that’s how we have to play.”

Florida’s trade deadline acquisitions stepped up when it mattered

At this year’s trade deadline, general manager Bill Zito went all in and made blockbuster deals to bring in Jones and Marchand — and both of them lived up to the billing.

Jones scored a goal — and nearly scored another that was waved off for goaltender interference late in the second period — while Marchand added two assists, but their contributions went far beyond the scoresheet.

Marchand was crucial in establishing Florida’s heavy forecheck when they were suffocating the Leafs at both ends. Jones made his mark by jumping up on the rush from the back end and applying some pressure while holding the line strong defensively.

“It’s been a pretty easy transition,” Luostarinen said of Marchand's arrival. “Right away, when he came here, he was right with the guys, everybody welcomed him here. He brings a lot of energy every night. He is such an experienced guy and I enjoy playing with him.”

Panthers continue to get contributions from all over the lineup

The Panthers showed just how deep they were in Game 7, getting goals from three of their forward lines and from their back end.

To win a championship, you need to be deep, and Florida embodies that as it heads to its third consecutive Eastern Conference final. The Panthers have gotten goals from 17 different players and goals from 22 of the 23 skaters who have played in a playoff game this year.

Florida won this series without Matthew Tkachuk scoring a goal. It’s telling when you can grind down a team in a Game 7 without your top playoff performer factoring into the offense much at all.

The Panthers will need more of this going into their series with Carolina if Tkachuk is still hampered by his injury.

”The guys are unbelievable,” Bobrovsky said. “We came back from a 2-0 deficit in games in this series, so it takes a lot of character. Everybody pulls the rope in the same direction and it’s fun to be part of.”

Panthers-Hurricanes series set

The full Eastern Conference Final schedule is below:

*Game 1 – Tuesday, May 20 | Florida Panthers at Carolina Hurricanes | 8 p.m. | Lenovo Center | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS

*Game 2 – Thursday, May 22 | Florida Panthers at Carolina Hurricanes | 8 p.m. | Lenovo Center | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS

*Game 3 – Saturday, May 24 | Florida Panthers vs. Carolina Hurricanes | 8 p.m. | Amerant Bank Arena | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS

*Game 4 – Monday, May 26 | Florida Panthers vs. Carolina Hurricanes | 8 p.m. | Amerant Bank Arena | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS

*Game 5 – Wednesday, May 28 | Florida Panthers at Carolina Hurricanes | 8 p.m. | Lenovo Center | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS

*Game 6 – Friday, May 30 | Florida Panthers vs. Carolina Hurricanes | 8 p.m. | Amerant Bank Arena | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS

*Game 7 – Sunday, June 1 | Florida Panthers at Carolina Hurricanes | 8 p.m. | Lenovo Center | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS