Odds stacked against the Florida Panthers as they hit the road against Tampa for Game 3

The Florida Panthers needed to hold on to a one-goal lead for the final 15:51 in Sunday’s playoff opener against the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning.

They couldn’t.

The Lightning needed to hold on to a one-goal lead over the host Panthers for the final 25:39 in Tuesday’s Game 2 of this first-round best-of-7 series.

They could.

That, in essence, is why the Lightning are taking a 2-0 lead back home to Tampa Bay, where they will host Game 3 on Thursday.

“Our guys did a great job of shutting it down,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said following Tuesday’s 3-1 win.

But just how did the Lightning keep the Panthers off the scoreboard for the final 25-plus minutes?

For starters, the Lightning went 3 for 3 on their penalty kill, including 2 for 2 in the third period.

Secondly, the Lightning started taking shorter shifts, keeping players fresher, and they were physical. Center Blake Coleman had a game-high seven hits. Defenseman Ryan McDonagh had a game-high four blocks.

“[McDonagh] is a stud — a selfless player who sacrifices his body,” Cooper said. “On that last penalty kill, he was a monster. He’s a Stanley Cup champion for a reason.”

Third, Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy made 32 saves, playing a solid game.

“He’s our rock back there,” Lightning forward Steven Stamkos said of Vasilevskiy. “He was outstanding.”

The Lightning got goals from Stamkos and Ondrej Palat in the first period and Yanni Gourde’s empty-netter.

Florida managed only one goal — the first ever in the playoffs by 25-year-old rookie winger Mason Marchment.

One of the biggest moments of the game happened before the puck was even dropped as Panthers coach Joel Quenneville benched starting goalie Sergei Bobrovsky in place of Chris Driedger, who turned 27 on Tuesday and got his first-ever playoff start.

Driedger made 26 saves, but the Panthers — who lost 5-4 on Sunday — couldn’t generate much offense this time.

Quenneville seemed pleased with Driedger, although he didn’t go as far as naming his Game 3 goalie.

“He kept us in the game,” Quenneville said of Driedger. “He gave us a chance.

“Now we need to turn the momentum around as quickly as possible.”

To be fair, it’s hard to blame Driedger totally for the two goals that got past him. The first went in off a teammate (Anton Stralman), and the second caromed off the right post and went directly to a Lightning player’s stick for the rebound goal.

Driedger acknowledged as much in his postgame comments.

“We would have liked to get some bounces,” he said. “We’re due for some.”

The Panthers also need to be better on the power play, where they are just 1 for 6 with one shorthanded goal allowed in the two games of this series. Tampa Bay is 3-for-7 on its power play.

Tampa Bay has also struck first in both games. On Tuesday, Tampa Bay outshot the Panthers 15-9 and led 2-0 after the first period. And while those goals were unlucky for the Panthers, they cannot be absolved of blame.

On the first goal, the entire Panthers unit on the ice at the time — Stralman, Markus Nutivaara, Owen Tippett, Alex Wennberg and Jonathan Huberdeau — gave Stamkos way too much time and space right in front of the goal.

On the second goal, Tampa Bay’s Brayden Point badly beat Panthers defenseman MacKenzie Weegar, using his speed to skate around him and set up the play.

Weegar has had a sensational, breakthrough season, but it’s a reminder that the Panthers have played the last half of this season without the injured Aaron Ekblad, considered their best defenseman.

The Lightning have now proven they can beat the Panthers in both high-scoring and low-scoring games. Now the Lightning return home to their fans.

Tampa Bay is 7-0 in its playoff history when taking a 2-0 lead, meaning the odds are stacked high against the Panthers.

“This series is not over,” Stamkos cautioned. “[The Panthers] are not quitting. We’re expecting their best in Game 3.”