Lightning, Canadiens Players Show What True Sportsmanship Really Is

Few things in sports, if any, are better than the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Nothing is more nerve-wracking than watching your favorite hockey team play a close game in the playoffs, especially when it's a Game 7 or, god forbid, an overtime game. That'll get the heart racing, for sure.

Sunday night, two teams played a classic Game 7. The Montreal Canadiens topped the Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-1, in an epic Game 7. The Lightning, one of the NHL's best teams of the past several years, are going home early, while the Canadiens advance, with their Stanley Cup Final goal still in tact.

Following the game, the two teams put on an epic display of sportsmanship, going through the classic NHL playoffs handshake line, despite one team experiencing heartbreak and the other premier joy.

It doesn't get much better than that as far as sportsmanship goes.

NHL, sports fans in general are paying tribute to the classic display

NHL fans loved to see it.

"Seeing goalies that have battled it out and played some of their best hockey in a long time in a handshake line gets to me. like how are you not a romantic about this?" one fan wrote.

"Sports as it should be after a grueling 7 game series. 🏒 as it should be!👇👏," one fan added.

"Nobody else does SPORTSMANSHIP like Hockey. As a coach, of any sport, I'd show this to every athlete. Learning how to handle both winning and losing is paramount in sports, and life. 7th Game. One team moves on. One team goes home. Every single game decided by just one goal. Both teams left everything on the ice. And every single coach and player shakes hands afterwards. No trash talk. No incidents. Just respect," one fan added.

"As much as you hate them , you respect them!" another shared.

"Great series. One of the best you'll see in a while," one added.

"What an unbelievable series. As a Habs fan I was so impressed by Dominic James," another shared.

Well done by both teams. The Stanley Cup Playoffs will continue this week, with more excitement to come.

Copyright The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved

This story was originally published May 4, 2026 at 8:00 PM.