It’s official: the Tampa Bay Lightning will have home-ice advantage in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Montreal Canadiens.
After being one of the league’s stronger road teams this season, the Lightning were prepared for either scenario. Still, opening the series at home could give them an edge to start.
Tampa Bay (50-25-6) moved into second place in the Atlantic Division on Monday with a 4-3 overtime win over the Detroit Red Wings. The Lightning and Canadiens are both tied at 106 points, but Tampa Bay holds the regulation-wins tiebreaker.
“In the East, there’s so many good teams, there’s so many points you need to get into the playoffs, it’s hard,” said Anthony Cirelli. “And every team that gets in, it’s a good team. There’s no easy matchup. So you’ve got to be ready to go each and every night, and you’ve got to be focused on one game at a time here.”
With home ice now secured, the Lightning could rest several regulars in Wednesday’s regular-season finale against the Rangers. Head coach Jon Cooper said left wing Brandon Hagel, who returned Saturday in Boston after missing five games before sitting out again Monday, could potentially play.
“It’s not as much what happens (Tuesday) as what’s going to help our players be in the best position to succeed when Game 1 starts.”
Game 1 of the series is expected to begin Sunday, pending the final schedule.