Hurricanes Advance to Second Round With Win in 2OT

The Carolina Hurricanes are the first team to advance to the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Apr 29, 2025; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho (20) celebrates his goal against the New Jersey Devils during the second period in game five of the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-Imagn Images / James Guillory-Imagn Images

With a hard-fought overtime win in Game 5, the Carolina Hurricanes are the first team to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Hurricanes appeared to be on the ropes in Game 5 against the New Jersey Devils, but they battled back to knot the game, eventually forcing a 4-4 score through regulation. One overtime wasn't enough, either as the Hurricanes and Devils remained tied after the first overtime period.

Sebastian Aho served as the hero for the Hurricanes, though, sealing the series win over the Devils. The Hurricanes double OT winner was also their first playoff overtime win in six tries.

NO QUIT IN CAROLINA pic.twitter.com/iOoeQZOfoE

— x - Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) April 30, 2025

The Hurricanes entered Game 5 without star goalie Frederik Andersen, who has been ruled out on a day-to-day basis. Pyotr Kochetkov stepped up in a big way making 27 saves on 31 shots through regulation and adding four more in the overtime frames.

The Hurricanes battled back from a three-goal deficit in the first half of the game, then dominated the overtime frame. Devils' goalie Jacob Markstrom put on a show to keep his team in the game, making huge saves through the back half of regulation and overtime, but he just couldn’t do it all himself.

Entering the 2024-25 regular season, the Devils appeared to be the sneaky choice to win the Stanley Cup, but huge injuries towards the end of the year derailed their chances. Jack Hughes has been out since early March, his brother Luke Hughes, Brenden Dillon, and Jonathan Kovacevic were all injured over the course of the series.

The Hurricanes might struggle moving forward if they don’t get Andersen back soon.

As the first team to advance, the Hurricanes now wait to see who their next opponent will be. The Hurricanes will take on the winner of the Washington Capitals and Montreal Canadiens. The Capitals currently have a 3-1 series lead and will look to close out the series in short order.

The Hurricanes have a deep roster that they hope can finally get them over the postseason hump as they look to contend for the Stanley Cup.

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