Canadiens Advance Past Lightning in Game 7 Despite Only Nine Shots on Goal

TAMPA, Fla. -- Alex Newhook and Nick Suzuki scored goals, and the Montreal Canadiens , despite posting just nine shots on net, defeated the favored Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals on Sunday night.

Newhook scored the winner on a ricochet shot off of Tampa Bay goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy at the 11:07 mark of the third period, stunning the hometown crowd.

Each game of the series was decided by one goal and four went to overtime. The score was tied or within one goal for all but six minutes in the seven games.

"It's been a hard series," Suzuki said in the postgame show on TNT. "You have to give them a lot of credit. They made it super difficult on us. To get one in the first period, kind of made the group settle down a bit. But, it was just a great battle, the whole series."

On the other end, the shots came fast and furious in Game 7, but Montreal goaltender Jakub Dobes was up to the task. He finished with 29 saves, allowing only a power-play goal to Tampa Bay's Dominic James in the second period.

"I feel like every game I've played this year is kind of like a Game 7 for me," Dobes said on TNT, referring to the fact that he was not the No. 1 goaltender coming out of training camp. "To be honest, I was playing for my life the whole season, so this is not new to me. I just try to prove myself, and play with passion, play with emotion, and play with my 100% effort."

With Vasilevskiy pulled for the extra attacker, Dobes and the Canadiens held off a furious Tampa Bay flurry at the end of the third period. Brandon Hagel made an outstanding, sliding stick save with an open net in the final minute but the Lightning couldn't get the tying goal during a 6-on-5 and 6-on-4 for the final six seconds.

"I just try my best, try to be the best me possible," Dobes said. "I try to improve everyday, and it's been working. I'm really happy with my progress, but the job is not done."

The Canadiens will take on the Buffalo Sabres in Round 2, with Game 1 set for Wednesday night in New York. The Lightning, meanwhile, will head home after a first-round exit for the fourth consecutive season.

Tampa Bay's tough defense held the Canadiens without a shot for nearly 27 minutes from the first period into the third and just four through two periods. But Montreal received a few lucky bounces to score twice on its first eight shots on goal.

After Lane Hutson fired a slap shot that went wide and bounced back out, Newhook skated backhanded the puck out of the air and in off Andrei Vasilevskiy's pad and his backside.

Playing in front of their 461st consecutive sellout crowd and hundreds more fans watching from Thunder Alley outside Benchmark International Arena, the Lightning lost for the 11th time in their last 13 playoff games at home, including three times in this series.

"The guys really dug in there at the end," Suzuki said.

The Canadiens didn't have a shot on net in the second period despite two power-play chances. They became the first team to have zero shots in a playoff period since Pittsburgh in Game 1 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Finals against Nashville.

James tipped in Charle-Edouard D'Astous ' one-timer from just inside the blue line to tie it at 1 on a power play in the second period. A period before that, Suzuki opened the scoring with 1:21 left in the first. After scoring 29 goals in the regular season, Suzuki needed a bounce to get one. His redirection of Kaiden Guhle's slap shot was heading wide but the puck hit Lightning defenseman J.J. Moser and went in.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

_Originally reported by [ESPN](https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/48671341/montreal-canadiens-win-game-7-just-9-shots-goal)._