SUNRISE, Fla. – The Florida Panthers are ready for the main course.
Fresh off winning the Atlantic Division, last year’s Stanley Cup runners-up will kick off what they are hoping will be another deep playoff run with a matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round on Sunday on 12:30 p.m. ET.
“It’s like you don’t have to eat your vegetables, it’s just the good stuff that you want,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said of the playoffs. “No vegetables. You know what I’m talking about. You don’t have to wait for dinner. It’s the best.”
Meeting in the playoffs for the third time in the last for seasons, the Panthers are looking to finally get the better of their electric cross-state rivals after coming up short in each of the last two installments of the Battle of Florida, which has become a top rivalry in the NHL.
But unlike those previous series, these new-look Panthers are built on defense.
Taking another step forward under head coach Paul Maurice this season, the Panthers finished with the top defense (2.41 goals allowed per game) and sixth-ranked penalty kill (23.5%) in the NHL in 2023-24, while still managing to score the 11th-most goals per game (3.23).
Across the ice, the Lightning remain an offensive powerhouse built to make you pay if you let them get to the power play. Making up for their 22nd-ranked defense (3.26 goals allowed per game), they led the league with a wicked 28.6% rate of success on the man advantage.
A far more balanced team, the Panthers finished fifth in the NHL in expected goals for percentage (54.31%), while Tampa Bay’s defensive struggles placed them in 21st (49.07%).
In the regular season, the Panthers went 2-1-0 against the Lightning, leading 15-9 in goals.
“There’s a history between the two teams and it’s been exciting,” said Maurice, who is getting his first taste of the rivalry in the postseason. “Then there’s the fresh start. What happens in the past matters not, except if you can find some good in that. History and momentum get rewritten every time that the puck drops. You get to reinvent yourself.”
The top-scorer in the NHL on the power play this season, Sam Reinhart led the Panthers in goals (57), power-play goals (27) and points (94). Second in scoring, Matthew Tkachuk, last year’s breakout playoff superstar, tallied 88 points, including dishing out a team-leading 57 assists.
In the running for his second Selke Trophy, captain Aleksander Barkov recorded 80 points (23 goals, 57 assists), while Carter Verhaeghe posted 72 points (34 goals, 38 assists). Since 2019-20, Verhaeghe paces the Panthers in both goals (15) and points (32) in the playoffs.
On the back end, defenseman Gustav Forsling led the NHL with a +56 plus/minus rating.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” Barkov said. “It’s going to be a battle. All the games against them – even training camp games – those games get emotional. It’s going to be a lot of fun for both sides and just a hard battle.”
Nikita Kucherov led Tampa Bay with 144 points (44 goals, 100), a league-leading total that could potentially land him the Hart Trophy. Brayden Point paced the team with 46 goals and was second in points (90), while Steven Stamkos was third in both goals (40) and points (81).
Fueling the team’s top-ranked power play, Stamkos (19), Point (15) and Kucherov (13) all netted double-digit goals with the extra attacker, while defenseman Victor Hedman, who remains the big dog on the blue line for the Lightning, dished out 27 power-play helpers.
Helping lead the Lightning to back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021, Kucherov stands as the franchise’s all-time leader in playoff points with 160 (53 goals, 107 assists).
“It’s a rivalry, there’s no doubt about it,” Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. “They’ve had the blueprint. They’ve won. They’ve had success. They’re still a hungry team. You can see it every time we play them. There’s going to be no easy ice out there.”
Between the pipes, both teams have a former Vezina Trophy winner.
Leading the Panthers onto the ice will be Sergei Bobrovsky, who will likely be a finalist for the Vezina again this season after going 36-17-4 with a 2.37 goals-against average, .915 save percentage and six shutouts, which were tied for the most in the league in 2023-24.
For the Lightning, Andrei Vasilevskiy will get the nod. Despite having a down year by his standards – a 30-20-2 record with a 2.90 goals-against average and .900 save percentage – the “Big Cat” has been a rock throughout his career in the playoffs, going 65-42 with a .921 save percentage while winning a pair of Cups over 110 career appearances with Tampa Bay.
“Both guys are going to play great,” Maurice said. “That’s what we anticipate.”
After pulling off the biggest upset in playoff history against the Boston Bruins in Round 1 last year, the Panthers certainly know what it takes to get a run started off on the right foot.
And with the puck about to drop again, a new run will have to start with toppling Tampa Bay.
Game on.
“The puck drops and they’re going to go tooth and nail right after it every time,” Maurice said. “That’s going to make it really good. This is the series I’d be watching if I was a fan.”
THEY SAID IT
“It’s all about executing our game plan and sticking to what gives us success. Whoever does that better is probably going to come out on top. They’ve obviously got some of the best talent in the world. If we can minimize their time and space, make them feel as uncomfortable as possible, we’re going to be better off.” – Sam Reinhart
“Very exciting for this opportunity to be back in the playoffs the way last year went. I think it’s very fitting to be playing Tampa in this first round. What an unbelievable run they’ve been on since the All-Star break. They’re playing very well and we’re playing well. I think it’s going to make for a great series.” – Matthew Tkachuk
"It's always fireworks when we play these guys. It's always a good game. They're an awesome team and really skilled, physical. They have all the elements of a really good team. It's going to be two good teams going at it." – Carter Verhaeghe
CATS STATS
- The Panthers have reached the playoffs in each of the last five seasons.
- Florida’s 198 goals allowed were a franchise record for an 82-game season.
- Matthew Tkachuk led the Panthers in goals (11) and points (24) in last year’s playoffs.
- Aleksander Barkov won a career-high 57.3% of his faceoffs this season.
- Sergei Bobrovsky had 16.3 goals saved above expected in last year’s playoffs.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Vladimir Tarasenko – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Evan Rodrigues
Nick Cousins – Kevin Stenlund – Ryan Lomberg
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Brandon Montour
Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Dmitry Kulikov
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Anthony Stolarz
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
- April 12: F Wilmer Skoog signed to a one-year, two-way contract commencing in 2024-25
- April 12: F Oliver Okuliar signed to a one-year ELC commencing in 2024-25
- April 10: D Mikulas Hovorka signed to a two-year ELC commencing in 2024-25
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Sunday, April 21 at 12:30 p.m. ET
Where: Amerant Bank Arena – Sunrise, FL
TV & Streaming: ESPN, ESPN+, Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports+
Radio: 790 WAXY (Dade/Broward); 92.1 WZZR (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 101.7 WCZR (Treasure Coast); SiriusXM Ch. 91 / App & Streaming 932; Panthers App
Tickets: Click Here
