Stanley Cup Final Game 5 Live Blog: Canadiens vs. Lightning

3 years ago  /  NHL.com  /  Read Time: 9 minutes 59 seconds

• The Stanley Cup Final is over and the Tampa Bay Lightning are again champions, defeating the Montreal Canadiens 1-0 in Game 5 on Wednesday to win their second straight championship.
• The Stanley Cup belongs to the Tampa Bay Lightning for the second straight season.
• The Lightning defeated the Montreal Canadiens 1-0 to winthe best-of-7 series in five games.
• Forward Barclay Goodrow blocked Tampa Bay's seventh shot of the game, laying out to absorb a heavy slapper from Montreal defenseman Shea Weber, who has one of the hardest shots in the League.
• Video: Lightning win Game 5, Stanley Cup Final.
• We're 10 minutes away from the Lightning claiming the Stanley Cup.
• Midway through the third period, Tampa Bay still leads 1-0.
• It was Montreal's only scoring chance in the first 10 minutes of the period.
• An even bigger cheer erupted later in the period when Vita Vea, a defensive lineman for the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was introduced to the crowd and shot-gunned a beer.
• The Lightning lead 1-0 after two periods minutes and can win their second straight Stanley Cup championship if they can hold on.
• Montreal has yet to score two goals in any period of this series.
• Now might be a good time to mention that goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy has registered a shutout in each of his past four clinching games, dating back to a 2-0 victory against the Dallas Stars in Game 6 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final?
• The Lightning could be 20 minutes away from celebrating the Stanley Cup, leading 1-0 after two periods.
• Montreal has not won any of the seven games it has trailed in the postseason, including each of its three losses in the Final.
• Plus, the Lightning will start the third period on the power play.
• Though Montreal was better offensively in the second period, it has yet to generate sustained or significant pressure in the attacking zone.
• The dam has finally burst at Amalie Arena, Tampa Bay taking a 1-0 lead at 13:27 when forward Ross Colton got inside position on Montreal defenseman Joel Edmundson and directed home a pass by defenseman David Savard from the corner.
• The score remains 0-0 midway through the second period, but Montreal has found its way back into the game, taking seven of the first 10 shots in the period and earning the only two power plays of the period to this point.
• Tampa Bay did not get any shorthanded shots, but they also did not allow Montreal any shots.
• Lightning forward Pat Maroon, who scored his first goal in 17 Final games in Game 4, had a great chance on a 2-on-1 at 4:22, but was denied by Price when Maroon slow-played the rush and tried to go five-hole.
• As we enter the second period with the game tied 0-0, Montreal is right where it wants to be.
• The Lightning have to be wondering how they can solve Price, who has stopped 46 of 48 shots since the start of Game 4.
• The Lightning dominated the period, outshooting the Canadiens 13-4 and playing for long stretches in the Montreal zone.
• But instead of giving Montreal momentum, the Lightning had three glorious chances, two by Blake Coleman, to start the kill and then drew a hooking penalty on Josh Anderson at 8:43 to negate the rest of the power play.
• For the second straight game, the Stanley Cup is in the building.
• At the top of the list is the fact that the Lightning have not lost consecutive games in either of the past two postseasons, and goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy is 6-0 after a loss this postseason with three shutouts
• Tampa Bay has won eight of 12 home games this postseason and can tie the Lightning record for home wins in a single postseason, set in 2004
• Plus, the Lightning are averaging 4.09 goals per game at home this postseason
• Since Tampa Bay joined the NHL for the 1992-93 season, only one team has a higher per-game scoring average, the Colorado Avalanche, who averaged 4.36 goals per game in 1996
• -- Having to win four straight games to take the Stanley Cup is the latest challenge for a Canadiens team that knows far too much about adversity, writes staff writer Mike Zeisberger

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