For more on Saturday nights’ game between the Leafs and Habs, check out our blogs: Pension Plan Puppets for Toronto fans, and Eyes on the Prize for Montreal fans.
Leafs Look To Push Canadiens To The Brink In Saturday’s Season Finale
A loss today against the Toronto Maple Leafs won't actually end the season for the Montreal Canadiens, but that fact won't exactly comfort fans of the bleu blanc et rouge. You see, the Canadiens seemed all but locked in to the postseason just about two weeks ago.
In the time since, the Habs have blown two attempts to clinch a playoff berth, and now it comes down to the nightmare scenario: a Saturday night match with the hated Leafs. Most teams wouldn’t necessarily be afraid of Toronto, but when there is that much hatred between two cities and two teams, it doesn’t matter that the Leafs are the worst team in the East.
All fans surely recall the date four seasons ago - on April 7, 2007 - in which the Canadiens' season ended in a 6-5 defeat at the hands of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
I know you did not need reminding.
Although only Andrei Markov, Tomas Plekanec, Maxim Lapierre, Andrei Kostitsyn, Jaroslav Halak and Josh Gorges remain from that club, the Canadiens were all too aware as well.
So, lo and behold, what we've all dreaded happening is about to play out, only this time it could be a whole lot uglier, as the game in this instance will be at the Bell Centre.
Pull the hands from my face when it's all over.
Meanwhile, in Toronto, fans are licking their chops at the opportunity to put the Habs in a deep, deep hole. In reality, though, while fans are hoping for the best or worst depending on where the loyalties lie, it’s going to take a bit of work for the Habs to miss the playoffs.
If the Leafs do in fact win in regulation on Saturday night, they'll need the Bruins to get at least one point in their two remaining games -- 1 PM Saturday versus Carolina or 12 PM Sunday versus Washington. In addition to that, the Rangers need to beat the Flyers in overtime or a shootout on Sunday. Regulation wouldn't work. It's a lot that has to line up, regardless of how you look at the situation.
That doesn’t mean that Bell Centre won’t be an absolute madhouse if the Habs can’t pull out a point tonight.
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