The Lightning were looking for momentum as they returned to home ice but instead were dealt another close tilt, falling 5-3 to the Panthers in Game 3 on Thursday.
The Bolts had their first lead of the Round 1 series after they scored a pair of goals in the first three minutes of the second period. The boys in blue fed off the momentum of the crowd, but the Panthers' goaltending of Sergei Bobrovsky kept them from adding to their lead.
Tampa Bay had one last surge of hope after a goal from Nick Paul got them within one in the third, but were unable to grab their first win of the series.
The series continues with Game 4 on Saturday at 5pm.
Scoring Summary
1st Period
FLA 1, TBL 0
10:39 Matthew Tkachuck (2) - Anton Lundell, Carter Verhaeghe
Carter Verhaghe backhanded the puck to Anton Lundell before he skated it behind the Bolts' crease. The Panthers center tossed the puck up to Tkachuck who was approaching the crease where he was able to snipe it over blocker-side of Andrei Vasilevskiy to open up the scoring.
2nd Period
FLA 1, TBL 1
0:44 Steven Stamkos (3) - Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov
Victor Hedman grabbed a rebound from the left point and fired the puck towards the Panthers' crease. Steven Stamkos was standing in the blue and redirected Hedman's shot to beat Sergei Bobrovsky.
TBL 2, FLA 1
2:56 Tyler Motte (1) - Tanner Jeannot
Tyler Motte gave the Bolts their first lead of their series with the Cats. Tanner Jeannot kept the puck alive in the Panthers' zone and played it towards the slot. Motte gathered it at the far wall and over skated Nick Cousins to get a shot on goal, hitting Florida's twine.
TBL 2, FLA 2
9:58 Sam Reinhart (2) - Vladimir Tarasenko, Brandon Montour
Brandon Montour gathered a rebound at the blue line and crossed it to Vladimir Tarasenko. Tarasenko found the tape of Sam Reinhart at the right point where he fired one over the glove of Andrei Vasilevskiy.
FLA 3, TBL 2
16:30 Brandon Montour (1) - Steven Lorentz, Kyle Okposo
The puck was spit out to Steven Lorentz after a battle along the boards. Lorentz quickly played the puck to Brandon Montour at the blue line where he hammered a one-timer to reach the back of the net.
3rd Period
FLA 4, TBL 2
Steven Lorentz (1) - Nick Cousins, Gustav Forsling
Along the boards, Nick Cousins played the puck loose to Steve Lorentz in the bumper. Lorentz fought off Tampa Bay defensemen to chip the puck over the shoulder of Vasilevskiy.
FLA 4, TBL 3
14:50 Nick Paul (1) - Anthony Duclair, Erik Cernak
Erik Cernak kept the play alive in the attack zone along the boards before he dropped it to Anthony Duclair. Duclair found the tape of Nick Paul at the high slot where his quick release hit the back of the Panthers' net.
FLA 5, TBL 3
19:28 Matthew Tkachuk (3) - Carter Verhaeghe
The Lightning pulled Andrei Vasilevskiy for the extra attacker with over a minute left in regulation. Matthew Tkachuck grabbed a bouncing puck from Brandon Hagel skated it into the Bolts' zone to reach the empty net.
