Sunrise, Fla. – Game 3.
After taking care of business on the road, the Florida Panthers will carry a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference First Round back to their own barn when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET.
It will be the first playoff game in Sunrise since the Panthers lifted Lord Stanley in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final last June.
“They’ve been waiting for the playoff games,” defenseman Niko Mikkola said of playing in front of Panther fans for the first time this postseason. “It’s going to be amazing.”
Carrying momentum into the weekend after a 2-0 win on Thursday, the Panthers shut down one of the league’s best offenses, going a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill and blocking 20 shots.
Earning his fourth career playoff shutout (a franchise record) in a goalie battle with fellow future Hall of Famer Andrei Vasilevskiy, Sergei Bobrovsky stopped all 19 shots he faced in the win.
Through two games, Bobrovsky boasts a .951 save percentage in the series.
For Tampa, Vasilevskiy bounced back from an uncharacteristic .647 save percentage in Game 1 to post a .955 save percentage in Game 2.
Both are expected to start in Game 3.
Continuing to find the back of the net, Nate Schmidt scored his second straight game winner, joining Paul Coffey and Nicklas Lidstrom as the only defensemen in NHL history to score the game-winning goals in both Games 1 and 2 of a series.
The biggest news of the night and around the hockey world came from a dangerous high hit on Aleksander Barkov from Lightning forward Brandon Hagel in the third period that resulted in a five-minute major and the Panthers captain leaving the game.
“He hasn’t been ruled out yet, and he hasn’t been cleared,” head coach Paul Maurice said of Barkov’s status following Friday’s practice.
Later on Friday, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced that Hagel, who scored 35 goals during the regular season, will be suspended for one game, keeping him out of Game 3.
As for Barkov, news regarding his status for Game 3 should come around 11 a.m. ET.
In five and a half periods of play, the two-time Selke Trophy winner has recorded a series-leading three assists.
While the Panthers are uncertain if No. 16 will play, they do know that Aaron Ekblad will be back in the lineup after serving a 20-game suspension.
Playing in 56 contests during the regular season, the top-pair defenseman averaged a team-high 23:31 of ice time, while also compiling 33 points (three goals, 30 assists) and a +11 plus/minutes rating.
“Big thing, for sure,” said Mikkola. “On the ice, he’s a great player. He’s been a part of the group for a long time. In the locker room, he’s a loud guy and big character. It’s great to have him back.”
Jumping right back into it, No. 5 is expected to slide back in all his usual roles, per Maurice.
Despite everything that is going on, any potential lineup changes, and being up 2-0 in the series, the mindset of the Panthers remains the same.
“Your mindset can’t change whether you’re up or down in a series,” said forward Evan Rodrigues. “The next game is always the biggest one and that’s been our mindset going all the way back to last year and I’m sure for the guys that were here, going back the year before.”
Limiting the star power of the Lightning so far, Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point have been held to just two points combined through two games. During the regular season, that dynamic duo combined for 203 points, including a league-leading 121 points from Kucherov.
With the series far from over, the Panthers will have to stick to the game plan and not give the Lightning any space to potentially turn the tide.
“We put ourselves in a good position here,” said Seth Jones after the Game 2 win. “We understand the series isn’t over, that’s a great team over there and they’re capable of putting up big numbers.”
THEY SAID IT
“It’s giving me a little bit of chills, thinking about that.” – Evan Rodrigues on playing in a playoff game at home for the first time since Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final
“You can always tell how connected a guy is by how many nicknames, he has a bunch.” – Paul Maurice on Nate Schmidt’s nicknames
FIVE CATS STATS
– Sam Bennett, Dmitry Kulikov, and Niko Mikkola each have a team-high nine hits in the series.
– Nate Schmidt ranks first among defensemen in goals (three) these playoffs.
– The Panthers are 14-8-0 at home during the playoffs since 2023.
– Gustav Forsling and Nate Schmidt have blocked a team-high four shots in the series.
– Matthew Tkachuk has 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in 22 home playoff games with the Panthers.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Stay tuned closer to puck drop for lineup information
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
– April 25:F Jesse Puljujarvi assigned to Charlotte (AHL)
– April 16:F Rasmus Asplund assigned to Charlotte (AHL)
– April 16:D Matt Kiersted assigned to Charlotte (AHL)
– April 12:Agreed to terms with F Jack Devine on a 3-year, entry-level contract
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Saturday, April 26 at 1:00 p.m. ET
Where: Amerant Bank Aena– Sunrise, FL
TV & Streaming: Scripps Sports, PanthersPlus.TV, TBS, truTV, Max, SN, TVAS
Radio: 790 WAXY (DADE/BROWARD); 1230 WBZT-AM/92.1 WZZR-FM (PALM BEACH); 100.3 WCTH (FLORIDA KEYS); 101.7 WCZR (TREASURE COAST); Panthers App; SiriusXM App & Streaming 931
Tickets: Click Here
