SUNRISE, Fla. – The first battle is over, but the war wages on.

Meeting for the first time this season, the Tampa Bay Lightning took the first Battle of Florida by a score of 3-1 over the Florida Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday.

“I don’t like this loss,” defenseman Gustav Forsling said. “We’ll take this tonight and then come ready to play next game.”

Florida now sits at 9-8-1, while Tampa Bay improved to 9-6-2.

“They did a real good job blocking shots,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “We had 37 that never got to the net. That’s a bit of a challenge. I liked our penalty kill. That was the highlight of the game. Did a real good job with that. Didn’t generate much 5-on-5; didn’t give up much.”

Opening the scoring for the Lightning after an icing by the Panthers, defenseman Emi

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