TAMPA, Fla. -- 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. Mike Trout Jersey . Now Arizonas new manager is hoping Yasmany Tomas can have the same effect on the Diamondbacks. Joel Embiid Jersey . - A pitch clock will be used this season during minor league games at Triple-A and Double-A, but it has been ruled out for the major leagues this year. https://www.sportsstarsjerseys.com/tom-brady-jersey/. Gordon reportedly failed another drug test and is facing a one-year ban. Gordon led the NFL in yards receiving last season despite being suspended two games for violating the leagues substance-abuse policy. Dwyane Wade Jersey . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Marc-Andre Fleury, Pittsburgh Penguins (5) – He was locked in all night, made huge stops on Benoit Pouliot, Raphael Diaz, Ryan Mcdonagh, Carl Hagelin, Rick Nash (twice) but none better than the three saves on Mats Zuccarello. Nick Foles Jersey . -- Caris LeVert had 14 points and a career-high 11 rebounds for his first career double-double, and No.For the third straight month, Sam Reinhart is atop TSN Scout Craig Buttons list of draft eligible players. The Kootenay Ice centre ranks fifth in WHL scoring with 34 points, including nine goals and 25 assists. The 18-year-old from Vancouver, B.C. is in his fourth season with the Ice and is an early favourite to go first overall in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. Behind Reinhart, the OHLs Aaron Ekblad and Sam Bennett retain the second and third spots, respectively, from last months rankings. Ekblad is producing almost a point a game as a defenceman with seven goals and 11 assists in 19 games with the Barrie Colts. Bennett, a centre for the Kingston Frontenacs, has 11 goals and 13 assists in 18 games. Oshawa Generals winger Michael Dal Colle moves up four spots to number four on Buttons list while Kasperi Kapaneen of Kalpa in Finland falls three spots to eighth.ddddddddddddDal Colle of Woodbridge, Ont. is second in OHL scoring behind Connor Brown with 37 points. William Nylander, Adrian Kempe and Anton Karlsson, all of Sweden, remain in the top 10 at five, six and seven, respectively. Forward Brendan Perlini of the Niagara Ice Dogs moves into the top 10 at number nine. He has 13 goals and 18 assists in 20 games. Defenceman Haydn Fleury of the Red Deer Rebels also moves into the top 10. The 17-year-old from Carlyle, Sask. has three goals and 10 assists in 20 games. Nick Schmaltz of the United States Hockey League moves up eight spots to number 14. The centre has 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in 10 games. For Craig Buttons final list click here (http://www.tsn.ca/draftcentre/feature/?id=49649). ' ' '