TAMPA, Fla. -- The Tampa Bay Lightning booked their ticket to the Eastern Conference finals with a 4-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night, finally putting away a Habs team that made them sweat just a bit:
How it happened: The Lightning scored first, that’s what happened. The first goal was going to be big either way, the Canadiens such a different team when they open the scoring, and the Lightning coming into this game 5-0 in the playoffs when scoring first. Make it 6-0, as Nikita Kucherov's nifty redirect with 4:25 to go in the opening period would prove to be all the Lightning needed on this night.
The goal came courtesy of a Tomas Plekanec giveaway just moments earlier in his own zone. And it was Plekanec earlier in the period who had a brilliant chance to open the scoring but he was thwarted by Ben Bishop. Might have been a different game had Plekanec scored.
Instead, Tampa Bay really took off after the opening goal, captain Steven Stamkos rifling a perfect wrist shot top corner on Carey Price 5 minutes, 12 seconds into the second period. Frankly, the game was over right then and there. No way the Canadiens could mount a three-goal comeback at that point.
What it means: The Bolts are off to the Eastern Conference finals for the third time in their history, most recently in 2011, when they lost to the Boston Bruins.
Credit this young Lightning team for collecting itself and playing with poise and confidence with so much pressure on them Tuesday night. The idea of playing a Game 7 at a crazy Bell Centre was not appealing for Tampa Bay, which made Game 6 almost feel like a Game 7 in itself.
In the end, the Lightning played their best game of the series, stepping up when it mattered most, just as they did late in the Detroit Red Wings series in the previous round. Most notably, goalie Ben Bishop -- just like he did in Game 7 versus Detroit -- was sharp Tuesday night in closing the door. People need to stop second-guessing this guy.
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper made the bold decision to dress Jonathan Marchessault, their AHL scoring leader this season in Syracuse, instead of prized rookie Jonathan Drouin, after the loss of Ryan Callahan to an emergency appendectomy.
The decision to once again scratch Drouin would have been second-guessed by many had Tampa Bay lost. But it didn’t, so maybe the coach knows what he’s doing.
Player of the game: Steven Stamkos. The Lightning captain, clearly not 100 percent, played a terrific game. His third goal of the series was a thing of beauty and the back-breaker for Montreal. Some time off now should be a welcome development for Stamkos, whose team has played 13 games in these playoffs.
Stat of the game: Kucherov scored his fifth and sixth goals of the playoffs, all six of them coming in this series after being blanked in the opening round. This kid is just scratching the surface of what he can become. Unbelievable hands.
What's next: The Eastern Conference finals begin Saturday, though the question remains whether Game 1 will be in New York or Tampa. It will be here in Tampa if the Washington Capitals win Game 7 Wednesday night versus the Rangers but obviously in New York if the conference-leading Blueshirts prevail.