As Matthew Tkachuk looked down at the scoresheet from the Florida Panthers’ 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning to begin the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Sunday afternoon, one tidbit stood out above the rest.

“Everyone got a hit,” the Panthers’ star winger said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that.”

The physicality was expected, given all the circumstances surrounding the game.

It’s the start of the playoffs, with the Panthers trying to repeat their magic of a season ago when they made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals and the Lightning trying to return to form after a first-round exit last season and making the playoffs this year as a wild-card team.

There’s the emotions of the matchup, too, with the Panthers and Lightning forming one of the NHL’s better rivalries and Florida trying to finally upend its in-state rival in the playoffs after losing both times they met up in the past.

“Everyone’s trying to be physical and set the tone for the series,” forward Carter Verhaeghe said. “We came out hot, getting a lot of hits. They were hitting us back. It was a good, physical game.”

And it played right into Florida’s identity, giving the Panthers the edge they needed in a defense-heavy series opener to take the 1-0 series lead over the Lightning. It’s the first time since the 1997 playoffs that the Panthers won their first game of the opening round of the playoffs. They had started the past seven consecutive playoffs in a 0-1 hole in the first round.

The teams combined for 109 hits — 55 for Tampa, 54 for Florida — but the Panthers maneuvered through the physicality to outshoot the Lightning 28-19. Florida held Tampa Bay without a shot on goal for the first 16 minutes, using an aggressive forecheck and stifling defense in its own zone to limit the Lightning’s scoring chances.

“We all play the same way,” Florida forward Sam Reinhart said. “It’s defensive-minded first and that’s what gives us offense. Those are the types of games that you expect to play this year, and you’ve got to be comfortable in those games.”

Added Verhaeghe: “It’s not frustrating. We kind of come in here and we expect it. Every game, we’re playing against a really good team. It’s going to be a tight-checking game. We know they have weapons. They know we have weapons. ... It’s going to be one break that wins the game.”

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