RECAP | Canadiens – Lightning: Can’t Get a Save

By
Rick Stephens
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0
75
Adam Erne
(AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
FINAL | Game 39, Away Game 20 | Saturday December 29, 2018
Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL.

CANADIENS

Montreal

5-6

LIGHTNING

Tampa Bay
(AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)

 

Canadiens Lineup

Forward lines  

Paul Byron – Max Domi – Jonathan Drouin

Tomas Tatar – Phillip Danault – Brendan Gallagher

Artturi Lehkonen – Jesperi Kotkaniemi –  Andrew Shaw

Kenny Agostino – Michael Chaput – Matthew Peca

Defense pairings

Victor Mete – Shea Weber

Mike Reilly – Jeff Petry

Brett Kulak – Jordie Benn

Goaltenders

Antti Niemi – Michael McNiven

Scratches

Nicolas Deslauriers, Charles Hudon, Karl Alzner

Injuries

Joel Armia, David Schlemko, Carey Price

Game Report

Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper summed up tonight’s match nicely in the post-game scrum saying, “The same Lightning team that played the 3rd period…was probably not the same Lightning team that played the first two periods.”

In other words, the home team was mostly a no-show for the first 40 minutes. And the Canadiens used their speed to take full advantage outshooting their hosts 32-19 in the first two periods.

This game could have gotten out of hand but sadly Canadiens netminder Antti Niemi kept the Bolts in the game.

By the time the Lightning returned to form in the third period, Niemi was spent. Every single shot towards the Canadien goal was an adventure for the goaltender. Niemi had difficulty tracking the puck and failed to deaden the puck yielding enormous rebounds.

Tampa defenceman took one stride beyond the red line and put the puck towards the goal. It almost went in. Niemi was fighting the puck on every shot. As my colleague Joe Whalen remarked, “the Lightning smell blood.”

It was only a matter of time. With just 1:02 left QMJHL-graduate Adam Erne scored his second of the game. The Tampa Bay fourth line had victimized Max Domi, Jonathan Drouin and Niemi for the win.

It was a coaching mistake by Claude Julien to trust his first line who have been a defensive liability all season long regardless of the matchup. As coach Cooper said, “We didn’t give them anything in the third… Our compete level 200 feet away from their net was the difference.”

Goaltending was also a difference in the result. And the depth of the Lightning.

Most of the Canadiens played their hearts out tonight. But the Lightning needed just one period to show why they are the best team in hockey. When they needed it most, the Canadiens couldn’t get a save.

Plus / Minus

▲  Jordie Benn, Andrew Shaw

▼  Antti Niemi, Jonathan Drouin, Max Domi, Michael Chaput, Matthew Peca  

The Numbers

 Game Statistics 
CANADIENS   LIGHTNING
38 Shots 32
48 Face-off % 52
1-for-3 Power Play 1-for-3
6 Penalty Minutes 6
17 Hits 23
65 Corsi For 59
 Scoring Summary
 FINAL 1 2 3 OT SO T
 Canadiens (20-14-5) 3 2 0 – – 5
 Lightning (30-7-2) 2 2 2 – – 6
Scorers Goalies
  • MTL: Shaw (10)-PPG, Agostino (2), Benn (2), Kulak (1), Shaw (11)
  • TBL: Gourde (11), Stralman (2), Kucherov (18)-PPG, Johnson (18), Erne (5), Erne (6)
  • MTL: Niemi (W) 5-4-1
  • TBL: Vasilevskiy (L) 14-3-2

Stars of the Game

 NHL Official Three Stars
NHL3stars
  1. Adam Erne  TBL
  2. Yanni Gourde  TBL
  3. Andrew Shaw  MTL

Watch

 Video Highlights 
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What Did They Say?

 Post-game Quotes
Claude Julien  
  • “With the way we played tonight, we should’ve come out of here with at least a point, if not two. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. We have to keep our heads high and try to bounce back next game. That’s what you have to do in those situations. We had another chance to move up in the standings, but we’ll have to save that for another day.”
Brendan Gallagher
  • “They did a bit more than us to deserve the win. There were some things we can take that we did well. It’s really disappointing when you have a lead going into the third period and we allow the team to come back, especially on the road. We’ve been decent at that this year, so it’s disappointing to let one slip.”
  • “We don’t take moral victories at this point.”

Andrew Shaw

  • “It’s still devastating. We played hard, and we came up short of even pushing it into overtime. It’s a good team, hats off to them, but I think we played well over here as well.”

Quotes courtesy of NHL.com

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