Despite losing starting netminder Ben Bishop to injury in the first, the Lightning were able to gather themselves for a 3-1 Game 1 victory.
Backup Andrei Vasilevskiy saved 25 of 26 shots faced in 48 minutes of ice time.
The first period saw three players go down to injury and just one return by the frame's end. Ryan Callahan drilled Kris Letang high along the boards, knocking the Penguins defenseman out until late in the first. Then, Bishop went down with an apparent knee injury after a scramble in the crease. Tyler Johnson also took a hit to the knee in the dying moments of the first. Johnson returned to the game in the second, but backup Vasilevskiy finished out the game in net in place of Bishop.
Tampa Bay opened the scoring in the first. Alex Killorn caught a stretch pass from Victor Hedman and gained separation from the Penguins defender. Killorn put the moves on Matt Murray and slipped the puck in on the backhand for the 1-0 score with 1:14 left in the first.
Ondrej Palat then doubled the score 2:33 into the second on a Lightning power play. A bad rebound from Murray fell right to Palat at the side of the net, and he was able to settle the puck on his backhand to tuck it home past the leg of the Penguins netminder.
A 3-on-1 chance for the Lightning extended Tampa Bay's lead to 3-0 with less than two minutes to go in the second. Palat's cross-ice pass went right over the stick of a Pittsburgh defender to Jonathan Drouin. Drouin one-timed the puck past Murray to finish off a beautiful breakout play.
The Penguins did cut the lead to 3-1 on a power play goal less than a minute later, with 55 seconds left in the frame. Patric Hornqvist's rocket of a shot found the net as Vasilevskiy was screened by his own defenseman on the goal, but it would be the only one the Penguins would get in the loss after a scoreless third period.
Brian Dumoulin was injured late after being boarded by Palat for the game's fourth injury. He did not return in the final moments of the game.