Steven Stamkos earns ultimate praise from Lightning coach despite 3-0 series hole

The Tampa Bay Lightning appeared to be one of the NHL's most dangerous teams in the final weeks of the regular season. At one point in the season, the Lightning appeared to be in jeopardy of missing the playoffs, but they rode the hot hand of Nikita Kucherov and leadership of Steven Stamkos to secure the top Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. The Panthers have won the first three games of the series, coming through with clutch efforts when each game was on the line.