Weise strikes late in Canadiens’ win

Dale Weise scores winning goal 18:08 into OT as the Canadiens beat Tampa Bay in Game One of first-round playoff series.

Dale Weise (22) helped the Canadiens start their first-round playoff series with a win [Reuters]

Dale Weise scored the game-winning goal 18:08 into overtime as the Montreal Canadiens beat Tampa Bay 5-4 in Game One of their first-round playoff series.

Montreal twice led in the third period but could not shake the Lightning in the thrilling opener.

Game Two of the best-of-seven series is on Friday.

Elsewhere, Brandon Sutter’s goal with 11:42 remaining capped a rally from a two-goal deficit as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3 in the first game of their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series.

The Blue Jackets were looking for their first playoff win in the franchise’s 14-year history, but lost to Pittsburgh for the sixth time this season.

The Anaheim Ducks narrowly avoided blowing a four-goal lead to hang on for a tense 4-3 victory over the Dallas Stars in the first game of their Western Conference playoff series.

Source: Reuters