Bennett and Brad Marchand each had a goal and three assists for Florida, which trailed 4-1 midway through the second period. Carter Verhaeghe had two goals and an assist, and defenseman Seth Jones had a goal and an assist.
Bennett, with a rushing shot, received a brilliant pass from Marchand and beat Elvis Merzlikin to the stick side. It was Bennett's seventh goal of the season.
Cole Sillinger, Isak Lundestrom, Dmitry Voronkov and Miles Wood had a goal and an assist for Columbus in the first of a three-game series. Damon Severson and Kirill Marchenko also scored.
Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 25 shots for Florida, and Merzlikins finished with 33 saves.
Voronkov, Marchenko and Wood scored in the second goal to help Columbus open a 4-1 lead. For Voronkov and Marchenko it was number 10 of the season.
Verhaeghe responded with back-to-back goals less than two minutes apart, and Jones made it 4-4 with a power-play goal with 3:48 left in the second.
Columbus retook the lead on Sillinger's third goal with 1:34 left in the period, and Lundestrom's first goal of the season made it 6-4 at 2:27 of the third.
But Marchand answered with his 16th goal at 4:21, and Anton Lundell tied the game at 6 with 5:42 left. It was Lundell's seventh goal of the season.
Blue Jackets: At Washington on Sunday.
Panthers: Host the New York Islanders on Sunday.
