Habs Dig Deep Despite Late Double Minor
Down 3-0 in their Stanley Cup Finals series against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Montreal Canadiens were on the ropes when they took to the ice Monday for Game 4.
Habs coach Dominique Ducharme made a few critical changes to the lineup to help spark some offense, and it appeared to pay off.
If you live in Canada, check out Bodog for a 100% deposit bonus on crypto and etransfer deposits!
Montreal took the lead early, but the score was knotted 2-2 at the end of the regulation, forcing overtime. In the final minute of the 3rd period, the Habs were given a double minor for high sticking, putting the Bolts in the driver’s seat and the fans at the Bell Centre were feeling the pressure.
Using the momentum from a solid PK, just under four minutes into OT, Canadiens RW Josh Anderson netted the winner with a diving shot. The series now heads back to Tampa Bay for Game 5 on Wednesday night.
The Lightning threw everything they had against the Habs in Game 4, outshooting them 34 to 21 and killing significantly less penalties. Although RW Nikita Kucherov spent a lot of time around Montreal’s net, where he collected four shots in the game, he couldn’t put one past Carey Price. It was Barclay Goodrow and Pat Maroon who scored the Lightning’s two goals.
Price was the better goalie on the ice on Monday, stopping 32 shots on the night with a .941 save percentage. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 18 saves for a .857 SV%— his second-lowest of the postseason thus far. The Lightning are expected to rebound and are available as -220 favorites to win Game 5 at Amalie Arena, with the Habs checking in at +180.
The Canadiens were a much stronger ML pick at home with +140 odds in front of their home crowd, but the Bolts should light them up in game 5. Look for an over 5 play rather than slumming it with the -220 or risking the puck line spread.
