Panthers Crawl By Lightning

     The Florida Panthers moved by the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 at Amalie Arena on Sunday. The Panthers have won four straight contests and 10 of their last 13 games. The Bolts had their four-game winning streak snapped. Florida forward Rasmus Asplund made his team debut and had no points. 

     It was a renewal of their cross-state rivalry that has intensified over the past six seasons. Both teams will face each other in Sunrise tomorrow night. 

     Florida(22-11-2) had a 1-0 lead on the power play with 4:09 to go in the opening frame. Sam Reinhart collected his 21st goal of the season on a tip-in shot. 

     Tampa Bay(18-11-2) then tied the contest 1-1 with five seconds remaining in the first period. Nick Paul got his eighth goal of the year on a wrist shot. 

     The second period would belong to the Cats as they expanded their lead to 3-1. A.J. Greer chalked up his fourth tally this year on a shorthanded goal with a backhand shot with 9:32 left. Eetu Luostarinen another shorthanded goal just 42 seconds later for his fifth goal in 2024-25. 

     In the third period, the Lightning cut it to 3-2 at the 3:26 mark. Brayden Point found the net with a wrist shot for his 22nd goal of the season 

     Reinhart completed the victory 4-2 scoring an empty-net goal with 31 seconds remaining. It was his second goal of the game and his 22nd goal this season.