The Montreal Canadiens Now Face Elimination Monday Against the Lightning

After, once again, falling short against the Tampa Bay Lightning and losing Game 3 6-3, the Montreal Canadiens will now face elimination in Game 4 on Mnday.

While the city of Montreal was ready to take on the Lightning, and head coach Ducharme was finally back from his 14-day quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19, the Canadiens just couldn’t get the lead, which seemed like the only solution to win in this run.

However, with the Lightning, they can’t seem to do that and are always chasing them to survive. It’s been the case for three games now, and if the same happens in Game 4, it could mean the end of this great run by the Canadiens.

No one had imagined they would be hosting the first Stanley Cup Final in Montreal since 1993, or hosting the Final for the very first time at the Bell Centre, but here they were yesterday, battling and not giving up until the very last second. But their mistakes keep costing them games, and that has to stop if they want a real shot at beating the defending champions.

The Canadiens have given life back to the streets, to the entire city and province, and that’s more than anyone could have asked for during this pandemic.

And it’s still not over. If the Canadiens have shown anything, especially during the series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, is that they don’t give up.

This means that Game 4 will probably be the most intense we’ve seen this series, and possibly this entire year, considering the Canadiens will be playing the most important game in 28 years.

Just like it was the case for Game 3, I don’t expect there to be any lineup changes for Game 4. Though, it will be the Canadiens’ last chance at staying in and forcing a Game 5 in Tampa.

Will Ducharme risk changing the lineup for the team’s last chance at remaining in the Stanley Cup race? If so, what would he change?

None of these will be easy decisions, but with how well he’s coached this team in the playoffs, he will do whatever he believes is best and hope it’s enough to keep his team in it.

And no matter what the end result is, the Canadiens have already shocked the entire hockey world and given a sense of normalcy to a city that had felt dead for over a year.