Hurricanes advance to Stanley Cup Final for the first time in 20 years

[p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/carolina-hurricanes/Sx0gl0tm/"]Carolina[/a] now improves to 10-0 all-time when leading 3-1 in a best-of-seven playoff series.[/p][p]Goaltender [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/andersen-frederik/OhFcnMIJ/"]Frederik Andersen[/a], who will now be playing in his first Stanley Cup Final, has now given up two or fewer goals in 12 of his 13 starts this postseason, including three shutouts.[/p][p]He finished Game 5 against the Habs with 23 saves, the most against them the entire series, and allowed just five goals all series.[/p][p]Meanwhile, Montreal's season comes to an end after winning back-to-back Game 7s entering the Eastern Conference Final. [/p][p]Carolina will now face the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/vegas-golden-knights/fTT0TsUg/"]Vegas Golden Knights[/a] in the 2026 Stanley Cup Final, with Game 1 scheduled for Tuesday, June 2nd. [/p][embed guid="71179d1b-7043-4f72-8fdb-098c3cd30a3e" url="https://x.com/NHL/status/2060553802491580842?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][h2]Recap & Highlights[/h2][p]Following an unsuccessful challenge from the Habs for goaltender interference, [b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/hall-taylor/4dK9PWLO/"]Taylor Hall[/a]'s fifth goal of the postseason put the Canes up [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/hockey/carolina-hurricanes-Sx0gl0tm/montreal-canadiens-nu2G7VWc/?mid=GtVNHKBs"]1-0[/a] almost halfway through the first period. [/b][/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/stankoven-logan/Mqmoc3L5/"]Logan Stankoven[/a] (2) and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/blake-jackson/8KcAGWiG/"]Jackson Blake[/a] (10) recorded the assists. [/p][p]Carolina improved to 6-0 all-time in series-clinching games when they score first as the home team. [/p][embed guid="c4e11a59-5562-4a65-8a5e-5e754adf4c84" url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OADQzkKRJqU" social-type="youtube" /][p]Six minutes later, the Canes doubled their lead on their 13th shot on goal for the first period - [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/montreal-canadiens/nu2G7VWc/"]Montreal[/a] had yet to put up more than three at this point. [/p][p][b]Stankoven scored his ninth goal of the postseason following his assist on Hall's to make it a [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/hockey/carolina-hurricanes-Sx0gl0tm/montreal-canadiens-nu2G7VWc/?mid=GtVNHKBs"]2-0[/a] game. [/b][/p][p]Hall returned the favor with his 10th assist, along with [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/nikishin-alexander/vy8C6iYL/"]Alexander Nikishin[/a], who recorded his first. [/p][embed guid="d160b5c1-cdd8-46a0-b803-294e775eb503" url="https://x.com/NHL/status/2060524729795018916?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]It would take less than two minutes afterward for the Canes to put the game out of reach with their third goal before the end of the first period. [/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/robinson-eric/GGRRCXMA/"]Eric Robinson[/a] scored his third goal of the postseason, with [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/carrier-william/QuO6wQoc/"]William Carrier[/a] recording his third assist. [/b][/p][p]This made it back-to-back games where the Canes scored three goals in the first period. They entered the first intermission outshooting Montreal 15-4 and outhitting them 10-5.[/p][embed guid="92e6d98a-175e-41bb-9e64-165038a3ca9c" url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNlrntbf1Gc&pp=0gcJCR4LAYcqIYzv" social-type="youtube" /][p]Coming out of the lockerooms for the second period didn't prove to be any better for the Canadiens, who were just completely outmatched on all fronts. [/p][p][b]After assisting Hall on the first goal of the game, Blake scored his fifth of the postseason off the rebound to put the Canes up [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/hockey/carolina-hurricanes-Sx0gl0tm/montreal-canadiens-nu2G7VWc/?mid=GtVNHKBs"]4-0[/a] almost halfway through the second. [/b][/p][p]Both Hall (11) and Stankoven (3) recorded the assists for the 22-year-old as the game had been all but finished at that point. [/p][embed guid="15abbade-dc34-4e50-978a-ca680a79a851" url="https://x.com/NHL/status/2060533943229636977?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]On their fourth power play of the night, the Hurricanes would rub some more salt in the wound. [/p][p][b]This time around, it was [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/gostisbehere-shayne/lxn7aGs1/"]Shayne Gostisbehere[/a] who got the Canes on the board for their fifth goal of the night with his second of the postseason. [/b][/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/jarvis-seth/WpekldsE/"]Seth Jarvis[/a] (5) and Game 2 hero [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ehlers-nikolaj/YJ2gELK1/"]Nikolaj Ehlers[/a] (5) both picked up the assists.[/p][embed guid="5607bbdb-3f71-4cd3-86dd-65092db3900a" url="https://x.com/Canes/status/2060540574457827408?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]Montreal finally got on the board with a late [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/caufield-cole/OMWDW69Q/"]Cole Caufield[/a] goal, his sixth of the postseason, during their fifth power play of the game[/b], but the Canes rode the big lead to victory through the third as they will now take on the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Final. [/p][p][b]Seth Jarvis scored his third of the postseason on the empty net to make it 6-1 before the game concluded.[/b][/p][p]It is the Canes' first appearance since 2006, their lone Cup win. Meanwhile, it'll be the Knights' third appearance in their young nine-year history. [/p][p]Game 1 of the 2026 Stanley Cup Final between the Hurricanes and Golden Knights will take place on June 2nd. [/p][embed guid="39c4e7f4-ef4d-4efa-8320-76631530f17c" url="https://x.com/NHL/status/2060554155882659950?s=20" social-type="twitter" /]