The Montreal Canadiens were able to shock the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 1 with an overtime win, led by Juraj Slafkovsky's hat trick. On Tuesday night, the Canadiens have a chance to take a dominant 2-0 lead in the series with another win.
The blueprint to getting another win is trying their best to replicate what they were able to do in Game 1. These are three players who had great games to open the series against the Tampa Bay Lightning and could make an impact in Game 2.
Juraj Slafkovsky
It has been a breakout season for Juraj Slafkovsky, and in Game 1, he seemingly took the game over for the Canadiens. He finished the game with three power-play goals, which tied an NHL playoff record, while leading the team in shots with seven.
The big question is whether or not he can follow up that performance in Game 2, as the Lightning are almost certain to focus on the former first-overall pick.
He is a big forward who can certainly handle the extra attention. This game may not be so much goal-scoring, but where he can be a big help is by controlling the puck in the offensive zone and setting up teammates Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield.
Lane Hutson
Without Noah Dobson, Lane Hutson continued to shoulder a bigger role on the Canadiens blue line and led the team in ice time with 29 minutes. This is now the fourth time in his career that he has had 29 minutes or more of ice time in a game but three of those times have been in his last eight games.
Hutson did a great job against the Lightning in Game 1 as he had one assist but limited the Lightning's chances. When he was on the ice, the Canadiens had 11 high-danger chances to only one for the Lightning and 16 scoring chances while the Lightning had three, according to Natural Stat Trick.
The Canadiens are probably going to need to continue to lean on Hutson until Dobson can return. It will be interesting to see how he holds up if he is asked to be on the ice for 29+ minutes again in a second straight game.
Arber Xhekaj
Entering the series, there was a question of what the Canadiens might do with their third defensive pair. They were getting Alexandre Carrier back which helped and it was unknown if Arber Xhekaj would get the spot or the team would look to rookie David Reinbacher.
Ultimately, the Canadiens went with Xhekaj, and while he had just over 10 minutes of ice time, he made a big impact, particularly with his physicality. He finished with a team-best five hits, and on Monday, head coach Martin St. Louis noted how he did a great job of being physical but not crossing the line.
"He played a physical game, but he was composed and toed the line. He didn't get over the line, and I think that's really important," St. Louis said.
In the playoffs, the physicality ramps up and having a player like Xhekaj is a boost for the Montreal Canadiens. If he can have a similar game on Tuesday to what he did in Game 1, should help improve the Canadiens chances at another win.
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