The Panthers got past first-ballot Hall of Famers Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin this week, but they couldn’t beat rising superstar Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Kucherov, who leads the NHL with 84 points, scored two goals and added one assist as Tampa Bay beat the host Panthers 5-2 on Sunday night.
In a quirk of the game, Florida outshot Tampa Bay 17-3 in the second period yet each team scored twice in those 20 minutes.
“That [determined] the game,” Panthers coach Bob Boughner said. “We should have come out of there at least tied [instead of trailing 3-2] or even up one.