Lightning at Canadiens
The Tampa Bay Lightning return to the place where their season ended in a first-round playoff sweep last April when they visit the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday in a battle for first place in the Atlantic Division. The Lightning own three more regulation/overtime wins and Montreal has two games in hand coming into the showdown with an Eastern Conference-leading 54 points each. The Canadiens have won six consecutive games and nine of 10 while Tampa Bay has five victories in six contests.
Lightning captain Steven Stamkos recorded a hat trick in a 7-1 victory at home on Oct. 13 in their only meeting with Montreal this season. The Canadiens are leaning on a stingy defense, allowing 13 goals in their last 10 games, and will face the league’s top-scoring offense. Ben Bishop, who is 6-1-2 lifetime against Montreal, was injured during last season’s playoffs and Canadiens’ Vezina Trophy candidate Carey Price has not allowed more than two goals in a game since Dec. 6.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, Sun Sports (Tampa Bay), RDS and SNET (Montreal)
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (25-12-4): Undrafted center Tyler Johnson continues to make a strong case to be picked for the All-Star Game with 43 points – 14 in the last 10 contests – to pull within five of the league lead. Johnson notched his sixth and seventh goals in that 10-game span during the 4-2 victory at Ottawa on Sunday. The Lightning announced Monday that top-six defenseman Radko Gudas, a physical force who leads the team in hits (115), will undergo arthroscopic knee surgery and is out indefinitely.
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (26-11-2): Price has been outstanding during the streak, raising his save percentage to .929 and backstopping a penalty-killing unit that has killed off 27-of-28 power plays in the last 10 games. Montreal is third in the league in scoring defense and has been inconsistent on the offensive end, but has several players who can contribute. Max Pacioretty has scored in each of the last two games and leads the team with 16 goals, 31 points, 136 shots and an impressive plus-20 rating.
OVERTIME
1. Tampa Bay F Nikita Kucherov boasts 16 points and a plus-12 rating over his previous dozen contests.
2. Montreal D P.K. Subban has collected four assists in the last two games and owns a team-leading 19 overall.
3. Lightning D Victor Hedman recorded a pair of goals and six points over the last four games.