John Romano: Get out the gauze. The Lightning and Panthers are going at it again.

John Romano, Tampa Bay Times on Apr 16, 2025

Published in Hockey

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TAMPA, Fla. — Looking forward to the Eastern Conference final.

It begins here this weekend.

Of course, that’s not how the NHL sees it. Nor anyone north of the Florida border. The official version is that the playoff series between Tampa Bay and Florida is no different than any other first-round matchup in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

But, c’mon, who are we kidding?

We’ve seen this movie before. For the most part, the winner of this series has skated off into the sunset with trophy held aloft. The last five Eastern Conference champions have been either the Lightning or the Panthers, and you could make a strong case this year won’t be any different.

The problem is the NHL’s current iteration for playoff seedings is division-centric, and that means the possibility of Florida and Tampa Bay meeting anywhere other than the first two rounds is not terribly likely.

So we get opening-weekend matchups like this. With two complete teams. Two Stanley Cup-winning head coaches. Too many future Hall of Famers to count, and too much blood on the ice to turn away.

In a game Tuesday night that was utterly meaningless for Florida in the standings, there were still a few tense moments and 10-player scrums. There was Florida forward Jesse Puljujarvi getting a five-minute match penalty for dropping a shoulder and whacking Mitchell Chaffee in the head. There was Zemgus Girgensons dropping his gloves after the Chaffee hit, and there was Erik Cernak going after Jaycob Megna after he hit Jake Guentzel.

And there was Lightning coach Jon Cooper looking utterly chill when asked if this was all a precursor to what was about to come.

“I’m not going to stir any pots here,” Cooper said. “The series will play out how it plays out.”

If it plays out like recent history, the games will be ferocious and tight. Take away empty-netters and more than half of their playoff meetings since 2021 have been one-goal games.

Also, the series will be short. The Lightning beat the Panthers in six games in the first round in 2021 but then swept them in the second round in 2022. Florida beat Tampa Bay in five games in the first round last year.

No two teams in the Eastern Conference have met in the postseason as much as the Panthers and Lightning the past five years.

“We’ve met each other in the playoffs a lot here the last few years,” Lightning forward Brayden Point said. “They’re always tight checking and close games. Expect nothing less this year.”

Their rosters have seen some significant changes, but the personalities of the teams have remained the same. If anything, the Panthers have doubled down on their pest factor by bringing in Boston’s Brad Marchand at midseason.

Florida led the NHL with an average of 29.51 hits per 60 minutes. No other team was even close. It was the most hits one team has doled out in an NHL season in the past three years.

For comparison’s sake, the Lightning averaged 17.62 hits per 60 minutes.

“We know what they’re about. We know the skill level they bring and the intensity they bring,” Yanni Gourde said. “We’re excited for this challenge”

The key for the Lightning is not being intimidated by the Panthers, while also not ignoring their own style of play. Florida may have led the league in penalties, but the Panthers were also second in penalties taken. That suggests they suckered a lot of teams into playing their brutal style.

If you look at it strictly from a numbers perspective, the Lightning are the better team. Tampa Bay is first in the NHL in goals scored per game and third in goals allowed. Florida is 15th and seventh. The Lightning are also in the top six in both power play and penalty kill.

Strangely enough, this is the first time the Lightning have come into the series as the higher seed in these last four meetings. And it could have a definite effect. While Tampa Bay has gone 4-4 in playoff games at Sunrise since 2021, road games have been an issue for the Lightning this season.

Of the eight NHL teams with at least 100 points, the Lightning are seventh in road victories.

Maybe the history is irrelevant. Maybe the season numbers are, too.

About the only thing we know for certain is the series will be intense. And it should be entertaining.

Almost like the Eastern Conference final.

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