Roberto Luongo's 38 saves proved to be too much for the Lightning at the BB&T Center in Sunrise as the Panthers defeated the Lightning 4-2 in this preseason tilt.
After a scoreless first period that saw the Panthers outshoot the Lightning 13-6, the Panthers began to pull away in the second period. Jonathan Huberdeau scored twice, the second one on the power play, and put the Panthers in control going into the final frame.
The Lightning tried to rally in the third period, but every time they did so the Panthers had an answer. Ryan Callahan scored at 7:35 in the third to pull within 2-1, but Connor Brickley answered with a score that pushed the lead back to two and would prove to be too much for the Lightning to overcome. Nikita Kucherov scored with just over a minute to go in the game to pull within 3-2, but Vincent Trocheck answered with an empty net goal to clinch a 4-2 Panthers victory.
Roberto Luongo had 38 saves on 40 shots on net, while Andrei Vasilevskiy went 29-for-32 in net for the Bolts. Tampa Bay and Florida meet for the final time this preseason when they battle on Thursday evening - note an earlier faceoff time, as the puck drops at 6 PM, beginning with a 5:30 pregame on News Radio 970 WFLA.