First goals are always important in playoff games as they can change a team’s game plan and force them to take chances when they don’t want to, especially when staring at a Vezina-caliber goaltender in the opposing net. On Monday night it was the Tampa Bay Lightning drawing first blood in their series-opening game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Oddly enough it wasn’t one of their big guns who beat Carey Price, rather defense-first Erik Cernak.
It was the type of goal that should make Jon Cooper super happy. It started in their own zone with a nice backcheck by a forward, in this case Brayden Point, and then the players quickly transitioned to offense with the defense joining the rush.