What a comedown.
You could just feel the air go out of the room at Double’s in Mile End when J.J. Moser scored in overtime as the Tampa Bay Lightning posted a 3-2 win to tie the best-of-seven series 1-1 with the Canadiens.
To be honest, there hadn’t been much oxygen in the super cool bar/restaurant for the entire . People weren’t talking much, and what was being said was mostly pretty grumbly. I heard one guy tell his friend, “Oh, man. Playoffs are stressful.”
Oddly, the Habs didn’t look too stressed in the OT. They looked kind of sleepy, like they were already thinking of getting on that flight back to Montreal from Tampa. So weird. I get that either team can win in extra time and that these two teams are uniquely well matched. But c’mon. At least try. There was zero effort from Montreal in the fourth period of the game, which is simply unacceptable.
What’s also unacceptable, to me at least, is leaving the bar after three periods before the overtime starts. A good chunk of the hip crowd at Double’s did exactly that, underlining that some of these folks were taking their playoff hockey a little too lightly. Someone forgot to tell them that we live and die for our hockey team in Montreal, even in a trendy neighbourhood like Mile End.
Not that they missed much. But if you’re a fan, you gotta be there for the good vibes and the bad vibes. Forty-eight hours earlier, I’d been in another sports bar feeling the absolute euphoria of an OT win in Game 1 for the Canadiens. People weren’t feeling the love Tuesday night, but no one was talking about throwing in the towel, either.
They knew this was going to be a tough series for their team, and all of them were ready to dust themselves off and get back out to watch Game 3 on Friday. Hopefully, the team feels the same way.
Brianna Klint and Rachel Awada, both hardcore fans, came over to Double’s from N.D.G. to watch the game because they think it’s the best place to catch key sports events. They said one of the things they like the most about the spot is people there spend less time on their phones, which seems like maybe the best thing you can say about a bar in 2026. They also waxed enthusiastic about Double’s go-to dish, the smash burger, and I’m certainly not going to argue with them on that point. They are awesome.
Klint was taking the loss in stride.
“I’m still feeling optimistic,” said Klint. “I still think it’s a really great season. It’s only the second game and I think we have a lot going for us.”
Awada added: “I thought it was a very good game. The overtime was slow-motion. I think they were just exhausted to be honest. I would have loved a 2-0 lead, but the series is not done yet.”
Montreal Canadiens fans Rachel Awada, left, and Brianna Klint react as the Tampa Bay Lightning defeat the Habs in overtime, while watching the playoff game at Double’s in Montreal on Tuesday, April 21, 2026. John Mahoney / Montreal Gazette
Noah Barichello was the guy who was saying he was stressed out, but he told me: “It’s stressful, but that’s what we live for. That’s what’s fun about our city. We rally together, we cry together, we cheer together.”
“It’s a good loss. We stole one (in Tampa) and now we’re headed back to Montreal, and the boys can give us two more games, and we head back to Tampa up 3-1. That would be the ideal. I think we played amazing. The boys just ran out of gas in OT.”
Jason Dery said Tampa was the better team in OT and “that we relied too much on Jakub Dobes to save the day.”
Robbie Hart put a positive spin on the loss because the veteran documentary filmmaker, whom I’ve known for 40 years, is the walking embodiment of the power of positive thinking. He’s the kind of fan a team dreams of having.
“We got one game in Tampa, which is a huge thing,” said Hart. “Two overtime games. Habs have momentum going into Game 3. They have not been dominated by Tampa and they can make this happen in six games.”
Speaking of upbeat, Hart is in the midst of making a documentary, titled The Greatest Dynasty, that tells the story of the Canadiens “as the greatest team in hockey ever.”
The story is anchored in the great Canadiens teams of the 1970s, but it’s also looking forward to the reboot of the greatest dynasty that’s happening right now.
“And what a year to be making a documentary about the Habs, with the energy of this reboot,” said Hart.
I ask Hart la question qui tue — is this current team the start maybe of another dynasty?
“All these guys love each other,” said Hart. “They have mojo. They know who they are. They’re united and they’re headed for glory. This team is destined to win a Cup.”
I don’t even want to think what Hart would’ve said about the team if they had actually won in overtime. But that’s Habs fandom. They lost a crucial game after not showing up in overtime, and yet everyone I talked to remained bullish about the Habs’ chances in the post-season.
Most people at Double’s Tuesday weren’t old enough to have experienced the last Cup win in 1993 and so, even after a loss, they remain upbeat for the very good reason that this team — whether a future dynasty or not — is way better than any Canadiens team during the past 33 years.
Editor’s Picks