Aleksander Barkov leads Florida Panthers to series-clinching win over Tampa Bay Lightning

The puck was loose in front of the net, and both Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk pounced at the opportunity.

As the Florida Panthers’ stars jammed at the puck, Barkov finally did just enough to get it past Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Immediately after scoring that third-period goal, Barkov dropped to one knee and gave a rare show of emotion with an emphatic fist pump before being bombarded in celebration by Tkachuk and Oliver Ekman-Larsson.

“I don’t know what to say there,” Barkov said. “It doesn’t happen too often. I definitely felt great.”

Barkov, the Panthers’ unquestioned captain for the past six seasons, tends to lead quietly. He commands his respect by his uncanny ability on the ice more so than the words he speaks.

He made as loud of a statement as he could on the ice Monday.

Barkov recorded his first career multi-goal playoff game to lead the Panthers to a 6-1, series-clinching Game 5 win over the Lightning at Amerant Bank Arena.

“Barky’s our leader,” forward Carter Verhaeghe said. “He leads the way up there and we all follow him. He’s been unbelievable all year. It’s no different here in the playoffs. He comes up big. Big goals. He does everything right every game. A lot of guys on our team try and emulate and try to be like him.”

Barkov scored shorthanded 12:38 into the second period to give Florida a 2-0 lead and then added the celebration-worthy insurance goal at even strength with 8:54 left in regulation to put Florida up 3-1 and essentially seal the series. Verhaeghe opened scoring 45 seconds into the second period and scored one of two empty-netters — defenseman Niko Mikkola got the other. Evan Rodrigues also tallied a third-period goal. Victor Hedman scored Tampa Bay’s only goal of the game with 6:23 left in the second period. Sergei Bobrovsky stopped everything else that came his way, making 31 saves.

And Barkov’s two goals came in addition to everything else Barkov does so well on the ice.

The Lightning had just seven shots on goal in nearly 21-and-a-half minutes Barkov was on the ice. Barkov also had four hits, a pair of blocked shots and won 11 of 14 faceoffs.

“He was so dominant,” Tkachuk said. “It was like a man competing against boys out there.”

Panthers coach Paul Maurice has praised the way Barkov has played this season on numerous occasions. Most of the time, his production doesn’t show up in the form of goals or assists.

But the way he approaches the game — his defensive responsibility, masterful stick work, ability to score and, new this year, an increased emphasis on physicality — commands the attention of his teammates and coaches.

“He’s kind of built himself now for the playoff game,” Maurice said. “He really doesn’t play a puck game, but he can. He’s going to the net on the short-handed goal. He’s driving, so now he’s able to lead other players. It’s difficult to be an example to people who can’t do what you can do, but the hard things that he does in the game, we can all do it. We can all compete shift on and shift out.

“He’s become a real fine leader for this team,” Maurice added, “because he’s become more like everybody else ... and then in saying that he’s not like everybody else.”

Don’t expect Barkov to slow down as the playoffs continue.

Next up for Florida: A second-round matchup with either the Boston Bruins or Toronto Maple Leafs. Boston leads that series 3-1, with Game 5 of that series on Tuesday.