Panthers Rally Late to Push Lightning to the Brink

In one of the most dramatic finishes of the postseason so far, the Florida Panthers stormed back in the final minutes of Game 4 to stun the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 and move within one win of advancing. With just under four minutes left in regulation, Florida had only managed three shots in the third period—then everything changed in a matter of seconds.

Aaron Ekblad, playing in only his second game back from suspension, buried a rebound to tie the game 2-2 with 3:47 remaining. Before the crowd at Amerant Bank Arena could settle down, Seth Jones lit the lamp just 11 seconds later, capping the fastest sequence of goals by defensemen from the same team in NHL playoff history. Carter Verhaeghe later added an empty-netter to seal the win.

The Panthers entered the final frame trailing 2-1 after Tampa’s Mitchell Chaffee and Erik Cernak scored back-to-back in the second period. Florida had opened the scoring earlier in that frame when Anton Lundell broke through after a flurry of near-misses against Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Tensions ran high all night, as they have all series. A hit from Ekblad in the second period sent Tampa Bay’s Brandon Hagel to the locker room with an apparent head injury—no penalty was called. Hagel, recently returning from suspension himself, did not return.

The physical nature of the series has become a defining storyline, with controversial hits marring the last three games. Monday was no exception. Florida defenseman Niko Mikkola was ejected early in the third for boarding, but the Panthers’ penalty kill held strong, giving them the momentum they needed to rally.

With a 3-1 series lead, Florida now heads to Tampa with a chance to close things out. But the message from the Panthers’ locker room was clear: the job’s not finished.

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