Lane Hutson stuns Tampa Bay in OT as referee controversy follows Canadiens’ Game 3 win
Photo credit: © Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
Lane Hutson buried Tampa Bay in OT, but the Montreal Canadiens left Game 3 with heat, scars, and referee noise.
Montreal beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2, taking a 2-1 series lead after a third straight overtime game.
Hutson scored 2:09 into OT, ripping a point shot through traffic past Andrei Vasilevskiy. That matters because Tampa had started bending Montreal's pace.
This was not just a highlight goal. It was a tactical win from the blue line.
Alexandre Texier pulled coverage low, then fed Hutson up top. Vasilevskiy never got a clean look.
Before the chaos, Kucherov's goal and the Dobes-Cernak exchange showed Tampa's plan clearly. Many said the refs made an error on Tampa's second goal.
Dobes made 15 saves, which looks light, but his edge work mattered when Tampa pushed bodies inside.
The crowd's reaction to a soft-looking tripping call captures the bigger playoff theme. Montreal fans feel every whistle now.
Lane Hutson Changes Montreal Canadiens Series Pressure
Fans are right to be fired up, but the smarter read is that Montreal survived the emotional swings without losing structure.
Kirby Dach's response was huge. After Game 2 heat, he drove the Texier line, scored, and gave Montreal real bottom-six bite.
If Dach keeps pushing play, Martin St. Louis can stop chasing matchups and trust four lines.
Tampa still has Kucherov, Point, Hagel, and Vasilevskiy. No lead feels safe against that core.
But Montreal found something better than noise. It found a playoff identity with Hutson attacking, Dach answering, and Dobes refusing to blink.
Game 4 now becomes the pressure point. Montreal can turn a loud win into a real series grip.
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