The Montreal Canadiens have advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals of the 2026 National Hockey League Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Buffalo Sabres. On Sunday night at the Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Florida, the Canadiens beat the Lightning 2-1 to win the best out of seven Eastern Conference first round playoff series four games to three.
Defenseman Kaiden Guhle of Edmonton, Alberta led the Canadiens in scoring with two points, as he had two assists. Two Canadians scored for the Canadiens. Nick Suzuki of London, Ontario opened the scoring from Guhle and Josh Anderson of Burlington, Ontario on an all-Canadian goal with one minute and 21 seconds left in the first period. Then, Alex Newhook of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador scored the game-winning goal from Guhle and Lane Hutson with eight minutes and 53 seconds left in the third period top break a 1-1 deadlock.
One remarkable statistic was the fact that the Canadiens won the game despite being outshot 29-9. The Canadiens had zero shots on goal in the second period. According to Chris Cuthbert of Rogers Sportsnet, this was the first time in Canadiens franchise history that they went through an entire playoff period without a shot on goal. Also according to Rogers Sportsnet, the Canadiens went through 93 minutes and 29 seconds of real time without a shot on goal.
