First period
- Nick Suzuki just catches himself at the end of the first shift of the game to avoid going face-first into the boards on a hit as he was changing.
- A two-on-one develops on the next shift, and Kaiden Guhle finds Joel Armia for the opening goal.
- Very nearly 2-0 just moments later on a scramble around Andrei Vasilevskiy’s crease.
- I hope the Habs don’t decide to drop their level when they realize the Lightning aren’t playing like the Panthers were. A nice 9-2 win would be fine here.
- Erik Cernak decides to throw a shot at Arber Xhekaj as the linesman was trying to wrap him up. I think Xhekaj’s fists were flying at about 107.2 miles per hour as he took Cernak down. Cernak also ended up putting his team on the penalty kill with the original roughing minor, so just not an intelligent sequence from the Lightning defenceman.
- The Lightning are making Montreal’s second unit look good, and that’s the best indication of how poorly Tampa Bay is playing so far.
- Alex Newhook just dumped the puck in and beat three Tampa Bay defenders to get to the puck first. It almost seems like the host team wants to enjoy a long off-season this year. Remember it took a 180-foot empty-net goal of their own doing to inspire them the last time these teams played.
- Tampa Bay is now looking for stretch passes.
- Brendan Gallagher does some good work in the corner on the forecheck and sets up a second goal, to Jake Evans. It’s nice to see that line doing something productive.
- Vasilevskiy just makes a wild swipe with his glove and ends up just deflecting a Cole Caufield shot to the corner.
- A few boos from the Lightning fans as the period ends, a lot more cheers from the Canadians in attendance who like how the game is going. Two goals for Montreal’s middle six, five shots for Tampa Bay.
Second period
- Guhle makes a nice play in the opening minutes to not just lift the stick of Brayden Point, but then keep his stick high to show he’s not hooking.
- The Lightning are still looking for stretch passes to launch their attack.
- Meanwhile, Montreal just strung four passes together to get from behind their net to a shot at the side of the net for Caufield.
- Steven Stamkos hits the post. The Lightning have the ability to strike out of nowhere, and they nearly did.
- Now they do strike as the top line gets its first extended zone time of the game. Point is left all alone at the side of the net.
- Johnny Kovacevic flubs a dump-in at the offensive blue line, but Primeau makes a big save on the breakaway that results.
- Jake Evans has found another player who hates his poor head, as the centre takes a stick in the mouth. It just looks like a perfectly normal noggin to me.
- Nikita Kucherov goes into the boards in a twisted position and takes a long time to get up. That’s the entire Lightning franchise down on the ice.
- Evans skates up the ice and takes a defenceman’s forearm to the face. Just, why?
- After that and running Primeau, the Lightning get a power play. Kucherov is back out.
- After coming out of the box, Gallagher decides to hit anything wearing black, and that includes a linesman that I’m pretty sure he mistook for a backchecking Lightning player.
- Tampa Bay is hacking at Primeau whenever they get the puck on the net. I suppose that’s a sign of respect for how sharp he’s looking.
- Martin St-Louis had a heated argument with the referee about all the post-whistle things that aren’t resulting in penalties.
- Tampa Bay is just really ornery tonight. Upset with how bad they’ve become, maybe.
- And yet they do score again as a player is unmarked at the opposite side of Primeau’s net to the first goal.
- Kovacevic fans on a shot, and this time it leads to a three-on-one. No shot comes from it, however as Jordan Harris played it as well as a player possibly could.
- The period favoured the Lightning, as they manufactured some anger again to inspire themselves.
- Montreal’s top line has been very quiet in this game. That will need to change in the third if the Habs are going to win this one.
Third period
- After a long stretch in the second and to start the third of the Lightning dominating possession, Montreal has taken the game back over.
- The top line scores and it’s … Josh Anderson? I guess Martin St-Louis has shifted his lines around.
- Arber Xhekaj launches a shot off the stick of Juraj Slafkovský that pops both snaps on Vasilevskiy’s mask. I wonder what the speed was on that one.
- They say 88.1, so just enough to go back in time.
- For some unknown reason, Mitchell Chaffee decides to run David Savard into the boards from behind. The referees are reviewing a major.
- Because it was more dangerous from six feet away than if Savard was right against the boards, it’s downgraded to a minor. That’s the NHL logic.
- Suzuki makes an awful pass right to the stick of Tyler Motte, and the Lightning tie the game short-handed.
- I expect to see the most elite version of Suzuki yet over these final 10 minutes.
- Gallagher takes a cross-check in the back after the whistle but there’s no call. You know why.
- Suzuki fires he puck off the post. He looks like an unhappy man, and that’s what you like to see after the turnover.
- The pace has really picked up in the final minutes.
- One final Lightning flurry that gave me flashbacks to Tyler Johnson in the playoffs, and we’re off to overtime. for the second time on the same Florida trip, which may be a record.
- Primeau did everything that could have been expected from him. A solid game for him to further elevate himself above Jake Allen in the pecking order.
Overtime
- They show Evans smiling on the bench with all of his teeth still intact. The most amazing thing from this game.
- Well look at that, the referees do still know how to call penalties. A one-handed stick-check of Victor Hedman was worse than a cross-check in the back to Gallagher I guess.
- Montreal kills the penalty, and we’re at four-on-four.
- For the second consecutive game, the Habs go to a shootout.
- But St-Louis is having another conversation with the officials first.
Shootout
- Primeau stops Hagel by staying right with his deke to give Montreal the early edge.
- Suzuki gets booed as he comes in for his attempt. He’s now missed a few of those in a row now.
- Point sends a shot right at Primeau’s blocker.
- Caufield does his delay and then rips a shot past the leg of Vasilevskiy.
- Stamkos goes top corner on Primeau, and that will extend things.
- Armia gets an attempt. He tries the Caufield, but gets stopped.
- Primeau stops Kucherov. Another chance for Montreal to win it.
- Jesse Ylönen hits the stick shaft of Vasilevskiy.. An unlucky stretch for the Finn.
- Mikey Eyssimont puts the puck in Primeau’s extended glove.
- Vasilevskiy shuts down the five-hole faster than Slafkovský can send a puck through it.
- Hedman goes off the post and in. Tampa Bay is now in the driver’s seat.
- Joshua Roy hits Vasilevskiy’s pads, and that’s going to do it.
- Too bad Montreal couldn’t win that one.
EOTP 3 Stars
3) A value-saving season
2) Just not a well-officiated game tonight, and Martin St-Louis let them know (hopefully without the ($25K fine)
1) And those players now have speed and passing skills to boot?
