In Sunrise, the Panthers took a 2-1 lead over the Tampa Lightning into the third period on Monday night. 
“Just to be in a playoff series against your biggest rival is so cool and so much fun to begin with,’’ the Panthers’ Matthew Tkachuk said. “To come out on top, be a part of the team that was able to do that for the first time makes it more special. … We’re probably going to be playing our next-biggest rival, so there will not be an emotional letdown.”
That was all they needed, but they padded the advantage with four unanswered goals in the third period to rout the Lightning, 6-1, and win their opening round Stanley Cup Playoff series, 4-1.
The third period was a disaster for the Lightning, with all of the scoring coming in the back half of the frame.
Aleksander Barkov scored his second goal of the game at 11:06 to extend the lead to 3-1 for the Panthers. He scored off an errant puck at the crease.
“It feels nice to score goals, but I have said before that it does not matter on our team,” Barkov said. “Obviously, a lot of them have come from [Verhaeghe], he gets a ton of big ones in the playoffs and regular season. Every player in our lineup can score, can do anything on the ice. That is what makes us special.”
Evan Rodrigues stretched the lead to 4-1 at 14:16, scoring off a one-timer from the left circle.
Tampa opted to gamble with an early empty net behind them. The Panthers made them regret that.
Carter Verhaeghe collected a double of his own at 16:03 to with an empty-net strike for a 5-1 lead.
Niko Mikkola scored a second empty-netter at 18:50 for the 6-1 final count on the scoreboard.
“I am really happy for the players who went through the pain of not having success,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “Two critical guys in the game … Barkov and Bobrovsky, when you are the No. 1 goaltender and the captain, and a series doesn’t go your way, most guys look at them. They have to answer for it. Those guys were good tonight, good the whole series. They dealt with some pain in that loss.’’
Sergei Bobrovsky made 31 saves in the win.
“Every series is different and this group of guys is special,” Bobrovsky said. “We work so hard to have structure and everyone executed it. We are really close, really love each other.”
The Panthers now wait for the winner of the Boston Bruins-Toronto Maple Leafs series; Boston leads that series3-1.
After a scoreless opening stanza, the Panthers took a 2-0 lead in the middle frame.
“Some casual fans will wake up in the morning and be like, ‘Well, Tampa Bay got blown out,’” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “Anyone who follows this game knows that was not the case. There were a lot of things that didn’t go our way tonight, lot of things that didn’t go our way in the series. … I know how fortunate our teams have been when we have won. You make your own breaks.”
Verhaeghe potted his first of the match with 46 seconds gone in the period to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead.
“They had our number the past couple of years,’’ Verhaeghe said. “Finally, we got one on them. It feels good.”
Barkov added his first at 12:38, scoring on a shorthanded goal off a rebound of a shot by Aaron Ekblad.
“When there is one team that always kind of beats you in the playoffs, both times in similar situations where we had home-ice advantage,’’ Barkov said, “you want to beat them, get over that hump. We respected them, they have been unbelievable in past years … there is a lot to learn from that team and that organization. So, it definitely feels great now to be able to beat them.’’
Victor Hedman was the lone striker for Tampa Bay, his goal at 13:37 trimmed the deficit to 2-1 headed to the third.
Tampa Bay had two goals waved off after video review in the game.
Andrei Vasilevskiy made 33 saves in the loss.
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