Do the Lightning have the depth to avoid elimination in Game 5?

Of the storylines heading into Monday night’s slate of Stanley Cup Playoff action, some are wondering if the Tampa Bay Lightning have enough to avoid elimination once again.

In the third edition of the Battle of Florida in four years, the Panthers—the Atlantic Division Champions—jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the series, putting the Lightning on the brink of elimination. When facing the possibility of being swept out of the playoffs for the first time in five years, Tampa came out with a great effort on Saturday, winning 6-3.

However, they have to do it again on Monday night, this time down in Sunrise, where Florida squeaked by with a couple of 3-2 wins to open the series. If not, it will be the first time since 2007 that the Bolts have been knocked out in the first round in back-to-back years.

On Monday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, former NHLers Colby Cohen and Carter Hutton give their thoughts on whether or not the Lightning can force a Game 6.

Carter Hutton: I think [the Lightning] have enough, but I think the Florida Panthers have too much, in my opinion. The team is just built to win in the playoffs. The depth they have is going to be overwhelming for his Tampa Bay Lightning team.

You never want to count them out, especially with Andrei Vasilevskiy in net, getting Mikhail Sergachev back, and all the stars that they carry. They still have their core, but I believe the Florida Panthers are just going to be too overwhelming, especially with a 3-1 lead and two games at home.

Colby Cohen: I think that’s going to be a really difficult mountain to climb…Give a lot of credit to the way Steven Stamkos is playing. This is a guy who is playing for a contract, this is not a guy who wants to go off into the night quietly.

You can watch the full segment, and the entire episode here…