The Habs are up 3-0, go Habs.
The Montreal Canadiens lead the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-0 in their first-round series, and maybe it could have been different. Maybe Tampa could have won Game 1, in overtime, even though Montreal deserved it. And maybe they should have won Game 3 in Montreal Sunday night.
But in the chaos Montreal was a little better and a little luckier and the Habs won 3-2, and the series is all but over. Though not without controversy.
�I was pissed then, and I�m pissed now,� said Lightning coach Jon Cooper. �But that�s just my opinion.�
Cooper was upset because with four and a half minutes left in the second period of a 1-1 game � a game before which Ginette Reno sang one of the great renditions of �O Canada� you will ever hear, and in which Montreal�s Rene Bourque opened the scoring 11 seconds in while the Bell Centre sounded like a jet engine and the Lightning looked like they couldn�t quite comprehend what was happening to them � Tampa Bay scored.
Except Lightning forward Alex Killorn had hurtled into the net after tripping over an oncoming Carey Price, and while trying to get up Price lunged across the crease and collided with Killorn. Price initiated the contact, but Killorn was in the crease. Price stumbled back across the crease and was beaten by Ryan Callahan, but referee Francis Charron waved it off. Technically the call was correct, but there was room for disagreement.
Montreal scored the next two goals, and Tampa could only get one back, and that is very nearly that.
