MONTREAL — Goaltender Carey Price put on another show for the Montreal Canadiens but it wasn’t enough to beat the high-powered Tampa Bay Lightning.
The NHL’s leader in nearly every goaltending statistic stopped 35 shots before being beaten on one that went in off a teammate’s skate at 1:03 of overtime as the Lighting downed Montreal 1-0 on Tuesday night.
Tyler Johnson got credit for the goal, picking up his own rebound having the puck go in off Tom Gilbert’s skate to end the high-paced matchup between two of the Eastern Conference’s top clubs.
"They got a puck toward the net and they got a lucky bounce," said Price. "We had a guy trying to do the job in front and it was just a tough break.
"We figured it would end like that and tonight they were the ones that got it."
The point Montreal (42-18-7) got for the OT loss kept it atop the Atlantic Division, one ahead of Tampa Bay (42-20-6) with a game in hand. The Canadiens tied Nashville and Anaheim at a league-leading 91 points, and have a game on both.
Bishop secured his third shutout of the season as Tampa Bay earned its fourth straight victory.
The Bolts have owned the Canadiens this season, winning their first three meetings by a combined 12-3 margin. They face each other twice more in March. Montreal swept Tampa Bay in the first round of playoffs last spring.
"We have a different team than when we played them in the playoffs last year," said Lightning star Steven Stamkos. "Bishop’s a big part of that."
The Lightning outshot Montreal 36-19 overall, including 10-2 in the third period and 3-0 in overtime when the Canadiens seemed to run out of fuel in their first contest back from a four-game west coast road trip.
Time and again, the Lightning were foiled by Price.
"I don’t think we were fazed tonight," added Stamkos. "We realized we were getting chances and he was making big saves.
"When you have a goalie of that calibre you have to expect that kind of performance and we did. Obviously, that may have been a reason why it was 0-0 after three periods and they got a point, but we stuck with it."
The Bell Centre gathering of 21,287 was treated to fast-paced hockey between two skilled sides who like to move the puck quickly.
There were chances at both ends, with Price and Bishop letting nothing slip through. Late in the second, the Canadiens had a glorious opportunity on a two-on-one break but Bishop stopped Max Pacioretty, then made a big pad save on Jacob de la Rose’s rebound attempt.
Midway through the third, Price had the crowd chanting when he robbed Ryan Callahan on a point-blank shot.
"I kicked a rebound right out to him and it was just desperation," said Price. "I don’t think he got all of it and I just chicken-winged it."
Lightning forward Ondrej Palat, who winced when taking a shot off his leg late in the second, didn’t return for the third with a lower-body injury. He is to have the injury evaluated to see if it is serious.
NOTES: Trade deadline acquisitions Jeff Petry, Brian Flynn and Torrey Mitchell played their first home games for Montreal… The Canadiens made no changes to their lineup, scratching P.A. Parenteau, Manny Malhotra and Mike Weaver … With J.T. Brown out with an upper-body ailment, Vladislav Namestnikov played for Tampa Bay. Nikita Nesterov was scratched.
