SUNRISE - The Florida Panthers closed their abbreviated preseason with a 3-2 shootout loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday at Amerant Bank Arena, but the result mattered far less than what the team’s young core showed over four games heading into Tuesday’s season opener in Raleigh.
Florida finished the preseason 2-0-2, including a road win over Tampa Bay on Thursday with a youth-heavy lineup. Saturday’s game featured more balanced rosters, and the Lightning went 2-for-3 in the shootout to take the final exhibition contest. Florida Hockey Now first reported the game details.
Backup goaltender Akira Schmid made his first preseason start and stopped 20 shots across 65 minutes of action before the shootout decided the outcome. The Lightning’s Lucas Mercuri opened the scoring at 8:50 of the first period, burying a feed from Nicholas Abruzzese. Sandis Vilmanis answered at 17:58 of the first, hopping on a loose puck deep in the Tampa zone for his second goal of the preseason.
The go-ahead goal came from 20-year-old defenseman Matvei Shuravin at 2:03 of the second period, his hard shot from the point sailing past Cole Rienhardt. Shuravin, a third-round pick two years ago making his North American pro debut this season, has drawn attention throughout camp. Benjamin Rautainen tied it on a power-play goal at 12:58 of the third before the Lightning closed it out in the shootout.
Mikulas Hovorka, Marek Alscher, and Donovan Sebrango - who dove to block a shot that may have prevented a second-period goal - also turned in strong performances for Florida’s defensive group.
Before Saturday’s game, the Panthers placed three players on waivers to report to the Charlotte Checkers: defensemen Toby Bjornfot and Casey Fitzgerald, and forward Angus Crookshank. Additional roster cuts were expected Sunday.
Florida opens the 2026-27 regular season Tuesday at 5 p.m. against the Carolina Hurricanes at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, with national coverage on ESPN and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu. The Panthers hold a 2-0 postseason record against Carolina, having eliminated the Hurricanes in the 2023 and 2025 Eastern Conference Finals. Carolina leads the all-time regular season series 75-50-11 with 11 ties, and Florida won the most recent regular-season meeting 2-1. The teams will meet again at home Jan. 21 and March 10.