The Panthers had previously met the Rangers in the postseason once. The Blueshirts knocked off the Cats during the 1997 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals in five games.
Florida moved ahead 1-0 with 3:34 left in the opening frame. Carter Verhaeghe pushed an outlet pass out of his zone. Gustav Forsling entered the Rangers zone and made a square pass to his left. Matthew Tkachuk snapped a shot from the above the left circle past Igor Shesterkin for his fifth goal in the postseason. It was Tkachuk's 16th playoff goal with Florida which is tied for second in franchise history.
There was no scoring by either team during the second period. The Panthers increased it to 2-0 with 3:38 remaining in the third period. Verhaeghe released a wrist shot from the left circle which went off the stick of Alexis Lafreniere and into the cage for his seventh playoff goal.
The Rangers pulled their goalie for an extra attacker with 3:33 to go. Sam Reinhart fired a forehand shot from the neutral zone into an empty net with 1:19 left for a 3-0 advantage. It was Bennett's third goal in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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