TAMPA, Fla. Clutchfit Drive 2 Blue . -- Having completed their regular-season series, the Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens soon could find themselves battling in the post-season. Tyler Johnson scored the go-ahead goal on a short-handed breakaway late in the third period and the Lightning clinched a playoff berth with a 3-1 victory over the Canadiens on Tuesday night. "Just being in the right spot and getting lucky sometimes," Johnson said. The win and losses by New Jersey and Washington gave Tampa Bay its first post-season berth since 2011 and only its second in seven years. Montreal ended a five-game winning streak, but also qualified for the post-season by virtue of the losses by New Jersey and Washington. Canadiens goalie Carey Price took some consolation in advancing to the post-season. "Were disappointed with our game today, but big picture, weve got to be happy with that," he said. The win moved Tampa Bay, with a game in hand, into a second-place tie with Montreal in the Atlantic Division. The second- and third-place teams in each division will meet in the first round of the playoffs. "Its just one game, but its really the 76 games all bottled into one," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. "What you are really striving for is to win the Stanley Cup, but you cannot win the Cup if you dont get into the playoffs." With teammate Nate Thompson serving a minor penalty for boarding, Johnson picked up a loose puck near the Montreal blue line, skated in on Price and backhanded a shot inside the left post with 7:19 remaining in the game. Canadiens right wing Brendan Gallagher was on one knee in the low slot when he redirected a rebound past goalie Ben Bishop to open the scoring 10:18 into the first period. Ryan Callahan made it 1-1 on a power play 9:19 into the second, skating through the left circle toward Price and lifting a shot high into the net. Tampa Bay was on a power play when Alex Killorn closed out the scoring with an empty-netter with 45 seconds left in the third period. Bishop finished with 25 saves, while Price stopped 30 shots. Tampa Bay winger Teddy Purcell slammed a shot past Price with 11.7 seconds left in the second period, but the officials ruled forward J.T. Brown made contact with the goaltender and disallowed the goal. The call drew an angry response from Tampa Bay fans after a replay appeared on the video screen. The crowd also became irate when Montreals Douglas Murray drew a match penalty for an illegal check to the head of fellow defenceman Michael Kostka, setting up a 5-on-3 advantage for the Lightning with 2:13 left in the game. "If the crowds reaction was anything after they saw it, then it seems that it was illegal," Cooper said. "Those are the hits you want to take out of the game. Im sure Murray wasnt looking to hit him in the head." Lightning forward Ondrej Palat, who earlier in the day was named the top NHL rookie for the second time in three months, assisted on the goals by Callahan and Killorn. NOTES: Tampa Bay C Valtteri Filppula, who came in with the longest points streak in the league at 12 games, came up empty. . Montreal C Tomas Plekanec returned after missing one game for personal reasons. . The home team won for the first time in the four-game season series. Lightning captain Steven Stamkos was sidelined with a broken leg for the first three games, each of which went to overtime tied at 1. . Price came in victorious in nine of his 10 previous starts. Bishop improved to 8-1-1 in his last 10. Clutchfit Drive 2 Green .Y. -- Defensive lineman Jarius Wynn has another chance to prove himself after the journeyman free agent signed with the Buffalo Bills on Tuesday. Curry One Shoes For Sale .I. -- Andrew Bodnarchuk scored 18 seconds into overtime as the Providence Bruins beat the St.The Montreal Canadiens have locked up defenceman Alexei Emelin with a four-year, $16.4 million contract. Emelin, the teams leading hitter, has played 105 games over two seasons with the Canadiens, tallying six goals and 19 points. "I love Montreal and I am confident that I will soon return to the ice fully recovered from my injury and contribute to the success of our team," Emelin said in a statement. The 27-year-old was injured in the Canadiens 2-1 victory over Boston on April 6 when he put a check on Bruins winger Milan Lucic and bounced back hard onto the ice. Emelin underwent reconstructive surgery to repair the ACL and MCL his left knee and is expected to return to tthe lineup sometime in November. Stephen Curry Shoes For Sale. In 38 games for Montreal before being injured last season, Emelin tallied three goals and nine assists along with 33 penalty minutes. "He is an important part of our group of core players," said general manager Marc Bergevin. "He shows a very good work ethic and has a good attitude. "He can play big minutes against the opponents best players, and hard-hitting defencemen of his type are hard to find. We are very confident that he will fully recover from his knee injury and be able to compete at a high level for many years to come." Emelin was set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Authentic Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Authentic Cheap Jerseys Authentic Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys NFL China Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
