The Tampa Bay Lightning dropped their third straight to the Florida Panthers, and are now at risk of being swept in the series. Lightning Coach Jon Cooper shared a pretty wild message with his players following the loss.
The Florida Panthers were definitely the favourites heading into the series between them and the Tampa Bay Lightning for the battle of Florida, however, no one expected them to sweep the former cup winners from 2020 and 2021. However, after they won their third straight last night to go up 3-0 on the series, it is looking like that is a real possibility.
After the game, Lightning coach Jon Cooper shared the comments he made to his players after the game, stating that if they didn't believe they could turn it around then they should not show up.
Obviously, at this level no player truly counts themselves out. That is what makes professional athletes so competitive. However, they can also live in reality understanding that they face a massive uphill battle to crawl back into this series.