TBL@MTL: Game 3 Recap

MONTREAL - The Canadiens fell 6-3 to the Lightning on Friday night in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final.

SHOP: CHic Playoff Line
Tampa Bay leads the series 3-0.
It was a special night at the Bell Centre since this marked the first Stanely Cup Final game in the history of the building, which opened in 1996.
Habs fans hit the streets of Montreal to mark the occasion.

A few fans even showcased their creativity with some unique signs.

The Canadiens welcomed back interim head coach Dominique Ducharme after his mandatory quarantine was completed.
Ducharme didn't make any lineup changes for the encounter.

Unfortunately, the Lightning struck first, scoring at the 1:52 mark of the opening frame.
Defenseman Jan Rutta's shot found a way through traffic before beating goaltender Carey Price upstairs.

It was Rutta's second goal of the playoffs.
Winger Ondrej Palat and defenseman Victor Hedman assisted on the tally.
Tampa Bay doubled their lead less than two minutes later on the power play.
Hedman's one-timer from the point beat Price under the arm.

It was Hedman's second goal of the postseason.
Winger Nikita Kucherov and center Anthony Cirelli collected the assists.
Montreal cut the Lightning's lead in half with 8:44 left in the period courtesy of Phillip Danault.
The 28-year-old center capitalized on a 2-on-1 to bury a wrist shot past goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy.

It was Danault's first goal of the playoffs.
Captain Shea Weber picked up the lone assist.
That's the way things stood after 20 minutes. Montreal led 17-12 in shots at the break.
The Lightning re-established their two-goal lead just 1:40 into the second period.
Jon Cooper's squad capitalized on a bad line change on the part of the Canadiens, which led to a 2-on-0 versus Price and ultimately a Kucherov snipe.

It was Kucherov's eighth goal of the postseason.
Palat and defenseman Erik Cernak assisted on the tally.
Forward Tyler Johnson added to Tampa Bay's lead less than two minutes later.
The 30-year-old center jumped on a rebound in front of Price to make it 4-1 with his third goal of the playoffs.

Winger Mathieu Joseph and defenseman David Savard assisted on the goal.
The Canadiens weren't backing down, though, scoring with 1:56 left in the stanza.
Center Nick Suzuki surprised Vasilevskiy with a shot along the ice from a bad angle.

It was his team-leading seventh goal of the playoffs.
Defenseman Jeff Petry and winger Cole Caufield were credited with assists.
Montreal trailed 4-2 after 40 minutes. Ducharme's group led 25-21 in shots at the break.
Tampa Bay added another goal with 4:41 left in regulation.
Johnson jumped on a rebound to pick up his second marker of the night.
But, veteran Corey Perry responded for the Canadiens just 39 seconds later.
The 36-year-old winger beat Vasilevskiy with a perfectly placed shot upstairs.

It was Perry's fourth goal of the playoffs.
Winger Brendan Gallagher and defenseman Ben Chiarot collected helpers on the sequence.
Forward Blake Coleman capped the scoring for Tampa Bay with an empty-netter.
It was his third goal of the playoffs.
That's the way this one finished.
Price made 24 saves in the loss.
Game 4 will be played on Monday night at the Bell Centre.
Puck drop is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET.