Usual scuffles aside, Lightning hang on to slim lead to top Panthers

Eduardo A. Encina, Tampa Bay Times on Dec 27, 2025

Published in Hockey

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SUNRISE, Fla. — The third regular-season meeting between the Lightning and Panthers on Saturday night at Amerant Bank Arena had its customary flared tempers, confusing officiating and dropped gloves.

The second period ended with nine players — five from the Lightning and four from the Panthers — serving penalties from a fracas that included nearly every skater on the ice.

It started after Anton Lundell clipped Yanni Gourde and high sticked Jake Guentzel in open ice in the Lightning zone without any whistles. Then A.J. Greer left his feet and went high on Guentzel in the corner, prompting Guentzel to take a swing at Greer. Anthony Cirelli cross-checked Greer and a swarm began by the boards.

After it all cleared, the Lightning had a one-goal lead to protect against their cross-state rivals in a game that had major importance in the Atlantic Division standings.

It wasn’t easy, but the Lightning beat the Panthers, 4-2, winning for the second time in three regular-season contests against Florida.

They opened up their post-holiday break schedule with their third straight win and improved their road record to 11-4-3. They also moved to a tie for second in the Atlantic with Montreal, two points behind Detroit.

The Lightning rallied from an early one-goal deficit after Eetu Luostarinen scored 5:37 into the game.

Guentzel’s short-handed breakaway goal with 6:55 left in the first tied the score. And despite Cirelli’s goal coming off the board after a video review ruled that he swept the puck into the net with his glove after he was held by Aaron Ekblad, the Lightning still managed to take the lead on the road.

Pontus Holmberg’s wrister from the right circle with 7.3 seconds left in the first gave the Lightning their first lead of the night, and Nikita Kucherov made it a two-goal game finishing a 2-on-1 rush with Brayden Point at the 2:31 mark in the second. Brad Marchand cut the Lightning lead to one at the 7:05 mark in the second.

But with the penalty box full on both ends, the Lightning were forced to play a good part of the third on the penalty kill, and that was the only way they were beating the Panthers Saturday night.

Kucherov’s empty-netter provided the final margin.

Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy spent most of the final period under siege but continuously turned the Panthers away. Vasilevskiy stopped 24 of 26 shots overall.