04/27/26 12:01:00
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04/26 23:59 CDT Hagel scores twice in 3rd, Lightning beat Canadiens 3-2 in Game
4 to tie series
Hagel scores twice in 3rd, Lightning beat Canadiens 3-2 in Game 4 to tie series
MONTREAL (AP) --- Brandon Hagel scored his NHL playoffs-leading fifth and sixth
goals in the third period and the Tampa Bay Lightning rallied to beat the
Montreal Canadiens 3-2 on Sunday night in Game 4 to tie the series.
After the first three games in the first-round series went to overtime, Tampa
Bay overcame a two-goal deficit to end it in regulation.
Hagel gave the Lightning the lead with 4:43 left, deflecting linemate Nikita
Kucherov's shot past Jakub Dobes. Hagel scored minutes after the Lightning had
a 5-on-3 man advantage for 1:11.
"He's definitely become the straw that stirs our drink," Lightning coach John
Cooper said about Hagel. "Even when we went down 2-0, he stood up and looked
both ways and, literally I think, captivated the bench with what he was saying
and the message he was delivering."
Tampa Bay held on after the Canadiens got a power-play chance with 2:33 left
when Kucherov was called for slashing.
Lightning top-line center Jake Guentzel had a goal and assist, and Kucherov and
defenseman J.J. Moser each had two assists. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 16 saves.
Game 5 is Wednesday night in Tampa.
The Lightning rebounded after falling 3-2 on Friday night on defenseman Lane
Hutson's OT slap shot.
Hagel tied it on a power play at 1:40 off a centering pass from Kucherov. The
Lightning got the man advantage when Oliver Kapanen was sent off for
high-sticking Dominic James.
Before this spring, Hagel had had six career Stanley Cup playoff goals in 37
games with the Lightning across four playoff runs.
"He just does it all," Guentzel said. "He's a 200-foot player who plays both
sides of the body. Obviously,, he's the hottest guy in the league right now.
He's done it all year."
Guentzel cut it to 2-1 with 54 seconds to go the second, beating Dobes from the
left side off a feed from Moser.
"That's a massive goal for us," Hagel said. "I think going into the third
period sometimes down two goals, could be a little bit dicey at times. To get
one there, the period ends and you kind of take the crowd out of it right
there. Then we get to come onto the ice and just kind of build off that."
Zachary Bolduc and Cole Caufield scored for Montreal in 3:23 span in the
second. Caufield scored for the first time in the series after having 51 goals
in the regular season. Dobes made 17 saves.
"We didn't play a good enough third, I would say," Montreal coach Martin St.
Louis said. "We take three penalties, it's a veteran team, talented. They're
good at getting us to take penalties."
Bolduc opened the scoring with 9:54 left in the second. He took a long pass
from defenseman Kaiden Guhle, held off Lightning defenseman Darren Raddysh and
had the puck deflect in off his body as he cut across the front of the goal.
Caufield struck on a power play with 6:31 left in the period, with Guentzel off
for slashing Dobes' glove. Caufield took Nick Suzuki's centering pass in the
slot and redirected the puck in.
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