Florida Panthers vs Tampa Bay Lightning Picks and Predictions April 26th 2025

Florida in Full Control Heading into Game 3

The Florida Panthers are showing why they are the reigning Stanley Cup champions, and they have a surprising postseason star leading the way. Defenseman Nate Schmidt has sparked Florida to a 2-0 series lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning as the teams shift to Sunrise, Fla., for Saturday’s Game 3.

Schmidt, a veteran blueliner who scored just five goals in the regular season, already has three goals through two playoff games. His timely scoring has made him only the second defenseman in the NHL’s modern era to record the game-winning goal in each of the first two games of a playoff series, joining Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom.

Signed by Florida last offseason after being bought out by Winnipeg, Schmidt has delivered more than the Panthers could have hoped for — especially at a bargain $800,000 contract.

“He’s being aggressive, and it’s great to see,” said Panthers teammate Seth Jones. “He’s shooting with confidence, and it’s paying off.”

However, not everything is smooth sailing for Florida. Captain Aleksander Barkov exited Game 2 midway through the third period after an off-puck hit by Tampa Bay’s Brandon Hagel, who was given a major penalty after video review. Florida has not provided an update on Barkov’s status heading into Saturday.

Lightning Facing Uphill Battle

For the Tampa Bay Lightning, this series is quickly slipping away. Thursday’s 2-0 loss marked their first playoff shutout defeat since 2018, and Tampa Bay has now lost seven of its past eight postseason games dating back to 2022.

The Lightning’s power play, ranked fifth during the regular season, faltered badly in Game 2 by going 0-for-5. Entering Game 3, generating quality scoring chances will be crucial for Tampa Bay, who have found Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky tough to crack.

Find the Best NHL Odds & Betting Trends! – Maximize your winnings with data-driven bets.

“We’ve got to get more traffic in front of him,” Lightning forward Jake Guentzel said. “We’ve got to create chaos in front of the net.”

Another concern is the quiet play of Nikita Kucherov. Despite leading the NHL with 121 points in the regular season, Kucherov has gone 12 straight playoff games without scoring a goal and has registered just one assist in this series.

Andre Vasilevskiy showed improvement in net for Tampa Bay in Game 2, allowing just one goal before a late empty-netter. However, if the Lightning’s offensive stars can’t solve Bobrovsky soon, their postseason could end far earlier than they planned.

Saturday’s Game 3 is critical, and for bettors tracking NHL Expert Picks, the Panthers’ momentum — especially with Schmidt’s unlikely heroics — could tip the balance even further.