“He (Marchand) brought a lot to the table,” said forward Anton Lundell, who had the second assist on the goal. “He’s playing at a very high level. I feel like everything he touches goes in the net right now, so just try to give him the puck. It was fun to watch.”
Marchand, who leads the Panthers with 12 goals, has seven goals in his last seven games.
To put the Lightning back on top in the third period, Jack Finley slipped in for free and hit a backhand shot near Sergei Bobrovsky’s right pad on a breakaway to make it 2-1 at 4:09.
Playing in his seventh NHL game, it was Finley’s first career goal.
The Panthers stayed within striking distance and stopped two power plays in the final frame.
“I think we’re in sync,” Forsling said of the penalty kill success. “We worked together and got the puck out. We knew they had a really good power play, and we were ready for it.”
Unfortunately, the Panthers were unable to score the tying goal, although Evan Rodriguez was high-sticked by Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak, closing the game to a man-advantage with four minutes remaining.
Poor officiating cost the Panthers critical minutes in the final stages of the game, as Sam Bennett, who failed to control the referee, was blown out for unprovoked interference and sent to the box for rough play.
As a result of this penalty, only 5 minutes and 10 seconds remained in regulation time.
The Panthers brought out Bobrovsky for a 6-on-5 advantage, and Zemgus Girgensons found an empty net with 50.3 seconds left to extend the Lightning’s lead to 3-1.
It was a close game, but Wasilewski finished with 22 saves and Bobrovskiy made 17.
“There wasn’t a lot out there,” Randell said. “It was like a playoff game. Both teams defended well. We have to accept how the game goes and find a way to score goals.”
they said it
“I feel like I didn’t have enough energy tonight. I don’t know why. I was just a little flat.” – Gustav Forsling
“We often play against each other in the playoffs, and it always brings some emotion.” – Anton Randell
cat statistics
– Brad Marchand has scored in six of his last seven games.
– Aaron Ekblad had a team-high five hits.
– Anton Lundell has four assists in the past two games.
– The Panthers went 5-on-5 in the third period and allowed only two shot attempts.
What’s next?
The Panthers continue their homestand with a game against the Vancouver Canucks at Amerant Bank Arena on Monday at 7pm ET.
Click here for tickets.
