The Bolts jumped out to a 2-0 lead on first period goals from Steven Stamkos and Anthony Cirelli, but their play dipped in the middle frame and Montreal pulled tied the game at three with seven minutes to play in the period.
Brayden Point put Tampa Bay back in front with a power play goal in the final minute of the second, but Montreal tied it again early in the third on Jess Ylonen's second goal of the season.
After a scoreless overtime, Nick Suzuki netted the lone goal in a three-round shootout to secure the second point for Montreal.
Paired with Toronto's win on Saturday, the Bolts and Maple Leafs sit even at 93 points, setting up a hugely important meeting between the two teams at AMALIE Arena on Monday.
Scoring Summary
1st Period
TBL 1, MTL 0
8:57 Steven Stamkos (32) - Nikita Kucherov, Victor Hedman
From along the far wall, Nikita Kucherov threaded a pass through the middle of the ice to Steven Stamkos at the far post. Stamkos was able to shake free from Justin Barron and had his stick on the ice to tap home the feed.
TBL 2, MTL 0
13:32 Anthony Cirelli (15) - Nick Paul - SHG
With Stamkos in the box for tripping, the Bolts forced Montreal into a turnover near the blue line. Nick Paul was able to accelerate through the neutral zone and throw a backhand feed toward Anthony Cirelli at the far post. The pass took a deflection off Mike Hoffman in front of the net but was eventually jammed over the line by Cirelli as he crashed into Jake Allen. Montreal challenged, arguing there was goaltender interference on the play, but the call on the ice stood.
2nd Period
TBL 2, MTL 1
8:57 Cole Caufield (15) - Rem Pitlick
The Bolts had Montreal caught in a line change, but Mikhail Sergachev's pass back to the point slipped through a pair of Lightning skaters and sprung the Habs on a 2-on-0. Rem Pitlick and Cole Caufiled passed the puck back and forth before Caufield went top shelf on Brian Elliott to get the Canadiens on the board.
TBL 3, MTL 1
11:34 Nikita Kucherov (12) - Victor Hedman, Alex Killorn - PPG
Usually a facilitator from his spot at the right circle on the power play, Nikita Kucherov instead let loose a one-timed blast off a feed from Hedman that eluded Jake Allen and put the Bolts back up by two.
TBL 3, MTL 2
13:56 Corey Schueneman (2) - Nick Suzuki
Off an offensive zone face-off win, Corey Shueneman floated a point shot from the point that beat Elliott to the glove side.
TBL 3, MTL 3
15:50 Josh Anderson (17) - Mike Hoffman
Stamkos' drop feed just inside the blue line was intercepted by Mike Hoffman and played forward for Josh Anderson to create a breakaway. In alone, Anderson went five-hole on Elliott to bring the Canadiens level.
TBL 4, MTL 3
19:44 Brayden Point (27) - Ondrej Palat, Nikita Kucherov - PPG
A power play goal from Brayden Point in the final minute of the period put the Bolts back in front heading into intermission. Point set up in the slot and redirected Ondrej Palat's feed off the post and in.
3rd Period
TBL 4, MTL 4
2:18 Jess Ylonen (2) - Ryan Poehling, Tyler Pitlick
On the rush, Ryan Poehling sent a backhand pass through the middle of the ice to an open Jess Ylonen on the near side. Ylonen's quickly one-timed it past Elliott to tie the game at four early in the third period.
Overtime
No Scoring
Shootout
Neither side scored through the first two rounds of the shootout. In the third, Allen stopped Stamkos and Nick Suzuki deked his way around Elliott and tucked a backhand past his outstretched pad for the game-winner.
