"This is all about getting two points." — PK Subban, Montreal Canadiens
Sure it is, Pernell. It always is when two of the most storied, bitter rivals skate out on the same sheet of ice, right? The welts from an earlier slugfest still having yet to fade. The anger from The Incident at Stanchion still boiling. The smell of fresh resentment from one team feeling vilified because, it feels, the other team embellished injuries to instigate an international conflict.
Yep. Just another game.
Tonight's visit by the Montreal Canadiens to face to the Boston Bruins shouldn't descend into utter chaos. Not with warnings from the NHL to the general managers, the director officiating in the building and two veteran (Irish … oh noes, Habs!) referees running the game.
These players know they're one game misconduct for reckless disregard for their fellow man away from an exile in Matt Cookeville. And no matter how edged the Habs are, the New York Islanders have made the world unsafe for the type of nasty revenge missions the Habs no doubt harbor thoughts of undertaking tonight.
What is the Montreal mindset? Tony Marinaro of Team 990 joined us on Puck Daddy Radio today to talk about Mark Recchi's comments and set the scene, and said "the Canadiens cannot counter Boston's physicality. You have one team playing physical, and another team playing hockey."
Here's our chat:
Recchi was hidden away from the media today in Boston, as were the rest of the Bruins after the team canceled the morning skate. A select group spoke before the game, including Milan Lucic, who talked about how Recchi's comments would affect the game.
(Watch the game live on Y! Sports; U.S. fans only.)
"Personally I don't think it affects us or them at all. I mean, I think the focus before the war of words is to get the win and whatever Mark said, he said," said Lucic, who along with Recchi made his comments on The Sports Hub. '
"He's been on the Montreal side before, and now he's on the Boston side. … As of right now, we're just focused on getting a big win here. It's a big night for us in this last game of the [season] series."
It's a series that the Habs have owned: 4-1, their only loss coming in that Thunderdome of a game back on Feb. 9. Take out the eight goals from that game, and Carey Price has surrendered 7 goals in 4 games. Brian Gionta has five goals in five games.
The Oxford Dictionary defines the word "intimidate" thusly: frighten or overawe (someone), especially in order to make them do what one wants.
I would say that the way many fans and media in this city are thinking of the matchup with the Bruins falls right in line with that definition: they are feeling exactly the way the Bruins want them to feel. Except it isn't, as far as I can tell, working with the actual players on the Canadiens.
When they look at the Bruins, they may very well see a team that beat on them in that brawl fest in Boston six weeks ago, or a team that left a teammate hospitalized by a career-threatening injury that thankfully was not as bad as originally feared (or that was faked, as a certain veteran Bruin who should know better said Wednesday).
But above all that, the Canadiens surely see a team they have beaten nine times in 11 meetings over the past two seasons.
The Bruins want an overemotional, rattled Canadiens team to limp out of Boston tonight. The Canadiens, meanwhile, need to not just win but overpower the Bruins; outplay them in every facet, building on the momentum in the season series in preparation for a Stanley Cup Playoff battle in the first round.
It's not just another two points, but it is two points the Canadiens have to take to make a declarative statement in this rivalry. Should be a hell of a night in Boston.