Schedule and 2014-15 Results
Regular Season Records: Montreal 50-22-10=110pts, Tampa Bay 50-24-8=108pts
Game 1 on Friday, 01 May: Tampa Bay wins at Montreal, 2-goals-1 (2OT)
Game 2 on Sunday, 03 May: Tampa Bay wins at Montreal, 6-goals-2
Game 3 on Wednesday, 06 May: Montreal loses at Tampa Bay, 2-goals-1
Game 4 on Thursday, 07 May: Montreal wins at Tampa Bay, 6-goals-2
Game 5 on Saturday, 09 May: Tampa Bay loses at Montreal, 2-goals-1
Game 6 on Tuesday, 12 May: Montreal loses at Tampa Bay, 4-goals-1

SERIES NOTES:

After Game 6: The Tampa Bay Lightning hosted and bested the Montreal Canadiens 4-goals-1 to complete a 4-games-2 best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1262 victory. With the series 1262 win, the Tampa Bay Lightning improve their best-of-7 NHL playoff series record to 9-6 overall and 3-1 in the Quarterfinals round. With the series 1262 loss, the Montreal Canadiens see their best-of-7 NHL playoff series record fall to 77-40 overall and 16-13 in the Quarterfinals round. The win order for the victorious Tampa Bay Lightning in series 1262 was WWWLLW: Series 1262 thus becomes the fifth NHL Quarterfinals-round series, the 12th NHL series (all rounds), and the 24th MLB/NBA/NHL series (all rounds) to follow that win order to completion. Prior to series 1262, the last NHL team to achieve a win order of WWWLLW in a best-of-7 NHL playoff series was the vanquished party in series 1262 - the Montreal Canadiens (in series 1254, in the just-completed 2015 NHL Preliminary round).

After Game 5: The Montreal Canadiens hosted and defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-goals-1 to reduce the Tampa Bay Lightning best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL series 1262 lead to 3-games-2. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-2, the Tampa Bay Lightning have a series record of 2-0 and a Game 6 record of 1-1. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-2, the Montreal Canadiens have a series record of 8-21 and a Game 6 record of 14-15.

After Game 4: The Montreal Canadiens visited and defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 6-goals-2 to reduce the Tampa Bay Lightning best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL series 1262 lead to 3-games-1. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-1, the Tampa Bay Lightning have a series record of 1-0 and a Game 5 record of 1-0. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-1, the Montreal Canadiens have a series record of 2-16 and a Game 5 record of 8-10. Series 1262 has become the 16th best-of-7 NHL playoff series in which the team leading 3-games-nil lost Game 4 on home ice, and the first in which the road team began the scoring with five consecutive goals. The previous Game 4 standard by the road team down 3-games-nil in this regard had been set in series 384 Game 4 (the Buffalo Sabres at the Minnesota North Stars in the 1981 NHL Quarterfinals), series 970 Game 4 (the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim at the Edmonton Oilers in the 2006 NHL Semifinals), and series 1002 Game 4 (Buffalo at the Ottawa Senators in the 2007 NHL Semifinals), in which the road team began the scoring with three consecutive goals.

After Game 3: The Tampa Bay Lightning hosted and defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-goals-1 to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1262 lead of 3-games-nil. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-nil, the Tampa Bay Lightning have a series record of 2-0 and a Game 4 record of 2-0. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-nil, the Montreal Canadiens have a series record of 0-10 and a Game 4 record of 5-5. Tampa Bay scored the series 1262 Game 3-winning goal at the 19:58 mark of the third period, which ties series 161 Game 1 (in which the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted and defeated the Detroit Red Wings 3-goals-2 in the 1964 NHL Finals) for the second-latest home team game-winning goal in regulation in best-of-7 format NHL playoff game history; in series 1058 Game 4, the Carolina Hurricanes hosted and defeated the New Jersey Devils 4-goals-3 with the game-winner 19:59 into the third period during their 2009 NHL Preliminary-round series.

After Game 2: The Tampa Bay Lightning visited and defeated the Montreal Canadiens 6-goals-2 to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1262 lead of 2-games-nil. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 2-games-nil, the Tampa Bay Lightning have a series record of 2-0 and a Game 3 record of 2-0. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 2-games-nil, the Montreal Canadiens have a series record of 5-17 (with an active four-series losing streak) and a Game 3 record of 12-10. In the history of best-of-7 format NHL playoff games since 1939, inclusive, teams such as the Tampa Bay Lightning which post a win/site order of WW @ VV after two games, and win Game 1 by one goal and win Game 2 by four goals, have a series record of 1-1 (the winner: the Buffalo Sabres, in series 626, in the 1993 NHL Preliminary round; the loser: the Detroit Red Wings, in series 784, in the 1999 NHL Quarterfinals).

After Game 1: The Tampa Bay Lightning visited and bested the Montreal Canadiens 2-goals-1 in double overtime to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1262 lead of 1-game-nil. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1-game-nil, the Tampa Bay Lightning have a series record of 4-1 and a Game 2 record of 2-3. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1-game-nil, the Montreal Canadiens have a series record of 16-28 (with an active three-series losing streak) and a Game 2 record of 22-22. Series 1262 Game 1 becomes the tenth best-of-7 format NHL playoff game in which the road team opened the scoring, the home team then tied the game 1-goal-all, and the road team won the game 2-goals-1 with the second goal in the second overtime period or later; none of the previous nine games had involved either the Tampa Bay Lightning or the Montreal Canadiens.

Pre-series assessment: In the 2014-15 NHL regular season, the Montreal Canadiens finished two points ahead of the Tampa Bay Lightning. From 1939 through the 2015 NHL Preliminary round, when NHL teams led their best-of-7 playoff series opponents by two regular-season points, they have posted a best-of-7 playoff series record of 16-15 (.516) in those series against those opponents. MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1262 is the 117th best-of-7 NHL playoff series for the Montreal Canadiens, and the 15th for the Tampa Bay Lightning. In best-of-7 NHL playoff series, the Montreal Canadiens have an all-rounds series record of 77-39, a Quarterfinals-round series record of 16-12, and a Game 1 record of 72-44, while the Tampa Bay Lightning have an all-rounds series record of 8-6, a Quarterfinals-round series record of 2-1, and a Game 1 record of 5-9. Series 1262 is the third best-of-7 NHL playoff series meeting between the Montreal Canadiens and the Tampa Bay Lightning. The teams split the previous two 1-1, with Tampa Bay winning series 914 (in the 2004 NHL Quarterfinals) and Montreal winning series 1222 (in the 2014 Preliminary round).