“The season is too long, and the players are bored. Playoffs, please.” Well, the NHL playoffs are just a few days away. But it seems the hockey gods have really listened to the ones praying for a blockbuster 1st round start. “THE BATTLE OF FLORIDA RETURNS!!” One of the biggest rivalries in the NHL will kick off the playoffs. It’s spicier this time as the Panthers are defending Stanley Cup holders. At the same time, the Tampa Bay Lightning are going into this playoff series as division runners-up ahead of the Panthers, which makes this difficult to call, doesn’t it? With season-ending implications, it will all come down to being clutch when it matters. And since these 2 have met each other before in the playoffs, let’s take a gander at how they have fared in pressure situations.
Their rivalry dates back to 1993, but in the playoffs, they have clashed only 3 times. And while the Panthers hold the recency edge courtesy of their 1st-round playoff win last year, overall, the Lightning are the ones with a 9-6 win lead in individual games and 2-1 in playoff series.
The battle of the Sunshine State never disappoints, and last year, the Panthers got the better of their rivals over the course of 5 games. Clinching the first 3 games 3-2, 3-2 (overtime), and 5-3, the Cats took a 6-3 reversal before thrashing the Tampa Bay Lightning 6-1 to clinch the best-of-7 series. And as we all know, they went on to become the 2024 Stanley Cup Champions.
For the Lightning, it was a dent to their 2-0 playoff series record against their Florida foes. Meeting them in the 2021-22 Conference semifinals, the Bolts didn’t let the Panthers win a single match. As defending 2021 Stanley Cup champions themselves, Tampa Bay won all the first 4 games of the series (4-1, 2-1, 5-1, 2-0) to advance to the finals.
And the first playoff meeting was in the season just before that. Again, the defending champs, Tampa Bay, went into the series as favorites, and although the Panthers tried their best, their efforts were futile. Losing the first two games 5-4 and 3-1, the Cats won the third game 6-5 (overtime). The 4th game went to the Tampa Bay Lightning 6-2, while the Florida Panthers pulled one back 4-1. In the do-or-die 6th game, Tampa Bay killed off the Panthers’ resilience with a 4-0 shutout, en route to the 2021 Stanley Cup.
But it is not just a feud of two teams from the same area trying to assert dominance. What makes this clash special is their top-tier dominance in the NHL. And both teams are packing quality this time, too.
Tampa Bay Lightning or the Florida Panthers – who holds the edge this time around?
In the regular season series, they are tied at 2-2, with both teams winning 1 each at home and away. The Lightning are obviously the team on song, with forward Nikita Kucherov leading the NHL points charts with 121 points (37 goals, 84 assists) in 77 games. They also have 7 players with at least 20 goals (Brayden Point – 42, Jake Guentzel – 41, Brandon Hagel – 35, Anthony Cirelli – 27, Nick Paul – 22, and Oliver Bjorkstrand – 21).
They definitely look stacked, don’t they? And they are bolstered further by the scoring prowess of Victor Hedman. Yes, he is a defenseman, but with 66 points (15 goals, 51 assists), the 34-year-old stands 6th among NHL defensemen in points scored. And while the Tampa Bay Lightning keep striking the opponent’s goal, Andrei Vasilevskiy ensures they keep it tight at the back. With a .921 save percentage and averaging only 2.18 goals-against in 63 starts (38-20-5), the workhorse goalie has kept 6 shutouts and is one of the safest hands in the league.
So, they will bring their best against the Panthers, who are ready for the fireworks to go off. Trust us, when the puck drops, Sam Reinhart and Aleksander Barkov will be ready. Reinhart leads the team with 81 points (39 goals, 42 assists) in 79 games, while captain and center Barkov has been in good touch with 71 points (20 goals, 51 assists).
The Panthers have their own star goaltender in Sergei Bobrovsky. With 5 shutouts in 54 games (33-19-2) this season, Bobrovsky has a save percentage of .906 and a 2.44 goals-against average. In fact, his playoff heroics (.906 save percentage, 2 shutouts in 24 games with 2.32 goals against on average) were instrumental to the Panthers winning the Stanley Cup last season.
With the Tampa Bay Lightning winning a scoring force, a lot will depend on how Gustav Forsling holds up. Not letting Dmitry Kulikov’s and Aaron Ekblad’s absences be felt, Forsling has been a rock inside the blue line. And in addition to that, he has even chipped in with 31 points (11 goals and 20 assists). Within his team, he has the highest plus-minus at plus-33, which is the joint-eighth in the league charts. Along with this, the Panthers have the postseason experience of Brad Marchand to count on.
So, what do all these mean? That come April 19, it’s on. It has been seen that the winner of this clash goes on to play in the Stanley Cup final. And it’s for everyone to see. It’s 2 quality squads coming face-to-face. So much has been their dominance that one of them has been in the Stanley Cup final in the last 5 seasons.
So, who will it be this time to continue the Sunshine State fairytale? Let us know in the comments!
The post Battle of Florida: Panthers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Stanley Cup History appeared first on EssentiallySports.
