Vasilevskiy, Lightning hold off Canadiens for fifth win in row

MONTREAL-- The Tampa Bay Lightning extended their longest winning streak of the season to five games with a 2-1 win against the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Thursday.

Andrei Vasilevskiy made 38 saves for Tampa Bay (22-13-4), which has won 13 straight games against Atlantic Division opponents.
"It's easier for me to play with 30-40 shots against than with 10 shots against," Vasilevskiy said. "I felt pretty good and we did a great job of blocking shots, and we were pretty good in the blue paint on all the scrambles, so we did a pretty good job."
WATCH: [All Lightning vs. Canadiens highlights]
Jeff Petry scored for Montreal (18-17-6), which has lost four straight after going 6-2-0 in its previous eight games. Carey Price made 21 saves.
"I thought we played a really good game," Price said. "I thought we did everything we needed to do to get two points."

Max Domi had an assist on Petry's goal and has 11 points (six goals, five assists) during an eight-game point streak. His goal streak ended at six games.
"When it comes down to it, we didn't get any points tonight," Canadiens defenseman Shea Weber said. "And the biggest thing right now is we've got to collect points and get back on track here. And we'll use the things we did well tonight to move on, but we've just got to find a way."

Domi had an opportunity to extend his streak at 11:18 of the first period, but Vasilevskiy used his right pad to protect a 2-1 lead.
"That was a pretty good shot, but I was able to make kind of an awkward move and save the puck somehow," Vasilevskiy said. "I got lucky on that one. Never give up, right?"
Steven Stamkos gave the Lightning a 1-0 lead 42 seconds into the first period. Petry tied it 1-1 at 5:48.

"The one big thing was getting off to a quick start, so it was really good to score on that first shift," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. "It's a different game when you play with the lead, and that kind of dictated the way we played a little bit."
Nikita Kucherov put Tampa Bay ahead 2-1 at 8:28. He was unmarked at the right side of the net and scored on a pass from Brayden Point, who recovered the puck after Price and defenseman Victor Mete failed to connect on a pass behind the net.
"It's all on me," Price said. "I just tried to do too much and put it on his forehand and he wasn't expecting it."

They said it

"The big thing was [Vasilevskiy] was on and he bailed us out when we needed. He made a couple of 10-bell saves, a big one on Domi in the first period. So I didn't like that we had to rely so much on him at the end of the second, and then we managed the third." -- Lightning coach Jon Cooper
"To me, we were the better team tonight. I mean, anybody who's watched the game ... knows that we were the better team. And that's because we had our young guys and our call-ups and everybody from the first guy to the last player working hard and competing hard and caring. I just wish I could have a positive result at the end of the game to reward these guys for how hard they're working." -- Canadiens coach Claude Julien

Need to know

Domi's goal streak is tied with Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane for longest in the NHL this season. ... Tampa Bay did not have a power play. The Canadiens went 0-for-3, including a 4-on-3 for 28 seconds in the third period. ... Montreal acquired defenseman Marco Scandella from the Buffalo Sabres for a fourth-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft in one of two trades the Canadiens made prior to the game. He is expected to join them Friday. Defenseman Mike Reilly was traded to the Ottawa Senators for minor-league forward Andrew Sturtz, who will report to Laval of the American Hockey League, and a fifth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft.

What's next

Lightning: At the Ottawa Senators on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; SN1, SUN, NHL.TV)
Canadiens: Host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; NHLN, CITY, SNE, TVAS, ATTSN-PT, NHL.TV)