(4) Montreal Canadiens vs (3) Tampa Bay Lightning
Playoff Leader Stats
Tyler Toffoli (5) – Goals – Brayden Point (14)
Tyler Toffoli (9) – Assists – Nikita Kucherov (22)
Tyler Toffoli (14) – Points – Nikita Kucherov (27)
Carey Price (2.02) – GAA – Andrei Vasilevskiy (1.99)
Carey Price (.934) – SV% – Andrei Vasilevskiy (.936)
Offense: Lightning
Defense: Lightning
Goaltending: Tie
After a very entertaining and crazy playoffs, it’s finally here, the Stanley Cup Finals. The Stanley Cup Finals this year is going to be very interesting, between the powerhouse Tampa Bay Lightning and the underdog Montreal Canadiens. The Lightning were a bit underwhelming during the regular season but completely turned it on in the playoffs with the return of Nikita Kucherov. The Lightning first had to get past the Battle of Florida against the Florida Panthers, then went on to take care of the Carolina Hurricanes, and lastly beat the New York Islanders in the Conference for the second straight season.
The Canadiens, on the other hand, had a Cinderella run to the Stanley Cup Finals, led by their young forwards Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi and by their superstar goalie, Carey Price. The Canadiens managed to come back from 3-1 to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, then went on to sweep the Winnipeg Jets, and finally defeated the strong Vegas Golden Knights team to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. In this matchup between the Lightning and Canadiens, the Lightning have a clear advantage in offense, led by Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Steven Stamkos, and more. The Canadiens forward core is very solid too, but nothing compared to the Lightning. The Lightning also have the advantage in defense with Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh, and Mikhail Sergachev. In net, it’s very close between Carey Price who has been unreal in the playoffs, and Andrei Vasilevskiy who has been the best goaltender this season. Despite the Canadiens Cinderella run and their momentum, it’s going to be difficult to get past the stacked Lightning team which is why the Lightning will win in 6 games and be back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions.
Prediction: Lightning in 6
