BrenDittero

It will no doubt be a night of trash talk and great hits but I don't think either team wants to spend any time in the box for fighting. However,I wouldn't be surprised if Boston pulls out that tactic in the third if they're frustrated and down a couple goals.

I predict a one goal win by Montreal with bad penalties on both sides that lead to goals. Can't imagine there will be much fighting tonight though. Actually, it should be avoided at all costs. The Bruins suckered them into that last time, and while the Canadiens went back and forth answering Boston goals, we weren't playing our game, instead we played theirs. I understand that players need to defend themselves but walking away for the greater good seems more advantageous at this point in the season. The Bruins are locked in a three way tie for 2nd place and the Habs are looking to take 2 points and close the gap. A couple shots to the face will heal in time, but taking a couple points from your closest rivals hurts way worse.

I was at the Feb 9th game in Boston and have been looking forward to this for the last month. Bruins games have been some of the most entertaining games of the year. Would love to see the Habs extend the streak to 5 and get a couple points closer to a top 4 spot. Good luck fellas.

Great post. I think this perfectly sums up the current state of the team and our chances moving forward. I think management has done a great job of patching the defense back together after a couple bad injuries. Not to mention the great moves they made between MTL and Hamilton. My condolences to the Bulldogs. Trade deadlines are fun to watch and make great fodder for the sports press but anyone who follows this team knows that a significant deal at the deadline would have been nothing more than mortgaging the future of the team for the sake of making a deal. Sure it would be great to get another big forward but at what cost? The only players who would command a high enough price are better left in this lineup not playing for the opposition.. I think we have everything in place, to the best of our ability, going into these last 6 weeks of the regular season. When it comes to playing the Bruins and Flyers I think it's a matter of not getting bullied into playing an overly physical game. The Habs are fast and defensively minded. That will wear down a team and crush their spirits much faster than dropping gloves. Especially over a run of 7 games. Every other team we could go up against plays a style of hockey much closer to our own. In that scenario the Habs certainly have the depth to come out on top.

Again I don't see the reasoning in talking about years gone by. It's great that you can bring up these stats and records seemingly at will but I don't think it proves anything. I am not talking about 2008. I'm talking about 2010 / 2011. What the Habs did three seasons ago has nothing to do with the current season or this discussion. The Canadiens have lost quite a few times to teams that fans perceive as being inferior clubs. Your own research has proven that. The idea here is that the Canadiens were not playing as hard or abandoned defensive strategy against some of the lesser teams leading to losses. That suggests that for various reasons they struggle against teams lower in the standings. They seem to regroup before a big game and more often than not ( 57.14% ) pull out a win. From what I have seen this year that, I think, is a pretty accurate statement. Then the question becomes " why does a great team drop so many games to bad teams?" The answer could be that they were playing to the level of the competition. If you disagree that fine, I hear that happens sometimes on the internet.

No where in my post do I try to predict the future. In a game like hockey where there are so many variables that would be impossible. My " past season destiny speech " was about teams going on a hot streak and fizzling out. Philly absolutely was a team of destiny. They knocked out MTL who did the unthinkable by beating Washington and Pittsburgh. I know I thought they had a pretty good shot at the cup after that. It was a great story. Boston on the other hand...what can I say I'm not a Bruins fan. I don't believe that past NHL seasons have any impact on this one. Any team is going to only get as far as their skill level will allow. Throw in a couple lucky breaks or unlucky ones and those will be the determining factors in how the rest of the season shapes up. Not history. The Canadiens are a top tier team who can beat Philly, Pitts, Wash, Tampa or Boston. I welcome the idea of Montreal going toe to toe with another great team in the first round and I wouldn't put the odds against them.

I would argue that the Habs would be in a much better spot of they didn't struggle against poor to mediocre teams. Post all the stats you like, I think it's pretty clear that while they've done ok against Boston, Pitts, Philly etc they've lost a lot of games that, statistically, they shouldn't have. Don't get me wrong, I'm as happy as any other fan when we have a big game and get a key win against a top team in either conference. That goes a long way in keeping a team confident and focused. But, all of the points they lost early this year to lesser teams is what makes the difference in where we are seated going into the playoffs. 6th place is great, but 2nd is where we should be and maybe we'll get there yet. I have no doubt that the Canadiens are guilty of thinking they were going to get an easy game and played to the level of the competition. In fact it happens , based on the stats, a bit less than half the time.

The whole point of this thread is about refuting the idea that the Habs are not a contender for the cup. It does seem that most media outlets outside of Montreal don't give the Canadiens the time of day when it comes to the topic of winning the Stanley Cup. My points about Montreal potentially being in Bostons spot are just to illustrate that things are very close in the east and that we should not be worried about who we go up against in the first round. I'm not going to sit here and give them a 40% chance against Boston or 15% against Philly. They are my, and by virtue of posting here, everyone's favourite team. They will win the cup this year and will keep believing that until they get knocked out of the playoffs. One reoccurring theme here seems to be this insistence of dropping stats from previous years. In the 2010 / 2011 season this doesn't matter: " if the Bruins had held onto a 3-0 lead twice they would have been in the Conference Finals" This has no influence on what will happen in the next 8 weeks. What matters is that the Bruins are being propped up as one of only 4 teams in the east that have a shot at the cup and I think that is blatantly wrong.

The Habs, given that they follow their defensive game plan, can beat any team in the league in the regular season. I don't believe there is any reason to think they couldn't do the same in the playoffs. Their defense has been put through the ringer this season and they still sit in 6th place. If three games had turned out differently we would be sitting where Boston is now in the standings. At this point it's only a five point difference with Boston and seven with Philly. With the points so close it's ridiculous to think that either team is significantly better than the Habs. I would gladly welcome a first round match against Boston. It would be an amazing series and the perfect way to start the playoffs. The Bruins are not a team of destiny. These fairytale stories present themselves every year and ultimately fizzle out. The Habs and the Flyers WERE the fairytale last year. The Bruins are a club that has had a good run and I'm sure that run will come to an end. And Philly, as of late, have shown that they are fully capable of losing games they probably should have won. All that to say, the Habs are a contender and they have just as good a chance as anyone to win the cup this year.