The Canadiens are being viewed as clear underdogs by ESPN ahead of their series against the Lightning.
The Montreal Canadiens kick off their first-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday. The Canadiens will be looking to start the series off on the right foot by picking up a victory against the Bolts on the road.
This has the potential to be a great series, as these Atlantic Division clubs are full of skill. They both also finished this regular season with 106 points, so they are at a similar level, and this series could ultimately go either way.
However, the Canadiens are being viewed as clear underdogs for this series by ESPN. This is because 21 out of ESPN's 27 staff members who participated in their playoff picks column predicted that the Lightning would defeat the Habs in the first round.
The only members of ESPN's staff who are predicting the Canadiens to defeat the Lightning in the first round are PK Subban, Gregg Colli, Erik Johnson, Tim Kavanagh, Sean McDonough, and Arda Ocal.
While the Canadiens are being viewed as big underdogs by ESPN, the possibility of them knocking out the Lightning absolutely cannot be ruled out. The Canadiens have a strong cast of star players, like Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Lane Hutson, and Juraj Slafkovsky who have the potential to carry them in the playoffs. The Canadiens also ended the season strongly, while the Lightning lost five out of their final 10 games.
However, the big question for the Canadiens will be if they can solve Lightning star goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy. If they can, they could end up proving their doubters wrong and knocking out a very good Bolts club.