Predictions. The lifeblood of any sports fan, really. To sit down and discuss, analyze, contemplate, examine, and finally arrive at predictions that end up hilariously off base or prophetically on point is almost ritualistic. And like with any other sport, before the Stanley Cup Playoffs kicked off, there were tons of predictions floating around from everyone in the NHL community. Remember when NBA legend Charles Barkley picked the Tampa Bay Lightning instead of Matthew Tkachuk’s Florida Panthers? That was something, right? Well, with the way the series is shaping up, this may end up being one of those off-base takes after all.

“Man, I can’t,” Barkley said, taking a deep breath when it was time to make the choice. Barkley brought up a good point with the Panthers in line, asking, “Yeah, but is [Matthew] Tkachuk playing is the question. And they got [Brad] Marchand at the trade deadline, too.” But when the moment came, he chose Tampa Bay, saying, “You know what? I’m going with the hot goalie. My man, [Andrei] Vasilevskiy. I’m going with him.”

Considering that the Panthers are the defending champions, and Matthew Tkachuk is very much in the mix, this choice really caught a lot of fans off guard. It seems like that choice has already come back to bite them. In what way? According to MoneyPuck.com on X, it looks like the Panthers have pretty good odds for the Cup as we head into Game 4.

So, it looks like the Toronto Maple Leafs have a solid 95.2% chance of making it to the 2nd round, and Florida isn’t too far behind with an 83.7% chance. How’s Tampa Bay looking? They’ve got a 16.3% chance.. The Panthers have a 42.9% shot at making it to Round 3, and a 24.7% chance of reaching the Conference Finals. But, they’ve got the best shot at winning the Stanley Cup again, sitting at a 14.1% chance.

This is definitely something, right? Right now, the Lightning are really putting the pressure on the Panthers. They’re ahead in Game 3 with a score of 2-1, and there’s just the third period left for Florida to turn things around. However, one of Tampa Bay’s key players is not present for this game.

A certain advantage for Matthew Tkachuk’s Florida Panthers

In Game 2, the Florida Panthers faced off against the Tampa Bay Lightning, and things got a bit heated when Brandon Hagel laid a big body check on the opposing team’s captain, Aleksander Barkov, resulting in a five-minute major penalty for him. But the controversial hit sparked a lot of debates about whether Hagel might get suspended.

So, Hagel ended up getting a one-game suspension from the NHL’s Department of Player Safety because of an interference incident with the Panthers’ captain. And you know what? The vibe in the Tampa Bay locker room was definitely one of frustration. Coach Jon Cooper shared his thoughts, saying, “I think the only frustration is he got suspended. Obviously, our guys were not sure if that would happen or not. It’s frustrating he did, but he’s a big part of our team, one of the leaders on our team. I think sometimes you can draw inspiration from that.”

The Lightning are feeling the heat since they’ve dropped the first two games. Not having one of their star players has definitely added some more tension. Cooper totally gets the frustrations, but he also pointed out just how crucial Hagel is to their team. But really, there’s not much he can do about the suspension except just wait for Game 4 to roll around.