Alex Newhook broke a tie with 8:53 left and the Montreal Canadiens outlasted the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 on Game 7 on Sunday night to end the thrilling first-round series.
The Canadiens will face the Buffalo Sabres in the second round after finishing off their first series victory since losing the Stanley Cup Final to Tampa Bay in 2021. Game 1 is Wednesday night in Buffalo.
Rookie goaltender Jakub Dobes made 28 saves and Nick Suzuki got his first goal of the series for Montreal.
Montreal took advantage of lucky bounces on both goals, which came on only eight shots on net.
The Canadiens finished with only nine as Tampa Bay’s defense held the Canadiens without a shot for nearly 27 minutes after Suzuki's goal into the third.
It was the first time in Montreal history that it was held without a shot on goal in a period during the postseason. Montreal had 3:50 on of power play during that stretch.
ALSO READ: In an 'epic,' Lightning beat Canadiens 1-0 in overtime to force Game 7 in Tampa
The Lightning were eliminated in the first round for the fourth straight season after falling two wins short of a Stanley Cup three-peat in 2022
Each game of the series was decided by one goal and four went to overtime. The score was tied or within one goal for all but six minutes in the seven games.
Playing in front of their 461st consecutive sellout crowd and hundreds more fans watching from Thunder Alley outside Benchmark International Arena, the Lightning lost for the 11th time in their last 13 playoff games at home, including three times in this series.
The Canadiens didn’t have a shot on net in the second period despite two power-play chances. They became the first team to have zero shots in a playoff period since Pittsburgh in Game 1 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Finals against Nashville.
After Lane Hutson fired a slap shot that went wide and bounced back out, Newhook skated backhanded the puck out of the air and in off Andrei Vasilevskiy’s pad and his backside.
OH MY NEWHOOK BANKED IT OFF VAS IN MID AIR THEY'RE UP 2-1 😱🚨 pic.twitter.com/TreT0Zi7Ee
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 4, 2026
Dominic James tipped in Charle-Edouard D’Astous’ one-timer from just inside the blue line to tie it at 1 on a power play in the second period.
Suzuki opened the scoring 1:21 left in the first. After scoring 29 goals in the regular season, Suzuki needed a lucky bounce to get one. His redirection of Kaiden Guhle’s slap shot was heading wide but the puck hit Lightning defenseman J.J. Moser and went in.
Montreal’s Martin St. Louis, a Hockey Hall of Famer whose No. 26 is retired by the Lightning, became the fifth player to appear in a Game 7 for a team and coach against them in another.
Brandon Hagel made an outstanding, sliding stick save with an open net in the final minute but the Lightning couldn't get the tying goal during a 6-on-5 and 6-on-4 for the final six seconds.
SERIES RESULTS (best of seven)
Game 1 – Canadiens 4, Lightning 3 (overtime)
Game 2 – Lightning 3, Canadiens 2 (overtime)
Game 3 – Canadiens 3, Lightning 2 (overtime)
Game 4 – Lightning 3, Canadiens 2
Game 5 – Canadiens 3, Lightning 2
Game 6 – Lightning 1, Canadiens 0 (overtime)
Game 7 – Canadiens 2, Lightning 1, Montreal wins sereis 4-3
