Kucherov, Lightning top Canadiens in Game 1 of Stanley Cup Final

TAMPA -- Nikita Kucherov had two goals and an assist in the third period, and the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Montreal Canadiens 5-1 in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final at Amalie Arena on Monday.

Kucherov reached 30 points (seven goals, 23 assists) in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for a second straight season. He scored 34 points (seven goals, 27 assists) in the 2020 postseason to help the Lightning win the Cup.
"He's playing like a beast right now," Tampa Bay captain Steven Stamkos said, "and he's so, so good."

Brayden Point had three assists, and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 18 saves for the Lightning.
Ben Chiarot scored, and Carey Price made 22 saves for the Canadiens, playing their first game in the Final since winning the Cup in 1993.
"The rink was buzzing, and that's something that we will get over and we'll be a little bit more used to next game," said Canadiens assistant Luke Richardson, who has coached Montreal for five games since Dominique Ducharme tested positive for COVID-19 on June 18. "And I think, you know, maybe just to strike early for us will be key next game to try and weather that storm and quiet the building a little bit and let us get a rhythm going."
Since the Cup Final went to a best-of-7 format in 1939, teams that win Game 1 have a series record of 61-20 (.753). Each of the past three champions lost Game 1 (Washington Capitals, 2018; St. Louis Blues, 2019).
Game 2 is here Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS)
"Yeah, it's one game of a seven-game series," Canadiens defenseman Jeff Petry said. "So we have to use what we did [at the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Semifinals], that experience, that mindset to rebound and bounce back for Game 2. We're going to watch some clips on what we can do better, and I think everybody knows that our effort is there, but I think that we can all bring a little bit more."
Erik Cernak gave Tampa Bay a 1-0 lead at 6:19 of the first period with his first NHL playoff goal in his 46th game, scoring in the slot on a redirection of a pass from Ondrej Palat.
"That was a huge play by 'Pally,'" Cernak said. "'Kuch' did a good job too, went straight to the net, you know, took the defense from me, and I just looked to tip the puck. I was glad we got the first goal."
Yanni Gourde made it 2-0 at 5:47 of the second period when he redirected a shot from Blake Coleman.
"I think that's the key, going on the inside, driving the net, taking [Price's] eyes away," Gourde said.

Chiarot cut it to 2-1 at 17:40 with a shot from the right point that deflected off two Lightning. It was Chiarot's first NHL playoff goal in his 52nd game.
"Obviously, they were going to have a good push at the start of the game," Chiarot said. "Game 1 in their building, we knew they were going to come out pretty hard at the beginning. Once we settled in there into the second period, I thought we got our game going a bit better … and then a couple bad bounces maybe didn't go our way tonight."
Kucherov made it 3-1 at 2:00 of the third period after Chiarot swatted his shot with his hand and then accidentally knocked in the puck with his stick.
"You know not much I had to do, I was just trying to throw it on the net and see what happens," Kucherov said. "Fortunately, it was a lucky bounce for us. I thought it was a Pally goal."
Kucherov made it 4-1 at 11:25 with a wrist shot from the top of the slot off a face-off win by Point.
"'Pointer' is an unbelievable player," Kucherov said. "He knows when and what to do at a certain time, and he's a [heck] of a player. He sees the ice to make those plays. It's just who he is. It's fun to play with him, and he's been unbelievable for us."
Stamkos extended the lead to 5-1 with a power-play goal at 18:50. The goal ended the Canadiens' streak of 32 straight penalty kills since Game 4 of the Stanley Cup First Round against the Toronto Maple Leafs, including 30 straight over the previous 13 games.
"We take it, we take tonight, we bottle it up," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "I'm happy we won and … we'll move on to the next one and hopefully we can have the same consistent effort."
NOTES: Kucherov became the fifth player in NHL history to have multiple 30-point playoff seasons, joining Wayne Gretzky (six), Mark Messier (three), Jari Kurri (two) and Mario Lemieux (two). … Tampa Bay forward Alex Killorn (undisclosed) took one shift at the beginning of third period and did not play the final 19:04. Cooper said he didn't have an update. … The Lightning lost Game 1 in their three previous Cup Final appearances (2004, a seven-game victory against the Calgary Flames; 2015, a six-game loss to the Chicago Blackhawks; and 2020, a six-game victory against the Dallas Stars). … Point has a six-game point streak in the Cup Final dating to Game 2 last season (11 points; five goals, six assists). … Canadiens forward Joel Armia did not play after being placed in NHL COVID-19 protocol Sunday. He flew to Tampa from Montreal on Monday and was removed from protocol. Jake Evans replaced Armia after missing nine games with a concussion sustained against the Winnipeg Jets in Game 1 of the second round. Evans had three hits and one shot on goal in 11:55. ... Montreal forward Cole Caufield became the second player to play in the Cup Final and win the Hobey Baker Award, voted annually for the top men's player in NCAA Division I ice hockey, in the same season. (Neal Broten, Minnesota North Stars/University of Minnesota, 1981). Caufield, from the University of Wisconsin, was minus-3 with two shots on goal in 14:28. … Center Jesperi Kotkaniemi, 20, had an assist to become the sixth player in Canadiens history to score a point in the Cup Final at age 20 or younger. … With Price and Vasilevskiy facing each other, this is the fourth Cup Final since 1981 when two Vezina Trophy winners have met and first since 1999 (Ed Belfour for the Stars and Dominik Hasek for the Buffalo Sabres).