Friday, 4 a.m.
Is this any way to enter the NHL playoffs?
Usually, a team imagines itself entering on a hot streak. The goalie is magical, the offense is explose, the defense is bulletproof.
Alas, it isn't that way for the Tampa Bay Lightning, who lost their third straight game Thursday night, 2-1 to Montreal. The Bolts dropped to third place in the Atlantic Division with the loss.
For the Bolts, disaster came quickly. The Bolts tied the game with just 1:51 to play on a goal by Darren Raddysh. Montreal, however, took advantage of a Bolts' turnover and scored the winner on a goal by Jaraj Slafkovsky 47 seconds later.
The Canadiens got their 50th goal from Cole Caufield.
The Bolts managed just 18 shots -- 10 in the first two periods -- in the defeat.
The Bolts killed all seven power plays it faced. Montreal killed the four they said.
Tampa Bay had 71 penalty minutes. Montreal had 55.
Bolts' goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 18 if 21 shots.
The Bolts play the Boston Bruins Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at TD Garden.