The conference final round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs has been established following a decisive Game 7 contest between the Florida Panthers and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Panthers continued their quest for consecutive Stanley Cup victories by emerging victorious with a commanding 6-1 win against the Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. Florida is now set to face the Carolina Hurricanes, with a spot in the Stanley Cup Final on the line.

The upcoming playoff schedule features the following matchups: Eastern Conference Game 1 between the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday, May 20, at 8 p.m. ET; Game 2 on the same date and time; Game 3 will take place on Thursday, May 22, at 8 p.m. ET; Game 4 on Saturday, May 24, at 8 p.m. ET; and the potential Game 5 on Monday, May 26, at 8 p.m. ET, followed by Game 6 on Friday, May 30, and a possible Game 7 on Sunday, June 1. In the Western Conference, the Edmonton Oilers will compete against the Dallas Stars, with their Game 1 scheduled for Wednesday, May 21, at 8 p.m. ET.

In the Game 7 matchup, both teams remained scoreless after the first period, but the Panthers displayed early aggression, accumulating 20 shot attempts within the first six minutes compared to zero for the Maple Leafs. A crucial moment for Toronto came when William Nylander had an opportunity to score, but Florida's goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky successfully thwarted the effort. The tension escalated as referee Chris Rooney was forced to exit the game after an accidental high stick incident. The Panthers broke the deadlock in the second period when Seth Jones scored off a pass from Evan Rodrigues, followed by Anton Lundell capitalizing on a rebound to increase Florida's lead to 2-0. Subsequently, Jonah Gadjovich added to the lead with a goal that pushed the advantage to 3-0. Although Max Domi provided a brief glimmer of hope for the Maple Leafs by scoring early in the third period, a quick response from Eetu Luostarinen restored Florida's three-goal cushion. The Panthers asserted their dominance with Sam Reinhart scoring shortly after and an empty-net goal from Brad Marchand, finalizing the game at 6-1. This defeat leaves the Maple Leafs still seeking their first conference final appearance since 2002.