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Canadiens Win Game 7, Advance After Record Low Shots

5/4/2026

50 8 Full Breakdown

Summary

Canadiens Advance

The Montreal Canadiens beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in Game 7 to reach the second round.
The win set a record with nine shots on goal, the fewest in a playoff win.
The series featured seven one-goal games, four in overtime, and ended with a 16-15 goal edge and five power-play goals.
Suzuki called the series a chess match and said Montreal will face the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday.

Summary

Lightning Eliminated

The Tampa Bay Lightning were eliminated, marking their fourth straight first-round playoff loss.
The defeat was the 11th loss in the team’s last 13 postseason games at Benchmark International Arena.
Tampa Bay has not advanced beyond the opening round since its 2022 Stanley Cup Final loss to the Colorado Avalanche.
Forward Brandon Hagel said losing three home games in the series makes a series win unlikely.

Summary

St. Louis Celebrates

Coach Martin St. Louis celebrated with a Leonardo DiCaprio quote and a shaving-cream pie hit on rookie goalie Jakub Dobes.
Jakub Dobes posted a 2.03 GAA and .923 save percentage, stopping 181 of 196 shots.
Tampa Bay’s power play fell to 3-for-24 after an early 2-for-5 start, curbing output.
Andrei Vasilevskiy recorded a 2.18 GAA and .897 save percentage in the series.

Summary

Canadiens Rebuild

Montreal launched a full-scale rebuild after the 2021-22 season and a 2021 Stanley Cup Final loss.
Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes assumed front-office control while Hall-of-Famer Martin St. Louis was appointed head coach despite limited experience.
The Canadiens drafted Juraj Slafkovsky first overall, kept core forwards Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, and recorded a 461st consecutive sell-out crowd as the Habs returned to the final eight.

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Canadiens Advance

The Montreal Canadiens beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in Game 7 to reach the second round.
The win set a record with nine shots on goal, the fewest in a playoff win.
The series featured seven one-goal games, four in overtime, and ended with a 16-15 goal edge and five power-play goals.
Suzuki called the series a chess match and said Montreal will face the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday.

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