Juraj Slafkovsky delivered a historic performance for the Montreal Canadiens, scoring a hat trick including the overtime winner to lift his team to a 4-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round.
The game took place on Sunday, April 19, 2026, at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. Slafkovsky’s third goal came at 1:22 of overtime, a power-play snap shot from the left face-off circle that beat Andrei Vasilevskiy. The goal completed a remarkable hat trick for the 22-year-old Slovak forward, who became the first Canadiens player to record a playoff hat trick since Rene Bourque in 2014.
“I found some open space there and decided to shoot it, thankfully it went in, so we’re real happy,” Slafkovsky said after the game. “But we’ve got to stay focused. We’ve got another game in two days, so we’ve got to produce sure we’re prepared for that.”
The Canadiens built their offense around Slafkovsky’s dominance, with Josh Anderson also scoring and Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield each contributing two assists. Jakub Dobes made 20 saves in net for Montreal, who entered the series as the No. 3 seed from the Atlantic Division.
For the Lightning, Brandon Hagel scored twice and Darren Raddysh added a goal, while Jake Guentzel recorded three assists. Nikita Kucherov had two assists and Vasilevskiy made 15 saves. Tampa Bay, the No. 2 seed in the Atlantic, fell to 0-7 in their past seven playoff overtime games.
Lightning coach Jon Cooper criticized his team’s discipline, saying they took four offensive zone penalties that directly led to Montreal’s power-play opportunities. “I had a problem with us. We took four offensive zone penalties,” Cooper said. “Just look at them. That’s not over aggression, that was stupidity, a lot of them. That was on us. That was a game that we just gave them an opportunity to win.”
The Canadiens struck first in the opening period, with Anderson scoring early to set the tone. Tampa Bay responded with goals from Hagel and Raddysh to take a lead into the second intermission. Montreal answered in the third period, with Slafkovsky scoring twice — both on the power play — to force overtime.
Slafkovsky’s first two goals came at 8:14 and 14:08 of the third period, completing his hat trick just 82 seconds into overtime. His performance elevated him into rare company, joining only a handful of players in Canadiens history to score a playoff hat trick.
The win gives Montreal a 1-0 series lead heading into Game 2, scheduled for Tuesday, April 21, 2026, at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2, SN, CBC, TVAS and The Spot.
Both teams now shift focus to adjustments ahead of Game 2. Montreal will look to maintain their defensive structure and continue capitalizing on special teams opportunities, while Tampa Bay aims to reduce penalties and generate more consistent offense against Jakub Dobes, who stood tall in his playoff debut.
The series continues to follow a 2-2-1-1-1 format, with Games 3 and 4 set for Tampa Bay if necessary, before the potential return to Montreal for Games 5 and 7.
For ongoing coverage of the Canadiens-Lightning series and all NHL playoff action, visit Archysport.com for updates, analysis, and exclusive insights throughout the postseason.
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