The Tampa Bay Lightning began playing a year before their in-state rival Florida Panthers in 1992-93. It was the same season that the Canadiens won their last Stanley Cup, which is ironic considering how Tampa Bay would factor into Montreal's Stanley Cup history nearly three decades later. Montreal hasn't dealt well with the Florida teams, and Tampa Bay is no different. As we covered in the Panthers All-Time history piece, these teams have been around since the Canadiens' last Stanley Cup, which has been a down period for the Canadiens. The Canadiens have a 57-67-6-5 record against the Lightning.
The NHL founded the Lightning on December 6, 1990. They began play in the 1992-93 season and won three Stanley Cups in 2004, 2020, and 2021. They've also appeared in six conference finals and four Stanley Cup Finals. Tampa Bay has been one of the most successful franchises of the past decade.
The Canadiens are in a four-game losing streak after getting swept by the Lightning last season. Each game ended with seven goals or more, including their last result which was a 7-4 loss at home on April 4, 2024. Nick Paul led the way for the Lightning with two goals, while Nikita Kucherov added a goal and two assists. The Canadiens had two goals from Joel Armia, a goal from Juraj Slafkovsy, and another from Cole Caufield.
Canadiens-Lightning Playoff History
The Canadiens and Lightning have met in the playoffs four times. Their most recent loss was the most important in both franchises' history, as the COVID-19-altered season caused them to match up in the 2021 Stanley Cup Finals. The Canadiens went on an all-time run to make it to the finals after rallying from a 3-1 deficit against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round, sweeping the Winnipeg Jets, and defeating the Vegas Golden Knights in the conference finals.
The Canadiens were barely in the series, as the Lightning took care of business in five games. The road to the finals took much out of Montreal, and they didn't have much left for the defending cup champs. Montreal won Game 4 to extend the series to five games, but the Lightning won Game 5 1-0 in a fitting battle between Andrei Vasilevskiy and Carey Price.