Panthers prevail in Battle of Florida, eliminate Lightning

The Florida Panthers pulled away in the third period to win 6-1 in Monday's Game 5 and eliminate the Tampa Bay Lightning.

It's the Panthers' first playoff series victory over their in-state rivals. Florida will play either the Boston Bruins or Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round.

"We knew this was a big game for us, coming back home," captain Aleksander Barkov said, per Bally Sports Florida. "We got a big steal in Tampa. ... Today, I think we showed up."

He added, "Of course, we know there's a history between us two. We know Tampa has won Cups and been in the finals. And they're so close to us, one-hour flight, that it almost pisses me off. At the same time, huge respect to them, they've been an unreal franchise for a long time. But this time we got the best of them."

The Panthers scored twice to make it 4-1 in the final frame before adding two empty-netters. Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe each notched two goals.

Tampa Bay saw two goals called back due to goaltender interference.

The Lightning have now seen their campaign end in the first round in consecutive years. The Maple Leafs eliminated Tampa in six games last season.

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