Suddenly, the Tampa Bay Lightning are feeling more alive.
Make no mistake — the Florida Panthers still lead this Eastern Conference first-round series 2-1. And the Panthers — the reigning Stanley Cup champions — will be at home for Game 4 on Monday night in Sunrise, Fla. But no team has yet to win a home game in this best-of-seven series.
And Tampa Bay’s 5-1 win in Sunrise, Fla., on Saturday afternoon has given the Lightning a spark. Prior to Saturday’s win, the Lightning had lost seven of their last eight playoff games.
All of a sudden — after that one win — the Lightning have a new attitude.
“It was a huge win for our team,” Lightning forward Jake Guentzel said. “It gives us some confidence and some life in this series.
“But it’s only one game. We have to be ready for the next one.”
The Lightning never led in the first two games of this series. They fell behind again on Saturday and didn’t take their first lead until Nick Paul scored at 13:17 of the second period.
“Getting the lead is huge,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “We were down 1-0 (on Saturday), and (Florida’s) building was buzzing.
“I think the mental strength of our team. … We eventually tied it, and then we pierced that bubble, finally had the lead.”
Indeed, after scoring a total of two goals in the first two games, the Lightning suddenly have some hot players. Nikita Kucherov, for example, had three assists on Saturday and Guentzel had one goal and two assists.
Kucherov has registered at least three assists in 11 career playoff games. Only Wayne Gretzky (28 times) and Mark Messier (12) have had more. Paul Coffey and Doug Gilmour match Kucherov’s 11 games.
Meanwhile, the Panthers won’t panic after just one loss. That’s the main message from captain Aleksander Barkov.
“We will learn a lot from (Saturday’s) game,” Barkov said. “We had a great start (on Saturday) and did the right things.
“But (the Lightning) are a great team. They played really well. … All we can take from this is to learn.”
The Panthers managed only Matthew Tkachuk’s goal in Saturday’s first period. But this is a dangerous team capable of much more.
During the regular season, Sam Reinhart led Florida in goals (39) and points (81). He also led the team in power-play goals (13) and short-handed scores (five). Barkov led the team in assists (51) and power-play assists (19). Tkachuk missed 30 games due to injuries, but still finished with 22 goals and 35 assists.
Sam Bennett (25) and Carter Verhaeghe (20) also joined Reinhart, Barkov and Tkachuk in Florida’s 20-goal club.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice said he liked how his team started on Saturday, but nothing much went right for Florida in the final two periods.
“I thought we stopped moving the puck the way we can,” Maurice said. “I don’t think we were great. But, offensively, I think we generated more on Saturday than in either of the first two games.
“We have lots of room to get better. … This is going to be a grinder of a series.”
Further, the Panthers reportedly learned Sunday that Tkachuk will not be suspended for his hit on Guentzel on Saturday.
Citing sources, ESPN reported that the NHL’s Department of Player Safety based its decision in part on Guentzel having recently touched the puck, and that Tkachuk’s hit was not to the head.
–Field Level Media
