This was a dominant Game One performance for the Florida Panthers, and they were rewarded with a dominant Game One win.
In every aspect of the game, the Panthers outperformed the Lightning. They played a strong, physical game. They forechecked aggressively. They won puck battles. They executed clears cleanly. And despite registering only 16 shots on net, they created a high volume of scoring chances.
The Lightning’s best stretch came in the first period after Jake Guentzel’s power-play goal tied the game at one. They buzzed in the offensive zone for the next several minutes but were unable to grab the lead. Then, momentum turned in the period’s final minute. The Lightning iced the puck, lost a 50-50 d-zone faceoff, and allowed a deflection goal to Sam Reinhart at 19:15. That tally gave the Panthers the lead back, one they wouldn’t relinquish.
Early in the second, the Panthers broke the game open. The Lightning surrendered the puck in the defensive zone and allowed a shot on goal. Eetu Luostarinen attempted to poke in the rebound; instead, he made contact with Andrei Vasilevskiy’s pad. The puck came loose to Nate Schmidt, who slammed it in at 4:41. The Lightning made an unsuccessful challenge for goalie interference — the goal was allowed to stand because incidental contact during a loose puck/rebound situation is permitted. On the ensuing Florida power play, Matthew Tkachuk finished an open look from the top of the crease at 4:55. So in a 14-second span, the Panthers had extended their lead to 4-1.
The Panthers added two more power-play goals and finished 3-3 on the man advantage. It was the first time all season that the Lightning had allowed three power-play goals in a game. Losing the special-teams battle was just one of the many aspects of the game in which the Lightning fell short.
Simply put, the Lightning will need to play much better on Thursday in Game Two. They may have to do it without Anthony Cirelli, who left the game early in the second period and didn’t return.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
- Matthew Tkachuk — Panthers. Two goals.
- Nate Schmidt — Panthers. Two goals.
- Nick Paul — Lightning.
