The Florida Panthers eliminated the Washington Capitals with a 4-3 overtime victory in Game 6 on Friday and secured their first series win in 26 years.
Carter Verhaeghe scored the winner at the 2:46 mark of the extra frame to end the club's lengthy postseason drought. The Panthers had lost six consecutive first-round series after reaching the Stanley Cup Final in 1996.
VERHAEGHE IN OVERTIME! Carter Verhaeghe cuts to the net and buries Giroux's lovely centering pass, ending the series for Florida with their first series win since 1996!#TimeToHunt 4 - 3 #ALLCAPS
— Hockey Daily 365 (@HockeyDaily365) May 14, 2022
(FLA Wins Series in 6) pic.twitter.com/RtMWztLlL1
Verhaeghe had a massive series, posting six assists and six goals, including two overtime winners.
The Presidents' Trophy-winning Panthers trailed the series 2-1 but won three straight - all in comeback fashion - to seal it. Florida will play the winner of Saturday's Game 7 between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning in the second round. As the top seed in the conference, Florida has home-ice advantage regardless of its opponent.
Game 6 was a dramatic affair. The Capitals led 2-1 in the third period before Claude Giroux and Aleksander Barkov scored consecutive goals to give Florida the lead with just over five minutes left in regulation. However, T.J. Oshie scored on a mad scramble in front of Sergei Bobrovsky with 1:03 remaining to send the game to overtime.
