The battle for the Stanley Cup is at the final stage. The Tampa Bay Lightning will look to win a second consecutive NHL title, but the Montreal Canadiens are not looking to end its magical season on a sour note. Both teams will square off in the Stanley Cup Final starting on Monday at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final will be followed by Game 2, which will take place on Wednesday. Game 3 will be on Friday, and Game 4 will happen on Monday, July 5. And if necessary, Game 5 will be on Wednesday, July 7, Game 6 will be on Friday, July 9, and Game 7 is set for Sunday, July 11. All the games will start at 8 p.m. ET, except for Game 7, as it will start at 7 p.m. ET. Games 1 and 2 will be on NBCSN, and the remaining games will be on NBC. Additionally, all games will stream on Peacock.
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Both teams are no strangers to the Stanley Cup. As mentioned earlier, the Lightning won the title last year while the Canadiens have won 24 championships, the most in NHL history. The Lightning can become the ninth team to win the Stanley Cup in consecutive seasons and the first since the Pittsburgh Penguins reached that mark in 2016 and 2017.
“For us, they’re a roadblock,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “And we’re a determined group to go in there and see another team we haven’t played. But it’s clear by watching them on TV how good they are and how they’ve got their mojo going and led by their goaltender (Carey Price). It’s going to be a fun series.”
The Canadiens had the worst record of the teams that qualified in the playoffs and came close to losing to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the opening round. But after beating the Maple Leafs in seven games, the Canadiens swept the Winnipeg Jets in the second round and took down the Vegas Golden Knights in six games.
“There’s a reason why, and they’re back in the Final this year,” Canadiens coach Dominque Ducharme said Saturday. “So it’s going to be a tough challenge for us, that’s for sure. But any Final is supposed to be that way, and we’ll be ready to go in Game 1.”
