Chris Nilan Scrutinizes Montreal's 3-2 Game 4 Loss

chris nilan saw Montreal lose 3-2 to Tampa Bay in Game 4 on Sunday night, a game shaped by 17 penalties and a disputed high-sticking call on Oliver Kapanen early in the third period. The Canadiens left with the series tied in chaos, but with the officiating and discipline issues now sitting at the center of the matchup.

Montreal and Tampa Bay

Martin St. Louis did not hide where he thought the breakdown started. "I think we put ourselves in situations where there's a chance the refs are going to call a penalty," he said after the game. His club spent too much of the night in the box, and Tampa Bay kept forcing the issue through the same kind of pressure that has defined the series.

The game turned after Kapanen was whistled for high-sticking Dominic James early in the third period. Nikita Kucherov then set up Brandon Hagel on a cross-crease pass to tie it 2-2, and Tampa Bay later scored after killing off a 5-on-3 power play to take the lead for good.

Penalty Calls and Pressure

There were 17 total penalties in the game, and 11 of them were stick infractions. That pattern has run through the series: after four games, Tampa Bay and Montreal had each taken 32 minor penalties, and they had combined for nine power play goals. The teams had scored 11 total goals through those four games, so special teams had already touched most of the offense.

Mike Matheson called the sequence "definitely frustrating," but added, "But you can't control it. You can get upset about it, but it's not really going to help you win games." Kaiden Guhle pointed to the same trend on both sides, saying, "It's going on both sides, too," and "There's a lot of stick penalties on both sides. Refs are looking for it. We talked about it. A couple of high sticks that are just weird plays, guy's face gets in the way. It's nothing you can really do about it."

Tampa Bay's Discipline

Tampa Bay also brought a season-long profile that fits this series. The Lightning led the NHL in the regular season with 1,207 penalty minutes, 229 more than the next-most penalized team. Fans made their view clear during Game 4 with chants of "refs, you suck!" while referees Brandon Blandina and Wes McCauley worked the game.

That leaves Montreal trying to manage the same issue that has followed the series from the start: avoid giving Tampa Bay the kind of power-play chances that can flip a one-goal game. St. Louis said the Canadiens were in the battle and added, "We could have had more composure, for sure. Especially when you're ahead, you want to have composure."