Penrith tuned up for their best tilt at a premiership since 2003 with a final-round NRL mauling of Canterbury at ANZ Stadium.
The Panthers made it 15 wins on the fly, putting the finishing touches on a sublime regular season with a 42-0 victory.
The clash was marred by a 15th-minute incident involving Bulldogs prop Luke Thompson, who was put on report for an alleged eye gouge on Penrith opposite James Tamou.
Tamou seemed non-plussed by the incident, telling Fox Sports at halftime: "I don't think there was much in it."
Already assured the minor premiership and seemingly with little to play for, the Panthers rested Dylan Edwards, Viliame Kikau and Stephen Crichton for the clash.
They started the match accordingly.
But after a sleepy first half hour, where they were lucky to be up 4-0 through Brian To'o, the Panthers turned on the attack to savage the opposition with a three-try burst in eight minutes before the break.
A neat kick by Jerome Luai got the ball rolling for the Panthers as second rower Kurt Capewell muscled over to help make it 10-0 in the 31st minute.
Classy five-eighth Luai was pulling the strings just five minutes later when he pierced two defenders before linking up with Brent Naden on the inside to make it 14-0.
And, after Naden turned provider with a banana kick for Capewell to get his double, the irresistible Panthers found themselves with the match in hand at 22-0 by the break.
The rot continued after halftime as Naden scored his second and the Panthers also laid on tries to Tamou, Josh Mansour and Matt Burton.
They also kept their tryline - and record as the competition's best defensive team - intact.
It was a disappointing finale in a forgettable season for the Bulldogs, who the previous week had shown plenty of spirit in an upset win over finals-bound South Sydney.
That victory effectively helped them to avoid the wooden spoon, the 'Dogs finishing on just three wins with Brisbane but maintaining a superior for and against.
The Panthers will play the fourth-placed team in week one of the finals.