Nikita Kucherov celebrates his game-winner in double OT. (HNIC)
Nikita Kucherov celebrates his game-winner in double OT. (HNIC)

Hockey has a funny way of working itself out. After having a goal waved off in controversial (but probably correct) fashion in the first overtime, Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov had another opportunity to win the game two minutes into the second overtime.

After Brian Boyle sent a shot deep into the zone, Lightning forward Valtteri Filppula ended up forcing a turnover and got the puck along the half wall. Around that same moment, Kucherov found himself in space and Filppula easily picked him up. The Finnish forward dished a backhanded pass to the Russian sniper.

Canadiens defenseman Tom Gilbert tried to stab at the puck with his stick, but Kucherov still got the shot away and sent it into the lower-right corner past Carey Price, who barely had any time to react.

After scoring 29 goals in the regular season, Kucherov hadn’t yet scored in the postseason. He picked the perfect time to break the seal.

But just when you thought we'd have a late game-winner without any controversy, you must have forgotten this is the 2015 playoffs. As Hockey Night in Canada host George Stroumboulopoulos noted on Twitter, it appears that Filppula entered the zone offside before Boyle sent it deep.

That's one of those things a linesman rarely misses and this is remarkably close. It's tough to not get the call from Montreal's perspective, but this is something that can and will happen in games when the human element is involved. Doesn't make it right, just what it is. It's something for Habs fans to rightly stew about, but it's not going to change the result.

Habs head coach Michel Therrien expressed his frustration after the game.

With the win, the Lightning have now won three straight games, going back to the series with Detroit. Considering Tampa Bay went through a tough seven-game series and had barely any time to catch their collective breath, earning a road win in Game 1 against the Habs is absolutely huge, especially having managed to do it against the league’s best goaltender.

Steven Stamkos still hasn’t scored yet, but getting Kucherov -- the Lightning's second-leading goal scorer this season -- going should help stoke the offense in Tampa.