The Florida Panthers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-3 to clinch a third straight trip to the Stanley Cup Final. Matthew Tkachuk opened the scoring for Florida and picked up another assist in the comeback win. Since Tkachuk joined the fold in 2022, Florida has made the Cup Final in each season. He spoke about the Panthers' mindset after clinching their third straight Eastern Conference title.

“I remember a few years ago, it felt like such an accomplishment from where we were at one point,” Tkachuk said after the win to The Athletic's Michael Russo. “It’s all business, and we’ve got a bigger goal in mind. It’s not our first rodeo with this.”

Tkachuk came over from the Calgary Flames in an offseason trade after a massive disappointment in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. After finishing with 122 points, they lost in the second round to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Their biggest rivals then went to their third straight Stanley Cup Final. Then, the Tkachuk trade went down, and everything changed.

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Since then, the Panthers have won the East every year, beating Tampa twice along the way. They lost in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final to the Vegas Golden Knights and then won Game 7 against the Edmonton Oilers last year. Tkachuk has been key in every series, even when he's playing through an injury.

Tkachuk did not play a single regular-season game for the Panthers after the 4 Nations Face-Off. He was a game-time decision for Game 1 of the playoffs, but did play against the Lightning. With 16 points in 17 games, he ranks second in scoring on the Panthers.

Now, the Panthers await the winner of the Western Conference Final. Just like last year, the Edmonton Oilers have the Dallas Stars on the brink. If Edmonton wins, it will be the first Cup Final rematch since 2008 and 2009, when the Red Wings and the Penguins split consecutive titles.