The Buccaneers defeated the Panthers 41-17 to end the regular season on Sunday. With the Rams’ overtime defeat to the 49ers, Tampa has secured the No.2 seed in the NFC and will meet the Eagles in the Wild Card game the following week. Saturday update: The Cowboys won against the Eagles.
- The Buccaneers may still be anywhere between the No.2 and No.4 seeds.
- The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are trying to defend their Super Bowl title and have already secured a postseason berth by winning the NFC South.
- Since winning a division, they have secured the No.4 seed as their lowest possible landing location.
With a Week 18 victory over the Carolina Panthers, they have the opportunity to advance to the No.2 seed. The 12-4 Buccaneers have won consecutive games over the Carolina Panthers and the New York Jets to begin Week 18. In Week 15, they were stunned by the New Orleans Saints when Tom Brady’s offense was held scoreless.
The Panthers’ 3-0 start to the season seems like ages ago now that they have lost six consecutive games. Their most recent loss came to the Saints by a score of 18-10. Before the 2020 season, the Buccaneers have not qualified for the postseason since 2007. They were unsuccessful in the Wild Card round in 2005 and 2007.
In 2002, Tampa Bay finished with a regular-season record of 12-4 and defeated the Las Vegas Raiders to win Super Bowl XXXVII. Relevant games affecting the Buccaneers’ seeding include: Panthers vs. Buccaneers 49ers vs. Rams Seahawks vs. Cardinals Cowboys against Eagles On NFLPlayoffScenarios.com, all seeding options are categorized.
What playoff seed are the Buccaneers?
2-seeded If the Buccaneers win on Sunday, they will host a second game.
Lightning will play the Panthers in the second round of the Eastern Conference The Lightning will face the Panthers in the second round of the Eastern Conference in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Saturday’s Game 7 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs resulted in a 2-1 victory for Tampa Bay.
Friday at Capital One Arena, Florida eliminated the Washington Capitals with a 4-3 overtime victory in Game 6 of the first round. “After observing them against the Capitals, the series could have gone either way,” said Lightning player Ross Colton. “We have a general idea of what to expect from them. It’s going to be a slog, and I believe right now we just want to relish this moment, but tomorrow we have to get right back to work, knowing that they’ll have bad blood from last year (when we defeated them in the first round in six games).
Certainly, we can’t overlook them.” The Panthers will have home-ice advantage against the Lightning, who are the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions and the No.3 seed from the Atlantic Division. The Panthers are the top seed from the Atlantic Division and won the Presidents’ Trophy as the NHL team with the best regular-season record.
- Nikita Kucherov led the Lightning with eight points (two goals, six assists) against the Maple Leafs, followed by Victor Hedman with seven points (two goals, five assists).
- Forwards Ondrej Palat (three goals, two assists) and Colton (three goals, two assists) both accumulated five points (three goals, two assists).
Andrei Vasilevskiy started each game and surrendered 22 goals on 214 shots faced (.897 save percentage). Carter Verhaeghe led the Panthers in playoff scoring with 12 points (six goals, six assists), including overtime-winning goals in Games 4 and 6 against Washington.
- Aleksander Barkov has six points (two goals, four assists), Claude Giroux has seven points (three goals, four assists), and Aaron Ekblad has five points (two goals, four assists) (one goal, four assists).
- Sergei Bobrovsky has started every playoff game this year and has a 2.79 GAA and.901 save percentage.
During the regular season, the Panthers defeated the Lightning 3-1-1, paced by Jonathan Huberdeau’s seven points (two goals, five assists). Barkov, Sam Reinhart, and Anton Lundell each scored two goals and dished out three assists, while Anthony Duclair contributed four points (three goals, one assist).
Spencer Knight was 2-1-0 with a 3.54 GAA and.900 save percentage, while Bobrovsky was 0-2-1 with a 4.03 GAA and.850 save percentage. Hedman paced the Lightning with six points as they went 2-2-0 versus Florida (one goal, five assists). Brayden Point scored in each of the four games, Steven Stamkos had five points (three goals, two assists), while Kucherov scored two goals and dished out three assists in his lone matchup on April 24.
Vasilevskiy started three games and posted a 2-1-0 record with a 3.01 GAA and.908 save percentage. Brian Elliott, the backup, did not play. The Panthers, who reached the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 1996, when they lost in the Stanley Cup Final to the Colorado Avalanche, had faced the Lightning just once, falling in six games in the Stanley Cup First Round last season.
“Florida is a formidable club, we’ve been watching them all season,” stated Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper. “We’ve engaged in some incredible conflicts with them. People, particularly in Florida, have begged for the two teams to be competitors and compete. I believe that last year many people believed that series to be the best in the postseason.
They have restructured their team and added notable players. It should be an absolute blast. It’s great for hockey that they’re so competitive and entertaining to play against “Lightning will face the Panthers in the Eastern Second Round.
Have the Buccaneers any shot of making the playoffs?
There is currently a 55% likelihood that the Buccaneers will make the playoffs.
