Rivalry heats up in Tampa
Canadiens know road to Stanley Cup may mean facing Lightning
Is this the night? If the Canadiens have Stanley Cup aspirations, they will have to get past the Lightning en route and this is the latest opportunity to prove they can beat the team that has become their regular- season nemesis over the past two seasons. The Canadiens came close last week, dropping a 1- 0 overtime decision at the Bell Centre to the Lightning, but that left them winless in three games this season against Tampa Bay and the Canadiens have been outscored 12- 3 in those games. The Canadiens did sweep the Lightning in the first round of the playoffs last spring, but Tampa Bay goaltender Ben Bishop was injured, and he makes a difference when he’s healthy. The 6- foot- 6 Bishop has an 8- 1- 2 lifetime record against the Canadiens with a .945 save percent- age. While Bishop is healthy, the Lightning came out of last week’s game against the Canadiens with three injuries. Forwards Cedric Paquette and Ondrej Palat are day- to- day, but defenceman Braydon Coburn is out for a few weeks.
Cooper on the rivalry: Lightning coach Jon Cooper said last week that his team and the Canadiens are developing a rivalry after their playoff series last season. “Rivalries are a sign you’re having success,” Cooper said, adding that having a storied franchise like the Canadiens as a rival is a bonus.
Where they stand: The Canadiens ( 43- 19- 7) will remain atop the Atlantic Division no matter what the result is Monday night, but they can move five points clear of the Lightning ( 42- 21- 7) with a win. Montreal, which also has a game in hand on Tampa Bay, picked up two points Saturday with a 3- 1 win on Long Island, while the Lightning lost 2- 1 at home to Winnipeg.
The Carey Show: With back- toback games on the schedule — the Canadiens are in Sunrise, Florida, to play the Florida Panthers Tues- day night — coach Michel Therrien likes to split the work for his goaltenders, but it will be interesting to see if he’s tempted to use Carey Price in both games. Backup Dustin Tokarski has only one win in his last six starts. Price has matched his career high with a league- leading 38 wins and will start in Tampa. He also tops the NHL with a 1.91 goals- against average and a .936 save percentage. Bishop’s numbers aren’t quite as good — a 2.32 GAA and a .915 save percentage — but he gets pumped up when he plays Montreal.
Max- imum offence: Max Pacioretty has three goals in the last two games, with two of them coming short- handed. He ranks fourth in the NHL with 34 goals and is the league leader in plus/ minus at plus- 39.
Beware of Lightning: Tampa Bay is the most explosive offensive team in the NHL, averaging 3.20 goals per game, while the Canadiens rank 22nd at 2.55 and are 26th on the power play with a success rate of 16.1 per cent. Steven Stamkos is the Lightning ’s top sniper with 37 goals. Tyler Johnson has 25 goals and a team- high 65 points, while Nikita Kucherov has 26 goals.
Who’s ailing: The Canadiens have the No. 1 defence in the NHL — giving up an average of 2.17 goals per game — which may explain why Therrien hasn’t rushed Alexei Emelin back into action. The Russian defenceman hasn’t played since he suffered a shoulder injury against Ottawa on Feb. 18. Torrey Mitchell, who has been doing a good job in the faceoff circle, suffered an upper- body injury on Long Island and is listed as dayto- day. He’ll be replaced by Brian Flynn in Tampa. In addition to Palat, Paquette and Coburn, the Lightning has been without defenceman Mattias Ohlund all season because of a knee injury.
Weather report: If you were thinking of making a last- minute trip to Florida, the forecast for Monday is sunny with temperatures around 23C. The game is a sellout, but there are several hundred seats available on the resale market.