ESPN staffMay 15, 2025, 07:00 AM ET
The second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs has reached the point where elimination games will be played every night. Thursday night, it's an elimination doubleheader.
First up are the Washington Capitals, down 3-1 and hosting the Carolina Hurricanes (7 p.m. ET, TNT). In the nightcap, the Winnipeg Jets are in a similar scenario, down 3-1 at home hosting the Dallas Stars (9:30 p.m. ET, TNT).
Will either team force a Game 6?
Read on for game previews with statistical insights from ESPN Research, a recap of what went down in Wednesday's games and the Three Stars of Wednesday from Arda Öcal.
Matchup notes
Carolina Hurricanes at Washington Capitals
Game 5 | 7 p.m. ET | TNT
Leading 3-1 heading into this game, the Hurricanes are -4000 to win the series, per ESPN BET, while the Caps are +1300. The Canes have the third shortest odds to win the Cup (+325), while the Caps have the longest (+7500).
The Canes are 8-0 in best-of-seven series in which they held a 3-1 lead; in Stanley Cup playoff history at large, teams that hold a 3-1 lead have gone on to win 91% of the time.
Carolina's Frederik Andersen had a 21-save shutout in Game 3, then didn't allow a goal until the third period of Game 4. His shutout streak ended at 123:24, which was fifth longest in Whalers/Hurricanes franchise history.
Seth Jarvis' goal to make it 2-0 Hurricanes in Game 4 was the 16th of his postseason career, the most in franchise history for a player before his 24th birthday.
Alex Ovechkin has been somewhat quiet this round for Washington, but his power-play goal in Game 4 earned him higher positioning on two all-time lists. He now has 77 career postseason goals, putting him 12th all-time (breaking a tie with Mario Lemieux), and his 31 career power-play goals are now alone in fifth place all-time (breaking a tie with Nicklas Lidstrom and Joe Pavelski).
Dallas Stars at Winnipeg Jets
Game 5 | 9:30 p.m. ET | TNT
Following their Game 4 win, the Stars' odds to win the series shifted to -1200, while the Jets' are now +600. Dallas' Cup-winning odds shifted to +275, while Winnipeg's are now +4000.
In franchise history, the Stars have gone 13-1 in best-of-seven series when leading 3-1. Their lone series loss came as the Minnesota North Stars against the Detroit Red Wings in 1992.
Mikael Granlund's hat trick in the Stars' Game 4 win included two power-play goals. That made him the second player in North Stars/Stars history with two power-play goals as part of a hat trick -- Dino Ciccarelli accomplished the feat in 1982.
Dallas' Mikko Rantanen continues to dominate the postseason. He's atop the leaderboard for points (19) and goals (nine), and has the shortest odds to win the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP (+375).
With the Stars' Game 4 win, Jake Oettinger became the third goaltender in North Stars/Stars franchise history to win five straight home games to begin a postseason, joining Ed Belfour (six straight in 2000, five in 1999) and Cesare Maniago (five in 1968).
The Jets will be glad to play at home again. They have gone 0-5 on the road this postseason, and have been outscored 25-8.
Kyle Connor enters Game 5 one goal behind Paul Stastny (2018) for second on the single-postseason franchise goal-scoring leaderboard, with five. Mark Scheifele (14, in 2018) appears safe at No. 1 unless the Jets can rally to make the conference finals.
Öcal's Three Stars from Wednesday
1. Panthers defensemen
In addition to keeping the Maple Leafs at bay until it was too late it didn't really matter, three Cats defensemen scored goals in Game 5, tying franchise record for most in a single playoff game.
2. Kasperi Kapanen
RW, Edmonton Oilers
Kapanen scored the series-clinching goal in OT against the Golden Knights -- and was +4000 to do it, per ESPN BET. Fans of junior hockey will remember he also scored the golden goal in the 2016 IIHF world junior championship against Russia.
3. Florida scores by committee
An amazing 14 Panthers had one or more points in this game, which is the most in a single game in franchise history -- 12 Panthers had a point in Game 3 of this series.
Wednesday's recaps
Florida Panthers 6, Toronto Maple Leafs 1
FLA leads 3-2 | Game 6 Friday
While this series had previously been close, Game 5 was a one-sided affair. The Panthers were successfully keeping the Leafs from generating much offense, while also knocking on the offensive door themselves repeatedly. Aaron Ekblad finally broke the seal at 14:38 of the first after sustained pressure in the Toronto zone, and it was off to the races after that. Dmitry Kulikov, Jesper Boqvist and Niko Mikkola added goals in the second period, with A.J. Greer and Sam Bennett joining the party in the third. It was the first goal of the postseason for Kulikov, Boqvist, Mikkola and Greer. Nicholas Robertson would add a tally for the Leafs with just over a minute remaining, but that was far too little, far too late. The Panthers can put an end to this series at home in Game 6. Full recap.
0:28
A.J. Greer tucks home Panthers' 5th goal
A.J. Greer puts away the rebound to give the Panthers a 5-0 lead over the Maple Leafs.
Edmonton Oilers 1, Vegas Golden Knights 0 (OT
EDM wins 4-1, faces DAL or WPG next
Throughout this series, the Oilers' depth has shown up to help the scoring burden on the top stars; the same cannot be said for the Golden Knights' depth -- and Vegas' stars didn't have the greatest series either. For the second straight game, no Vegas player could solve Stuart Skinner in the Edmonton cage, which meant that the Oilers needed just one goal to take the W. It took 67:19 of playing time to find that goal, but Kasperi Kapanen scored the opportunistic game- and series-winning tally. It was the second career overtime game-winning goal for Kapanen (his first was in 2017, with the Maple Leafs). The Oilers are on to the Western Conference finals for the second straight year, and will take on the winner of the Dallas Stars-Winnipeg Jets series. Full recap.
0:53
Oilers call series after Kasperi Kapanen scores OT winner
Kasperi Kapanen somehow gets his stick on the puck last on a scramble in overtime as the Oilers clinch the series vs. the Golden Knights.
