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The Montreal Canadiens were in Florida on Sunday, facing the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game One of their first-round series.
Juraj Slafkovsky played the hero role for the Habs, scoring three goals to secure a 4-3 win, and a 1-0 series lead.
Let’s dive into the highlights!
Veteran Presence
Even though the Canadiens have the youngest team in the league, it was a veteran who got the ball rolling. 31-year-old Josh Anderson scored after defenceman Alexandre Carrier did a great job on the forecheck to force the turnover.
To add to the Anderson praise, he was one of the few players who started the game with a lot of energy, and continuously offered an honest effort every shift.
Losing Focus
It appeared that the Canadiens had taken a 2-0 lead, but Anderson’s second goal of the game was denied after it was discovered he tipped the shot with a high stick.
This led to the momentum flowing to Tampa Bay’s corner, with the home team quickly establishing a 2-1 lead via goals by Darren Raddysh and Brandon Hagel in less than a minute during the second period.
Power In The Play
One of the few advantages heading into the series was Montreal’s ability to generate a lot of powerplay goals with very few opportunities to do so, making Slafkovsky’s powerplay goal in the second period more important than most late-period markers. Rookie Ivan Demidov provided the excellent assist on the play.
Not only did the Habs tie the game in the dying moments of the period, they also established one of their most important team-wide offensive weapons in the process.
Another One
Slafkovsky thought scoring was so nice that he did it twice, with his second goal of the game also coming on the powerplay. This gave the Canadiens a 3-2 lead with a little over 15 minutes left in the third period.
It was a good reminder that the Canadiens will need their veterans and younger players to row in the same direction if they’re to have success in the NHL playoffs.
First Overall Hat Trick
The Lightning tied the game in the third period, forcing overtime, a situation that would usually favour the Habs as they’re dominant in a 3v3 scenario.
This, however, is the playoffs, and overtime is played at 5v5, mitigating Montreal’s advantage.
Fortunately for head coach Martin St-Louis, who used a perfect time out moments beforehand, Slafkovsky completed his hat trick, securing a 1-0 series lead for the Habs in the process.
The Montreal Canadiens will be back in action on Tuesday, facing the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 2 of their first-round series. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 pm ET.
All Montreal Canadiens statistics are 5v5 unless otherwise noted, via Natural Stat Trick.
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