The Florida Panthers were a team on a mission during their first round matchup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2024-25 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Just like last NHL season, the Cats prevailed over the Bolts in five games, causing a sincere, yet painful confession from Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper.
The Lightning have had nothing to show for a great regular season after matching up with their in-state rivals, the Panthers, for the second straight year in the Stanley Cup Playoffs First Round.
The Lightning no longer “own” the Panthers, as they did during their golden days in the early 2020’s. The tables have turned, and Florida is now asserting their dominance over Tampa Bay, with consecutive playoff series wins to even their historic record in the postseason.
Cooper and the Lightning are coming to terms with a tough reality: the bragging rights in the Sunshine State now belong to the Panthers. After Marchand and the Cats stormed into Amalie Arena and eliminated the Bolts from the NHL playoffs, Cooper couldn’t sidestep the hard truth, offering a stinging, five-word admission about their archrivals from Sunrise.
“They have an exceptional team,” Jon Cooper said about Marchand’s Panthers after the series loss in 5 games during his postgame press conference.
Insult to injury
The Panthers have waited a long time to finally be the best team in the Battle of Florida. After enduring rough years, while their neighbors from up in Central Florida conquered three Stanley Cups, the Cats have finally flipped the script.
And now it’s their time to celebrate. After sealing a 6-3 road win, Matthew Tkachuk didn’t hold back—taking a verbal victory lap over the Bolts with a blunt postgame statement.
“I don’t know if it’s really a rivalry,” Tkachuk stated, taking a clear shot at the Bolts, following Game 5, via TSN. “It’s nice to beat them back-to-back years, both in 5. It’s been fun playing them.
“We’ve had some success the last couple of years, and hopefully we can keep that momentum going. Hard fought series, I guess we don’t like them, and I know they don’t like us.”
Is it the end of the road for Cooper and Tampa Bay?
With Mike Sullivan parting ways with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Jon Cooper now stands head and shoulders above his peers as the longest-tenured head coach in the NHL, widening the gap after leading the Lightning since 2013.
However, he may soon relinquish that title, as insider Frank Seravalli reports that the Lightning’s bench boss has engaged in conversations about becoming the next head coach of the Utah Hockey Club.
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It might be the end of an era in Tampa, if their historic coach, who’s led them to four Stanley Cup Finals, two Stanley Cups, and a Presidents’ Trophy in his 12 full seasons with the Lightning.