SUNRISE, Fla. – The Florida Panthers would like to hit copy and paste.
Looking to build off a strong Game 1, the Panthers will try to take a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference First Round against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 2 on Tuesday.
Coming out hot on home ice, the Panthers surrendered just 19 shots on goal during a thrilling 3-2 win over their cross-state rival in Game 1 on Sunday at Amerant Bank Arena.
The goal for Game 2? More of the same.
“They’re going to hit the reset button over there and try to come out harder than they did last game,” Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues said. “We have to be ready to match that and prepare for that. On the same token, if we do what we did in Game 1 we’ll be pretty good.”
To no one’s surprise, Sam Reinhart, building off his 57-goal regular season, opened the scoring for the Panthers in Game 1 with a tip in the first period to make it 1-0. Later in the period, Brandon Hagel even the score for the Lightning when he buried a rebound to make it 1-1.
Following a scoreless second period – a 20-minute stretch that head coach Paul Maurice summed up as simply a “grinder” – the Panthers took the lead just 58 seconds into the third period when Carter Verhaeghe potted a filthy back-door dish from captain Aleksander Barkov on the power play to make it 2-1.
After the Lighting pulled goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy for the extra attacker late in regulation, Matthew Tkachuk extended the lead to 3-1 with an empty-net goal. Too little too late, the Lightning did eventually answer back when Steven Stamkos scored on a power play to make it 3-2 with 10 seconds left.
At 5-on-5, Florida finished with a 27-21 edge in scoring chances.
“That’s the game we’ve kind of been building all year,” Rodrigues said of the team’s relentless forecheck in the win. “That’s the game we expected to play come playoffs.”
Keeping the vibes going strong all game long was a crowd of 19,000-plus fans.
“We have amazing fans,” Panthers defenseman Gustav Forsling said of the crowd. “We want to use them. They’ve been awesome all year and we want to keep using them here.”
As you’d expect in the Battle of Florida, there was also no shortage of physical play.
By the time the final horn sounded, every single player on the ice had recorded at least one hit.
In the end, there were 116 total hits, with Tampa Bay having a slim 60-56 advantage.
“We want to hit and play physical, but at the same time we’ve got to be smart and not run out of position to make a hit,” Forsling said of the intensity. “I think we did a good job.”
After stopping 17 of 19 shots in Game 1 – including making five high-danger saves, per NaturalStatTrick.com – Sergei Bobrovsky will start again for the Panthers. In the opposing crease, Vasilevskiy, who stopped 25 of 27 shots in Game 1, is expected to go again as well.
The Panthers will be making one lineup change for Game 2 as Steven Lorentz will enter the action on the fourth line in place of Ryan Lomberg, who is out with an illness. In addition to hitting the ice in 38 games this season, Lorentz has 16 career playoff games under his belt as a member of the Carolina Hurricanes.
Standing 6-foot-4 and 216 points, the hefty forward brings size and speed to every shift.
“He’s getting his chance and he should be excited about it,” Maurice said.
As for the Lightning, they recalled defenseman Max Crozier from the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL on Monday. In 16 games in the NHL this season, the 24-year-old dished out two assists. While there’s no guarantee he’ll play tonight, it’s something to keep an eye on as Tampa Bay's back end looks to be a bit in flux.
Overall, the Panthers will once again be focused on playing stalwart defense when the puck drops.
“Our defense starts in the offensive zone when our forwards start forechecking,” Florida defenseman Dmitry Kulikov said. “Then it continues in the neutral zone and then in our zone. We defend as five guys all the time. No matter who it is, you’ve got to do your job.”
THEY SAID IT
“We came out the right way. We started off good, got the crowd with us and got a lot of energy. It was a lot of fun.” – Gustav Forsling on Game 1
“You just appreciate being on the same team. You just watch him and how hard he battles and stuff like that. It’s a joy to watch.” – Kevin Stenlund on Aleksander Barkov
“It was electric. When you came out you saw all the red sticks or whatever and all that red in the stands. It was so loud that you couldn’t hear anything other than fans screaming. That really got me going and everybody, for sure.” – Dmitry Kulikov on the atmosphere for Game 1
FIVE CATS STATS
- Florida holds an all-time series record of 5-1 when leading 1-0 in a playoff series.
- Aleksander Barkov led the Panthers with six hits in Game 1.
- The 19 shots allowed by the Panthers in Game 1 were a franchise playoff record.
- Carter Verhaeghe is Florida’s all-time leader in playoff goals with 16.
- Matthew Tkachuk has recorded 11 multi-point games in his playoff career.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Vladimir Tarasenko – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Evan Rodrigues
Nick Cousins – Kevin Stenlund – Steven Lorentz
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Brandon Montour
Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Dmitry Kulikov
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Anthony Stolarz
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
- April 12: F Wilmer Skoog signed to a one-year, two-way contract commencing in 2024-25
- April 12: F Oliver Okuliar signed to a one-year ELC commencing in 2024-25
- April 10: D Mikulas Hovorka signed to a two-year ELC commencing in 2024-25
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Tuesday, April 23 at 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Amerant Bank Arena – Sunrise, FL
TV & Streaming: ESPN2, ESPN+, Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports+
Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 92.1 WZZR (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 101.7 WCZR (Treasure Coast); SiriusXM Ch. 91 / App & Streaming 932; Panthers App
Tickets: Click Here
