Going into Tampa Bay, with the series tied 2-2, Martin St-Louis finally made a change to his lineup, inserting Brendan Gallagher in place of Oliver Kapenen. I'll admit I was not a huge fan of taking Kapanen out, but I loved the fact that Gallagher was finally getting a chance to suit up for the playoffs and he did not disappoint. He scored the opening goal of the game by doing what he always does, driving the net hard.
Although he only played 6:48, having him in the lineup and scoring after sitting out the last four games energized the Habs team. Kirby Dach also continued to prove doubters (myself included) wrong by scoring another goal and finishing the night with a +2. After all the social media bs he had to endure, I'm really happy for him. Texier completed the scoring for the Habs, and they were able to hang on for the 3-2 win. This was huge for the Habs as they now have two chances to close out the series, with one of those chances coming at home.
Lastly, Dobes has been fantastic in the series and has confirmed my early season prediction that he should be the man in thew net. You all called me madman when I suggested that it could very well be Dobeš/Fowler, but here we are.
This series has been awesome as both teams are playing great hockey and every game has been decided by a one goal margin. The next game is going to be absolutely electric as the Bell Centre is going to be buzzing something hard. It would be a great step if the Habs can finish off this series in 6 games and take advantage of some much needed rest.