BRANDON — Geographically speaking, the Lightning and Florida Panthers are close rivals.
On the ice, however, they couldn’t be further apart through the 20-plus years the teams have been in the league.
Generally, the only thing the teams have competed for head-to-head has been draft position.
But now, finally, the Lightning and Panthers will meet today and compete for something meaningful as Florida rode a 12-game winning streak to the top of the Atlantic Division standings.
The Lightning, in third place in the division and riding a four-game winning streak, will look to close the gap between them and the Panthers.