The Florida Panthers have a chance to close out their opening-round Stanley Cup Playoffs series against the Tampa Bay Lightning on home ice with a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 series. The game is scheduled for Monday at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise and will be televised on ESPN and Bally Sports Florida. Florida won the first three games of the series before dropping Game 4 to a desperate Tampa Bay team.
In the second intermission of Game 5, the Panthers have command of the game and now just need to finish the job to advance to the second round. They out-shot Tampa Bay 22-12 in the second period and also led in total shot attempts and scoring chances. An apparent Lightning goal was taken off the board due to goaltender interference, helping Florida maintain their lead.
The Lightning managed to get one back in the third period after the Panthers took a two-goal lead, but Florida responded with a shorthanded goal from Aleksander Barkov to double their lead. The Panthers penalty kill has been perfect so far in the game.
Carter Verhaeghe opened the scoring for the Panthers with his fourth goal of the series, giving Florida a 1-0 lead early in the second period. The team that has scored first has gone on to win every game of the series so far. The first intermission saw a goal overturned for Tampa Bay due to goaltender interference, and both teams had seven shots on goal in a relatively quiet first period.
Florida found themselves in penalty trouble early in the game, taking two penalties in the first 9:18. However, the Panthers successfully killed off both penalties, keeping Tampa Bay off the scoreboard. Forward Nick Cousins left warmups early but ultimately played in the game, with line rushes remaining the same.
Recaps from the previous games in the series show the Panthers dominating in Games 1 and 2, with Carter Verhaeghe scoring critical goals. In Game 3, the Panthers took a commanding 3-0 lead in the series with goals from Sam Reinhart and Brandon Montour. The Lightning bounced back in Game 4 with a 6-3 win to keep their season alive, setting the stage for Game 5. Fans can catch up with pregame reading about key players and moments leading up to the critical Game 5 matchup.
