Projected Lineup (subject to change)
Forwards
Ondrej Palat - Steven Stamkos - Mathieu Joseph
Alex Killorn - Anthony Cirelli - Gabriel Fortier
Pat Maroon - Pierre-Edouard Bellemare - Corey Perry
Boris Katchouk - Ross Colton - Taylor Raddysh
Defensemen
Victor Hedman - Jan Rutta
Ryan McDonagh - Erik Cernak
Mikhail Sergachev - Zach Bogosian
Goaltenders
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Brian Elliott
Tuesday's Matchup
The Lightning and the Canadiens are playing their first of three meetings this season and the only meeting at Bell Centre...Montreal is one of two Atlantic Division teams the Bolts play just three times this season (also: Buffalo)...Tampa Bay and Montreal are playing for the first time since facing off in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final, a series in which the Lightning sprinted out to a 3-0 series lead before capturing the franchise's second-straight Stanley Cup and third overall with a 1-0 win in Game 5 at AMALIE Arena July 7, 2021, Ross Colton scoring the series-clinching goal 13:27 into the second period and Andrei Vasilevskiy making all 22 stops for his NHL record fifth-straight shutout in a series-clinching game...The Lightning and the Canadiens are meeting in the regular season for the first time since March 5, 2020, a 4-0 win for the Bolts at AMALIE Arena powered by two goals from Victor Hedman and a 32-save shutout by Andrei Vasilevskiy...The Lightning last played a regular season game in Montreal Jan. 2, 2020, a 2-1 Tampa Bay win...The Bolts have won four in a row and nine of their last 10 in the regular season over Montreal...Tampa Bay has won two straight and four of its last five regular season games in Montreal.
Tuesday's Storylines
The Lightning have won three games in a row and are on a four-game point streak (3-0-1)...The Bolts have collected points in three-straight road contests (2-0-1)...Tampa Bay owns the third-best road point percentage in the NHL (.727) behind only Calgary (.800) and Carolina (.731)...The Lightning have scored the opening goal in four-straight games...Tampa Bay owns the second-best first period goal differential (+12) in the NHL behind only Calgary (+17)...The Lightning have given up two or fewer goals in three-consecutive games... Since Oct. 26, the Bolts own the third-best point percentage in the NHL (.806) behind only Toronto (.816) and the NY Rangers (.813).
Injuries
2021-22 Reg. Season Man Games Lost: 85
Current injuries
Erik Cernak (Lower-body injury Dec. 4; Day-to-day) 1 Game
Nikita Kucherov (Lower-body injury; Underwent successful procedure Oct. 26; Out 8-10 weeks) 21 Games
Brayden Point (Upper-body injury Nov. 20; Out 4-6 weeks) 8 Games
Gemel Smith (Lower-body injury Sept. 28; Out indefinitely) 24 Games
Tampa Bay Sports Item of the Game
Stanley Cup Champs Drinkware - BOGO Promo
It's Day 3 of Tampa Bay Sports' 16 Days of Deals. Buy 1 Get 1 FREE on all Stanley Cup Champ glasswear. Available in store at AMALIE Arena and online at TampaBaySports.com. And be sure each day for a new deal!
The Road Ahead
Thursday, December 9 at Toronto Maple Leafs
Saturday, December 11 at Ottawa Senators
Tuesday, December 14 vs. Los Angeles Kings
