Lightning beat Panthers 5-1, cut series deficit to 2-1

The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Florida Panthers 5-1 in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series, narrowing Florida's lead to 2-1. Andrei Vasilevskiy delivered a strong performance for Tampa Bay, making over 30 saves and helping the team rebound after two previous losses. Jake Guentzel contributed a goal and multiple assists, while Brayden Point, Nick Paul, Luke Glendening, and Anthony Cirelli also scored for the Lightning, whose offense surged in the third period. Matthew Tkachuk netted the only goal for the Panthers, continuing his strong postseason, but Sergei Bobrovsky struggled in net after excelling in Game 2. The Lightning played without Brandon Hagel, who was suspended following a hit on Aleksander Barkov; Barkov returned for Game 3, as did Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad after a lengthy suspension. Game 4 is set to take place in Sunrise, where Tampa Bay will look to even the series.