TAMPA, Fla. (WWSB) – The season is over for the Tampa Bay Lightning following Sunday’s 2-1 defeat in game seven of their first round series against the Montreal Canadiens.
For Tampa Bay it’s the fourth straight year they’ve been defeated in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. They haven’t advanced out of the opening round since 2022 when they fell short against the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Final. In the two previous seasons before that the Lightning were the winners of the Cup.
Sunday’s contest with both team playing strong defensively, but after nearly 19 minutes in Nick Suzuki, with the assist coming from Kaiden Guhle and Josh Anderson scored the first goal of the game to give Montreal the first lead of the game.
That was the only score of the period. In the second period, Tampa Bay evened up the scoreboard. Dominic James scored on a power play with a huge assist from coming Gage Concalves.
However, Montreal would regain control in the third period. After more than 11 minutes into the period, Alex Newhook scored a goal to give the Canadiens a 2-1 lead.
The Lightning had their chances. They outshot Montreal 29-9, including a final attempt in the last five seconds of the game. This one not meant to be for Tampa, as they would lose the contest and the series.
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper spoke after the game, and one of the things he kept lamenting about is how there are no do-overs.
“It’s not the movies,” Cooper said. “It’s not something we can retake and get the scene right. It’s live theatre right in front of you. You never know what’s going to happen.”
For the Lightning, it’s their 11th loss in their last 13 postseason games at their home venue of Benchmark International Arena. This includes losing three out of four games on their home ice in this series.
“I can’t say much about the game tonight,” Brandon Hagel, Lightning left winger, said. “I mean, you’re going to win 99 percent of those games, but at the end of the day when you lose three games at home you’re probably not going to win the series.”
Now, it’s on to the offseason for Tampa Bay as they look find ways to continue to improve their team in an attempt to bring home the franchise’s fourth Stanley Cup during the upcoming 2026-27 season.
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