Lightning vs Panthers Picks and Prediction – 4/26/2025

The Tampa Bay Lightning will be on the road for the first time in the playoffs Saturday with the game in Sunrise against the Florida Panthers. Tampa Bay won 47 games this season but come into game 3 of this series on a three-game losing streak after consecutive losses to begin the playoffs. Offensively Tampa Bay has averaged 3.56 goals of 28.5 shots per game this season but have scored just twice during their last three losses. Defensively Tampa Bay allows 2.63 goals and 20.2 shots per game season but have given up an average of four goals per game over their last three outings. Stay in the action with our NHL Picks.

Nikita Kucherov led the Tampa Bay offense this season with 121 points and 84 assists. Brandon Hagel scored 90 points across 82 games good enough for second on the roster. Brayden Point chipped in a third-best 82 points and a team-leading 42 goals this season.

The Florida Panthers return home Saturday after winning 47 games this season coming into this matchup on a 2 game-winning streak. Offensively Florida averages three goals on 31.6 shots per game but have averaged four goals per game in the playoffs. Defensively Florida has allowed 2.72 goals on 26.2 shots per game this season but they have given up an average of one goal per game against Tampa Bay in this series.

Five different players are tied atop the leaderboard from Florida this postseason with three points apiece. Nate Schmidt leads the team however with three goals through two games played. Aleksander Barkov has posted a team high 3 assists during the postseason as well. Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, and Matthew Tkachuk are the other three players on the roster with three points apiece.

The Panthers are in full control of this series up 2 games to none and now go home. Look for Florida to continue to dominate this series against their instate rival. Take the Panthers Saturday to do the job leading to the home win in game 3. Final Score Prediction, Florida Panthers win 4-2.