Panthers Set Tone in Game One Win

During another thrilling night of playoff hockey, the chase for the Stanley Cup continued with a heated Atlantic Division rivalry in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Florida Panthers in Game One of their first-round series. This matchup marks the fourth postseason meeting between the two teams in the past five seasons. With that familiarity comes heightened stakes, the Panthers entered looking to build on last year’s success, while the Lightning aimed to reclaim its postseason dominance. What followed was a fast-paced, physical battle that set the tone for what was already shaping up to be one of the most intense series of the opening round.

The first period opened with a strong start for the Panthers, who came out with an aggressive forecheck and struck early at the 3:44 mark. Mackie Samoskevich flipped the puck into the slot to avoid pressure, where Sam Bennett batted it out of midair and past Andrei Vasilevskiy to make it 1-0. The Lightning responded on the power play after Matthew Tkachuk took a roughing penalty against Nikita Kucherov at 10:25. Just under two minutes later, Jake Guentzel—who led the league in power-play goals during the regular season, tucked a rebound behind Sergei Bobrovsky off a one-timer from Victor Hedman, tying the game 1-1. The tone of the series became clear when Erik Cernak took a heavy hit from  Carter Verhaeghe at 16:13 and left the bench for the remainder of the period. Before the buzzer, Sam Reinhart scored off a deflection from Verhaeghe’s feed and a point shot by Dmitry Kulikov, giving the Panthers a 2-1 lead heading into the intermission.

The second period delivered even more action, beginning at the 4:41 mark. Brad Marchand fired a low shot off a pass from Eetu Luostarinen, creating a scrum in front of the net. The puck popped loose, and Nate Schmidt crashed in to bury it, extending the Panthers’ lead to 3-1. The Lightning challenged the goal for goaltender interference, but after a quick review, the call stood, giving the Panthers a power play. Just 14 seconds into the man advantage, Aleksander Barkov found Reinhart below the goal line, who passed to Tkachuk in the slot. Tkachuk pulled off two slick dekes before sliding it past Vasilevskiy at 4:55, making it 4-1. The two goals, scored just 14 seconds apart, set a franchise record for the fastest pair of goals in Florida Panthers playoff history.

At 9:12, Emil Lilleberg was called for interference against Luostarinen, and Tkachuk made the most of the ensuing power play. He netted his second of the period with a quick snapshot through the legs of a standing Vasilevskiy, who lost track of the puck. That goal, scored at 9:43, made it 5-1 Panthers. At the 13:04 mark, after a couple of successful puck battles for Tampa and strong offensive zone movement, Brayden Point scored off assists from Ryan McDonagh and Gage Goncalves, cutting the deficit to 5-2. The remaining minutes of the period were scoreless, sending both teams into the second intermission with the Panthers still firmly in control.

The third period began with an interference penalty on Cernak against Reinhart at 3:14, sending the Panthers to their third power play of the night. Just under two minutes later, Schmidt ripped a shot from the point into the top corner, recording his second goal of the game. The play was set up by a slick behind-the-back pass from Tkachuk, who had received the puck from Barkov. The goal came at the 5:09 mark, and with it, the Panthers improved to a perfect three-for-three on the man advantage, extending their lead to 6-2. At 8:23, Cernak rang a shot off the post that bounced in and out of the crease—deceptive enough to trigger the goal horn at Amalie Arena, but video review confirmed the puck never crossed the goal line. Moments later, Reinhart was sent to the box for hooking Brandon Hagel at 9:25, giving Tampa Bay a power play they couldn't convert on, just like their second opportunity after a tripping call on Reinhart with 6:14 remaining. The rest of the period remained scoreless, sealing a dominant 6-2 win for the Florida Panthers. 

Although the Panthers secured a multi-goal victory in Game One, this series is only just beginning to heat up. A crowd of 19,092 packed Amalie Arena for the latest chapter of the Battle of Florida, where both teams are fighting for more than just a win—they're battling for pride, legacy, and playoff survival. With high emotions, elite talent, and unrelenting physicality on full display, this first-round matchup promises to deliver even more drama as it unfolds. Game 1 set the tone, but the battle is far from over—let the best team win.