According to Idman.Biz, the incident broke out after Florida forward Matthew Tkachuk shoved Tampa star Nikita Kucherov from behind, sparking a mass confrontation involving players from both teams and forcing officials to stop play.
As a result, Tkachuk received a five-minute major for fighting and an additional two-minute minor for interference. Kucherov was assessed a 10-minute misconduct penalty for unsportsmanlike behaviour. In total, 11 players were penalised during the incident, with referees handing out a combined 137 penalty minutes.
Despite the disruption, Tampa Bay remained firmly in control after play resumed, extending their lead and comfortably closing out the game. The result underlined the Lightning’s strength on home ice, while the Panthers were left to reflect on a night where loss of discipline proved costly in a heated divisional clash.
