May 18, 2025, 10:22 PM ET
TORONTO — A three-goal second period broke open a tight game, quieted a raucous crowd at Scotiabank Arena, and powered the Florida Panthers past the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-1 in Game 7 of this Eastern Conference semifinal series on Sunday night.
Though it wasn’t the typical marquee names you see on the Florida scoresheet, Seth Jones, Anton Lundell and Jonah Gadjovich combined for those tallies, giving the Stanley Cup-champion Panthers a 3-0 lead headed into the third period. It was plenty of room for Florida to shut the door in the third period and seal a berth in the Eastern Conference finals for the third consecutive season. Florida will take on the Carolina Hurricanes in Round 3 beginning Tuesday.
The Maple Leafs, 2-0 winners in Game 6 Friday night in Sunrise, Florida, could not find enough time and space to operate in the Panthers’ zone. With 10 minutes left in regulation, Toronto had just 14 shots on net, with its season on the line, as boos rained down from the capacity crowd.
Eetu Luostarinen and Sam Reinhart chipped in with third-period goals for Florida, giving the champions a 5-1 lead after Toronto’s Max Domi scored at 2:07 of the final frame to briefly give the home team hope. Florida’s Brad Marchand added an empty-net goal to conclude the scoring.
“We’re excited about the opportunity,” Marchand said during the game broadcast on SportsNet. “We’re having fun, enjoying the moment, that’s all you can do. You don’t get a second chance at these opportunities. You just have to embrace and enjoy it.”
Goaltender Joseph Woll, who authored the shutout in Sunrise on Friday, struggled at home, looking out of position on several Florida goals. Anthony Stolarz, Toronto’s regular starter who had been sidelined since Game 1 with an undisclosed injury, was active and on the bench as Toronto’s backup for Game 7, but he was not called upon.
Florida goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky was much sharper on the other end of the ice, allowing only Domi’s goal off a wrist shot on a clean entry into the zone. Bobrovsky, who has started every postseason game for the Panthers this season, was playing in his first Game 7 since he led the Panthers to the Stanley Cup last June with a victory over the Edmonton Oilers in the series’ last game.
Jones, in his first season with Florida and seeking his first shot at the Stanley Cup, opened the scoring with his third goal of the postseason.
“I’m just happy with the situation I’m in,” Jones said on TNT’s postgame show. “Hopefully, my game can grow, and I’m just trying to bring what I can to the table with this team. I’m playing with a lot of great players, and these guys know what it takes to win.”
The game was delayed in the second period, just before Florida’s goal-scoring spree, after referee Chris Rooney, widely considered to be one of the top officials in the NHL, was bloodied and had to leave. The longtime referee was hit by an inadvertent stick to the face.
The play happened 13 seconds into the second period, when Florida’s Niko Mikkola was jousting for the puck and his stick went into Rooney’s face. Rooney skated off with some assistance and with a towel covering much of his face as he was brought to the locker room area for further evaluation and treatment.
The NHL has stand-by officials at playoff games, and Garrett Rank took over as one of the two referees following Rooney’s injury, joining a crew that also included referee Jean Hebert and linespersons Devin Berg and Jonny Murray.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
