RECAP: Panthers 5, Lightning 3

TAMPA – This was the moment Steven Lorentz had always dreamed of.

After starting his professional career in the ECHL and eventually clawing his way to the NHL, the 28-year-old always upbeat journeyman saw all of his hard work pay off when he scored what held up as the game-winning goal for the Florida Panthers in a crucial 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference First Round at Amalie Arena on Thursday.

With the win, the Panthers now have a commanding 3-0 lead in the series.

“That was always the dream,” Lorentz said. “I never doubted myself for a second. I always knew I was a late bloomer and would take the longer, harder road than other guys. I believed in myself and put the work in each day, and here we are. It’s nice to see it pay off, but at the same time the job’s not finished and hopefully it’s not going to be done until the middle of June.”

Getting into penalty trouble early, the Panthers kept Tampa Bay’s top-ranked power play off the board with a pair of critical kills in the first period. Over those two kills, they allowed just three shots on goal and two scoring chances thanks to some good sticks and key clears.

In the series, they are operating at 83.3% on the penalty kill.

Stepping up in the absence of injured second-line center Sam Bennett, Anton Lundell, who's still just 22 years old, helped open the scoring for the Panthers when skated around the net before setting up Matthew Tkachuk for a quick goal from the right side of the cage to make it 1-0 at 10:39.

In the win, Florida led 8-4 in scoring chances when Lundell was deployed at 5-on-5.

“He played awesome,” Tkachuk said. “Very easy to play with him. He made so many smart plays. He was holding onto pucks. He was skating with it and putting us in great positions as wingers. He was giving us the puck at perfect times."

Back on the power play for a third time in the first period – this time on a questionable call – the Lightning briefly thought they tied the game when Anthony Cirelli scored to make it 1-1. But after the Panthers challenged for offside, it came off the board.

Just before the first intermission, Sergei Bobrovsky robbed Steven Stamkos on a one-timer.

But just 44 seconds into the second period, Stamkos got his revenge when he dug in just outside the crease and tipped in a shot from Victor Hedman to make it 1-1. Soon after, Tyler Motte doubled the lead to 2-1 for Tampa Bay with a shot through traffic to make it 2-1.

Helping keep the game from getting out of hand, Bobrovsky, as he’s done so many times this season, pushed back for the Panthers when he lunged to his right to rob Lightning defenseman Emil Lilleberg on a scary rebound attempt from in close.

Bobrovsky finished with 26 saves, while Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy made 26.

“That’s his year for us this year,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said of Bobrovsky’s timely save on Lilleberg. “I think the first two games maybe more than the one tonight, because he was maybe a bit more under siege there in the second period, we’ve allowed him to be quiet over parts of games and then he would just be incredibly explosive.”

After weathering a relentless attack from the Lightning for several minutes – again, thanks to some massive stops from No. 72 – the Panthers pulled even when Sam Reinhart beat Vasilevskiy with a slick snipe from the right circle to make it 2-2 at 9:58.

Following that goal from the first line, the fourth line got it done next.

Putting together a shift that could easily be the centerpiece of the Museum of Grinding (if it existed), Kyle Okposo, Nick Cousins and Lorentz did everything they could to keep the puck in the zone before teeing up Brandon Montour for a blistering one-timer from the point to make it 3-2 at 16:30.

“That’s what it’s all about,” Montour said of the fourth line’s performance. “We need good effort from everybody. No matter what they’re playing, they’re going to bring it. It was nice to see all three of them contribute, and now we keep growing and building off that.”

Getting into the lineup with both Bennett (upper body) and Ryan Lomberg (illness) out of action for the Panthers, Okposo recorded the secondary assist on the goal to earn his first playoff point since May 6, 2016.

“It’s just fun to have that feeling again,” Okposo said of being back in the playoffs. “The postseason is extremely special. You don’t know how good something is until it’s gone. You’re not in it for eight years, you’re just sitting there watching and you’re yearning to get that feeling again.”

In the third period, the fourth line continued to come up big for the Panthers. Netting the first playoff goal of his NHL career, Lorentz, another key offseason acquisition, tracked down a puck in the slot and sent it sailing into the back of the twine to make it 4-2 at 9:41.

“He worked hard every day,” Maurice said of Lorentz. “He supported his teammates.”

Bringing the building back to life, the Lightning cut their deficit to just one goal at 14:50 when Nick Paul beat Bobrovsky with a glove-side shot from the slot to make it 4-3.

But with 31.5 seconds left, Tkachuk cashed in on the empty net to make it 5-3.

“I think it’s been a close series so far in the first three games," Tkachuk said. "We’ve been getting some unbelievable goaltending that helped us weather the storm. That’s been the biggest key for us.”

Now all that separates the Panthers from a third straight trip to Round 2 is just one more solid 60-minute effort.

A potential series-ending Game 4 is set for Saturday at 5 p.m. ET at Amalie Arena.

“You treat it like Game 1,” Montour said of trying to close out the Lightning. “It’s going to be a tough one. The season’s on the line. Everyone gets that. They’re going to bring their best effort.”

THEY SAID IT

“Kevin’s one of the guys that Bill (Zito) brought in to not just have us hold water, but to really improve our penalty kill. He was so very, very good.” – Paul Maurice on Kevin Stenlund’s penalty killing

“Over the playoffs you’re going to get highs and lows. Teams are going to give it to you, give you a good push. Being at home, for them, they’re going to have pushes throughout the game. Again, we stayed even-keeled. We were down in the game and kept pushing.” – Brandon Montour on the Panthers overcoming their 2-1 deficit in tonight’s win

“Depth, it’s no secret, wins championships. You need guys to contribute. There’s going to be mismatches and you have to be able to weather the storm at times like you saw tonight.” – Steven Lorentz on the Panthers getting contributions up and down their lineup

CATS STATS

- The Panthers are 4-0 on offside challenges in the regular season and playoffs in 2023-24.

- Matthew Tkachuk is the first Panther to ever record three career multi-goal playoff games.

- Brandon Montour scored his ninth career playoff goal with the Panthers.

- Dating back to last year’s playoffs, the Panthers own a 9-4 record on the road.

- The Panthers and Lightning combined for 149 hits.

- Gustav Forsling and Aaron Ekblad each saw over 25 minutes of ice time.

- Carter Verhaeghe recorded his second multi-point game of the series.

- The Panthers led 22-16 in scoring chances at 5-on-5, per NaturalStatTrick.com.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Three down, one to go.

Trying to close the book on their Round 1 series with the Lightning, the Panthers will try to make it a clean sweep when they return to the ice at Amalie Arena on Saturday at 5 p.m. ET.

The official watch party will be at Bounce Delray Beach.

Visit FloridaPanthers.com/CatsOnTap for more information.