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There were 19,202 fans packed into Amalie Arena for Game 2 of the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the majority being Tampa Bay Lightning fans. In Game 1, the fans donning blue and white left the arena disappointed after the Florida Panthers steamrolled to a 6-2 victory.
That same majority left downtrodden again as the Panthers blanked the Lightning 2-0 in Game 2 to leave Tampa with a two-game lead in the series.
Lopsided First-Round Battle Of Florida
The excitement from Bolts fans dwindled quickly, as the Panthers picked up right where they left off. Only four minutes and 15 seconds into the first period, Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt made magic happen once again. Schmidt fired a slapshot that found the back of the net, his third score in two games. The three goals by Schmidt ties for the second most in the playoffs thus far and the most by any defenseman.
Nate Schmidt has his THIRD goal of the series and the first goal of Game 2 😱 pic.twitter.com/gpJZbbFcbk
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) April 24, 2025
The rest of the first period and the entire second period had no scoring, but the timeframe certainly had its fireworks. Sergei Bobrovsky continued to make save after save, but a feature focus was the extracurricular activity. The bad blood between the teams was also on full display, with fighting and rough play prominent in the second period.
Amidst the commotion, the teams combined for 31 penalty minutes and eight power plays despite all eight efforts ending up scoreless. The Tampa Bay Lightning, who ranked fifth in the regular season in powerplay efficiency, went 0/5 on the night and are 1/8 in the first round
always heated during the battle of florida pic.twitter.com/t0O3Hgh0RW
— x – Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) April 25, 2025
The Panthers capped the night with an empty net goal from center Sam Bennett at the 19:56 mark in the third period to seal the two goal shutout victory. The two-time Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky turned away all 19 shots he faced in the win.
On the other bench, frustration is mounting. The Lightning were the highest-scoring team in the regular season at 3.54 goals per game, however the Bolts have only two goals through 120 minutes in the postseason to show for it.
Tampa Bay Lightning’s Next Step
For Tampa Bay, the pair of results is a head scratcher. A return to regular season form is crucial, especially because of the history between the two teams. The Floridian foes faced off in the playoffs for the first time in 2021, with three more postseason matchups coming in the following years. The Battle of Florida is tied at two series wins for each team, though Florida has Tampa Bay’s number as of late. The Panthers won the last two series in route to a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2023 and bringing the trophy home in 2024.
Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper mentioned in his postgame comments that the team is playing well, attributing the loss to a matter of luck.
“I thought we had enough chances in a game this tight,″ Cooper said. ”Some nights they go in, actually, most nights they go in, tonight, they didn’t, unfortunately. It’s tough.″
Whether changes are in order or not, what is certain is that every game is crucial from here on out. Cooper’s squad will now make the near four hour trek southeast to Sunrise for Games 3, 4, and 5 of the series. Game 3 is scheduled for a 1 p.m. first face off on Saturday at Amerant Bank Arena. The following Game 4 will take place on Monday at 7 p.m., with a Game 5 on Wednesday if necessary. The winner of The Battle of Florida will be rewarded with another hard battle: facing the winner of the series between Ottawa Senators and the Atlantic Division-winning Toronto Maple Leafs.
