Panthers Wrap-Up: Lightning 6, Panthers 5 (OT)
Lightning storm back from two down and Panthers only able to take one point.
![](http://3.cdn.nhle.com/panthers/images/upload/2013/02/PanthersLightning-021613-Large.jpg")
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
 |
 |
|||||||||||||||||||
 SUNRISE, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Lightning had a third consecutive third-period comeback Saturday afternoon. This time, they made it count. Benoit Pouliot scored his second goal 1:19 into overtime as the Lightning rallied from a two-goal deficit and snapped a six-game losing streak by beating the Florida Panthers 6-5. FULL RECAP |
 |
 - Panthers head coach Kevin Dineen. |
|||||||||||||||||||
 2. Flipping The Switch: Whenever Florida would score, Tampa Bay seemed to have an answer and that was the case in the first and early in the second. Florida however seemed to take the momentum and that was thanks to a late second period goal off the stick of Jerred Smithson. After Jack Skille, Matthias and Weaver combined to tie the score at two with 2:27 gone in the second, Steven Stamkos began his big night less than a minute later with a snipe past Jose Theodore for the 3-2 lead. Florida kept on pushing and was rewarded with Smithson's backhanded rebound goal with 4.2 seconds left in the period. The Panthers fed off that late goal as they scored twice in the opening 3:24 of the third. First it was rookie Jonathan Huberdeau with a sweet finish off of Drew Shore's cross-crease pass and then Tomas Kopecky scored from a tight angle on a delayed penalty, giving the Panthers a two-goal cushion and a 5-3 lead. 3. Hitting Groundhog's Day: When things aren't going great, it just seems to snowball and like the movie Groundhog's Day, the script fell into place once again. Similar to Washington the Panthers held a two-goal lead in the third and just like the Capitals game on Tuesday, Florida could only come out with one out of the two points. It all started with the Panthers being whistled for two penalties 18 seconds apart after getting a power play opportunity. Stamkos fired a shot past Theodore for a 4-on-3 power play goal making it a one goal game with 7:28 gone in the period. Then with Lindback on the bench for the extra skater, the Bolts superstar found Teddy Purcell in the slot for the equalizer with less than 11 seconds left on the clock. In overtime, it was Pouliot playing hero for his game-winner just 1:19 in. Like Bill Murray in the movie, the Panthers have to find a way to end the cycle and pull out the two points when leading in the third period. Hopefully it will happen sooner than later. |
|||||||||||||||||||||
 Memorable twitter posts from the game.
@Nick_Lonewolf: Come on @FlaPanthers 3 straight OTL's That's 3 points! One more game on this homestand. Let's make it a W and add 2 pts to the total on Mon! @BSchulk91: Another disappointing loss by the @FlaPanthers :-/ #getittogether @Jeggthree: These games drive me crazy. I can not imagine what it's like for you. Hope you get it turned around. @martysg: Really hoping I can bring a W to the @FlaPanthers Monday night...this recent streak has been painful to watch @Imcangel13: Tonight was disappointing #statusquo #FlaPanthers |
|
 Memorable fan posts from the game.
C.j. Rafferty: Twice in 5 days. Im literally in disbelief. Nick Maddaloni: Another heartbteaker Richard Herman Dobler: What a crazy game, and a tough loss. Steven Rudnick: 3 OT loses in a row.....WTH! Need to do something about this 4 on 4! Joseph Sisto: This is ridiculous. |
|||||||||||||||||||
 2. Forwards Shawn Matthias (1-1-2) and Jack Skille (1-1-2) along with defenseman Mike Weaver (0-2-2) combined to score the first two Panthers goals on the night. Skille and Weaver also recorded two point nights on the same night before, last coming on March 4, 2012 against Ottawa. |
|||||||||||||||||||||
2 Goals, 1 Assist, 3 Points, 5 Shots, 20:36 TOI
|
|
 |
|||||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
Panthers
Lightning
Author: Glenn Odebralski | FloridaPanthers.com
