The Tampa Bay Lightning learned Monday night they will open the NHL playoffs this weekend against the Montreal Canadiens.
But where and when the best-of-seven series begins won’t be known until after the Lightning’s regular-season finale against the New York Rangers on Wednesday, when the league announces the first-round schedule.
All postseason series are expected to begin Saturday or Sunday, and there are scenarios in which the Lightning or Canadiens would have home-ice advantage and host Games 1 and 2.
More on that later.
Meantime, the Bolts have scheduled several playoff-related events to get fans involved no matter where the games are played:
Pep rally: Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Sparkman Wharf, east of Benchmark International Arena. Will have Lightning alumni appearances, music, giveaways, a live viewing of “The Block Party” podcast and a BroDenim pop-up shop.
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Playoff crawl: Saturday, all day. Bounce between participating bars at hubs in downtown Tampa, downtown St. Petersburg or Clearwater Beach. Establishments to be announced.
Plaza parties: For $5, fans without game tickets can still watch with fellow fans outside the arena on Thunder Alley. While the telecast is shown on the Pam Iorio Garage, fans can enjoy live music, giveaways and more. The plaza will open for ticketed guests two hours before puck drop.
Watch parties: For road postseason games at locations to be announced. Includes entertainment, appearances by ThunderBug and other Lightning personalities and giveaways.
Seeding scenarios: The Canadiens (48-23-10) and Lightning (50-25-6) are still competing for home-ice advantage. Each has 106 points in the Atlantic Division standings with one game remaining. Tampa Bay is currently the No. 2 seed and Montreal is No. 3 because the Lightning hold the first tiebreaker: wins in regulation (40-34).
The Canadiens close their season Tuesday night at Philadelphia. If Montreal loses in regulation, Tampa Bay would clinch the second seed and home advantage in Games 1, 2, 5 and 7.
In that case, Tampa Bay would host Game 1 this weekend. The NHL has scheduled all playoff openers for Saturday or Sunday. However, Mexican singer Peso Pluma is scheduled to perform at Benchmark International Arena on Saturday.
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If the Canadians beat the Flyers or lose in overtime or a shootout, the Lightning would have to match that against the Rangers to remain at No. 2. If not, the Bolts would be the third seed and Game 1 would be at the Bell Centre in Montreal.
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Series notes: The Canadiens, coached by former Lightning Hall of Famer Martin St. Louis, went 2-1-1 against Tampa Bay this season.
The Bolts have qualified for the playoffs nine straight seasons but have not advanced past the first round since 2022, when they lost to Colorado in the Stanley Cup Final.
The Canadiens are the most successful team in NHL history, with a record 24 Stanley Cups, although the last one was in 1993. Montreal’s only appearance in the Final since came in 2021, and it lost to Tampa Bay in five games.
