The Montreal Canadiens grabbed early momentum in their first-round series with a thrilling 4-3 overtime victory in Game 1, and now, two-time Stanley Cup champion Matthew Tkachuk believes he knows exactly how they can keep it going.
Matthew Tkachuk Offers Montreal Canadiens a Formula to Upset TB Lightning
Montreal capitalized on special teams in the opener, going 3-for-5 on the power play and repeatedly punishing Tampa Bay’s mistakes. The decisive moment came late, a high-sticking penalty on Jake Guentzel with 21 seconds left in regulation carried into overtime. Just 1:22 into the extra frame, Juraj Slafkovský completed his hat trick, sealing a 4-3 win and giving the Canadiens a 1-0 series lead.
Watching the matchup unfold, Tkachuk, a back-to-back Stanley Cup winner, pointed to Montreal’s speed and creativity as key advantages.
“I’ve watched like Tampa plays in the neutral zone really tight, kind of clog it up… Montreal has the skill and the speed where they pick their way through it all the time… They’re almost like the Globetrotters when you watch them sometimes like how they’re able to move the puck… Some of the goals yesterday on the power play, just sick,” Tkachuk said on the Wingmen podcast.
However, Tkachuk emphasized that beating Tampa Bay in a long series requires more than highlight-reel skill. He believes the Canadiens should lean into a grinding playoff approach by forcing the Lightning’s defense to repeatedly retrieve pucks and absorb contact.
“Against a team like that, I think it’s more just get it behind their goal line try to run their through their D,” he explained. “Put it behind them, pound their D, so in Game 7, they have nothing left. And that’s playoffs. That’s all it is. It’s not one game. Everything that happens in a game builds for that Game 7 overtime.”
Tkachuk added that playoff hockey is about building that physical toll over time, with every shift contributing to mistakes, whether a defenseman hesitates, fails to check his shoulder, or turns the puck over. He believes the series could gradually trend in that direction.
The Lightning entered the series as the Atlantic Division’s second seed with a 50-26-6 record, while Montreal finished third at 48-24-10. Despite Tampa Bay’s strong regular season, Montreal’s Game 1 win, combined with Tkachuk’s suggested approach, hints at a physical, grinding battle ahead.
With the Canadiens already holding a 1-0 lead, the question now is whether they’ll follow that blueprint and continue to pressure Tampa Bay’s defense, or if the experienced Lightning will adjust and swing momentum back in their favor.
