Tampa Bay Lightning at Montreal Canadiens
· East 1st Round - Game 4Montreal hosts Tampa Bay with 2-1 series lead
Tampa Bay Lightning (50-26-6, in the Atlantic Division) vs. Montreal Canadiens (48-24-10, in the Atlantic Division)
Montreal, Quebec; Sunday, 7 p.m. EDT
LINE: Lightning -116, Canadiens -104; over/under is 6
NHL PLAYOFFS FIRST ROUND: Canadiens lead series 2-1
BOTTOM LINE: The Montreal Canadiens host the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round of the NHL Playoffs with a 2-1 lead in the series. The teams meet Friday for the eighth time this season. The Canadiens won the last matchup 3-2 in overtime.
Montreal is 18-9-2 against the Atlantic Division and 48-24-10 overall. The Canadiens have a 21-6-6 record in games decided by one goal.
Tampa Bay is 17-9-3 against the Atlantic Division and 50-26-6 overall. The Lightning have a 17-7-4 record when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent.
TOP PERFORMERS: Nicholas Suzuki has scored 29 goals with 72 assists for the Canadiens. Juraj Slafkovsky has four goals and five assists over the last 10 games.
Brandon Hagel has 36 goals and 38 assists for the Lightning. Nikita Kucherov has four goals and six assists over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Canadiens: 6-3-1, averaging 2.5 goals, 4.6 assists, 5.7 penalties and 14.9 penalty minutes while giving up 2.7 goals per game.
Lightning: 4-4-2, averaging 2.4 goals, 4.1 assists, 6.7 penalties and 17.4 penalty minutes while giving up 2.8 goals per game.
INJURIES: Canadiens: Patrik Laine: out (abdomen), Noah Dobson: out (thumb).
Lightning: Charle-Edouard D'Astous: day to day (undisclosed), Victor Hedman: out (personal), Pontus Holmberg: out (upper-body).
Regular Season SeriesSeries tied 2-2
Statistics
TB |
MTL |
|
|---|---|---|
| 2.79 | Goals Against Average | 3.06 |
| 26.7 | Shots Against per Game | 27.8 |
| 82.6 | Penalty Kill Percentage | 78.2 |
| 45 | Power Play Goals Against | 54 |
| 0 | Short Handed Goals Against | 0 |
| 3.49 | Goals For per Game | 3.40 |
| 28.1 | Shots per Game | 26.3 |
| 51 | Power Play Goals | 56 |
| 20.7 | Power Play Percentage | 23.1 |
| 6 | Short Handed Goals | 8 |
| 1207 | Penalty Minutes | 849 |
Montreal Canadiens Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|
Tampa Bay Lightning Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Charle-Edouard D'Astous, D | Day-To-Day | Apr 25 |
| Victor Hedman, D | Injured Reserve | Apr 22 |
| Pontus Holmberg, RW | Out | Apr 22 |
Game Information
Bell Centre
Location: Montreal, QC
Capacity:
Location: Montreal, QC
Capacity:
2025-26 Atlantic Division Standings
| TEAM | W | L | PTS | OTL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/buf.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Buffalo | 50 | 23 | 109 | 9 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/tb.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Tampa Bay | 50 | 26 | 106 | 6 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/mtl.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Montreal | 48 | 24 | 106 | 10 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/bos.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Boston | 45 | 27 | 100 | 10 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/ott.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Ottawa | 44 | 27 | 99 | 11 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/det.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Detroit | 41 | 31 | 92 | 10 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/fla.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Florida | 40 | 38 | 84 | 4 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/tor.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Toronto | 32 | 36 | 78 | 14 |
Lightning Last 5
| Date | OPP | Result |
|---|---|---|
| vs <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/det.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px; vertical-align: inherit;"> DET | W 4-3 OT | |
| vs <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/nyr.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px; vertical-align: inherit;"> NYR | L 4-2 | |
| vs <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/mtl.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px; vertical-align: inherit;"> MTL | L 4-3 OT | |
| vs <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/mtl.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px; vertical-align: inherit;"> MTL | W 3-2 OT | |
| @ <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/mtl.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px; vertical-align: inherit;"> MTL | L 3-2 OT |
Canadiens Last 5
| Date | OPP | Result |
|---|---|---|
| @ <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/nyi.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px;"> NYI | W 4-1 | |
| @ <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/phi.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px;"> PHI | L 4-2 | |
| @ <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/tb.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px;"> TB | W 4-3 OT | |
| @ <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/tb.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px;"> TB | L 3-2 OT | |
| vs <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/tb.png" style="padding-left: 4px; width: 20px;"> TB | W 3-2 OT |


TB
MTL