There were four lead changes in a game for the fourth time in NHL playoff history. There were 17 penalties totaling 34 minutes, including five matching minors creating 4-on-4 situations. The Lightning got off 40 shots, with Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky stopping 35. Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy also made 35 saves, but he faced one fewer shot.
"Very intense game," Panthers coach Joel Quenneville said.
Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov scored two goals and had an assist, all on the power play, in his first game in seven and a half months. Kucherov didn't play the entire regular season while recovering from hip surgery he had Dec. 29.
Cooper said the Lightning initially didn't expect him back until maybe the second round, if that.
In Game 1, he fired in two one-timers from the right circle off passes from defenseman Victor Hedman (three assists) and delivered a one-timer pass from the right circle to Point for the game-tying goal at 13:00 of the third.
The difference he made was not only noticeable, it was tangible.
"To sit out that long and have a repair and go through all that rehab and come out tonight in a very fast and physical game and perform the way he did, it's incredible," Point said. "But he's a world-class player and we're just happy to have him back."
The Panthers came out intent on being physical. They generated 20 hits to go along with their 18 shots on goal in the first period. They finished with a 54-36 edge in hits, fueling the emotion in the building with their energy on the ice.
"It was unbelievable," said Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov, who scored a goal and had an assist. "I had like goosebumps before the game during the anthem. It was so nice. You want this to happen every game and we're going to do our best on the ice. A lot of support from our fans. We love that, we appreciate that, and we want to keep going."