Canadiens to face Lightning in first round of NHL playoffs, home ice still in play

Montreal Canadiens' Josh Anderson (17) fights Tampa Bay Lightning' Declan Carlile (67) during second period NHL hockey action, in Montreal on Thursday, April 9, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press)

MONTREAL — A first-round NHL playoff matchup between the Montreal Canadiens and the Tampa Bay Lightning is officially set after the Buffalo Sabres clinched first place in the Atlantic Division on Monday.

Home-ice advantage, however, remains undecided with one regular-season game left for both teams.

Tampa Bay (50-25-6) leapt into second place in the Atlantic on Monday after a 4-3 overtime win over the Detroit Red Wings, moving ahead of Montreal (48-23-10) with both teams tied at 106 points. The Canadiens sit third, with the Lightning holding the regulation-wins tiebreaker.

Montreal closes its regular season Tuesday in Philadelphia, while Tampa Bay hosts the New York Rangers in its finale Wednesday. The playoffs begin Saturday.

The matchup marks a fifth playoff series between the two teams — and a rematch of the 2021 Stanley Cup final, won by the Lightning in five games.

Montreal went 2-1-1 in the head-to-head meetings this season, including a pair of heated wins over Tampa Bay in the past two weeks. The Canadiens won 4-1 in Tampa on March 31 before handing the Lightning a 2-1 loss last Thursday in a game that featured 126 penalty minutes.

“It was physical. A lot of emotion, a lot of scrums,” Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki said after Thursday’s win. “If we see them in the first round, I think (there’s) a lot more of that to come so it should be fun.”

The Lightning are headed to the post-season for a ninth straight year after weathering multiple injuries to reach 50 wins and once again position themselves as Cup contenders.

Hart Trophy candidate Nikita Kucherov has led the offence with 130 points (44 goals, 86 assists) in 75 games. Star goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy leads the league with 39 wins to go with a .912 save percentage and a 2.31 goals-against average.

The status of captain Victor Hedman remains unclear after he took a personal leave of absence March 25.

The Canadiens, meanwhile, have enjoyed their strongest regular season in years, with Cole Caufield reaching 50 goals, Suzuki breaking the 100-point plateau and Lane Hutson tying Larry Robinson for most assists by a Montreal defenceman in a single season (66).

Montreal made the playoffs for the first time since the 2021 Cup final last season after undergoing a three-year rebuild.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 13, 2026.

The Canadian Press