The Florida Panthers have a 2-0 series lead over the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final. And on Saturday night, they extended this to a 3-0 series lead in Game 3. Unfortunately, they lost defenseman Niko Mikkola after the blueliner turned in an incredible offensive performance.

Mikkola scored twice against the Hurricanes on Saturday night. But he suffered an injury in the third period. He appeared to lose his footing as he skated toward the boards. Mikkola collided with the boards shoulder first. The Panthers defenseman left the game on Saturday night. Florida went on to defeat the Hurricanes by a score of 6-2 on Saturday night.

The Panthers are now one game away from returning to the Stanley Cup Final. Carolina, meanwhile, has lost 15 straight games in the Eastern Conference Final. Their last win in the East Final came back in 2006. The Hurricanes went on to win the Stanley Cup that season over the Edmonton Oilers.

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Panthers come alive in 3rd period of Game 3

The Panthers and Hurricanes played a rather close game on Saturday night. At least, the first two periods were close. In fact, they entered the third period with the score tied 1-1. However, the Hurricanes fell apart in the third period on Saturday night.

Florida started the scoring early thanks to depth forward Jesper Boqvist. The Panthers forward made it 2-1 within 90 seconds of the third. Florida struck again five minutes later when Mikkola scored his second of the game. About 30 seconds later, Aleksandar Barkov made it a 3-1 game.

From there, things got out of hand for the Hurricanes. Barkov scored again before Brad Marchand made it 5-1 in the third period. The Hurricanes scored again, but it did not make a difference. The Hurricanes now face elimination when the teams take the ice again for Game 4 on Monday night in Raleigh, North Carolina.