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Dans les coulisses

A Montrealer went to Boston yesterday to see “a real hockey team”.

Historically, the Canadiens’ two biggest rivals are the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins. In the case of the Leafs, it’s mainly a geographical (and historical) rivalry, but for Boston, it’s mainly because of the two clubs’ history on the ice.

There’s always a little animosity between these two teams, after all.

In recent years, the rivalry hasn’t been what it once was. It’s clear that the two teams don’t like each other, but we’re a long way from the days when Milan Lucic wanted to kill Alexei Emelin and Andrew Ference gave the fans the finger at the Bell Centre, both of which happened only a decade ago.

That said, there’s still a rivalry between fans… and last night, the Habs received a stray bullet from a (Montreal) fan in Boston, while a fan at the TD Garden last night had a sign that read:

I came all the way from Montreal to see a real team play hockey.

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In the end, this fan (whose favorite team is obviously the Bruins) made the trip to see his “real team” eliminated by the Panthers. Better than nothing, I suppose.

The good news for the Habs is that at least the fan in question wasn’t Jacob Fowler, who was at the game yesterday. The Florida native probably wanted to see the Panthers win (unless, as a Boston College player, he was hoping to see the Bruins force a game #7).

On the other hand, I must admit that I like to see that the rivalry is still alive and well among the fans. With the Habs coming off three pretty tough seasons and the Bruins enjoying success (in the regular season) for the past two years, the rivalry has been pretty one-sided for the past few years.

This may explain why there isn’t as much animosity as in the past, but clearly, fans of both teams haven’t learned to like each other just yet… even if, in the first round, many Montreal fans wanted to see Boston win “because it wasn’t as bad as Toronto”.

If the Habs can get a loose ball like that in a Bruins-Panthers game, imagine what it will be like when the Habs and Bruins cross swords again in the playoffs.

It’ll add fuel to the fire of a rivalry that, while a little dormant at the moment, is clearly not dead yet.

Breaking news

– News from the Oilers.

– Well done.

– It’s understandable.

– He seems to be closing in on a comeback.

– The Celtics will be without the services of Kristaps Porzingis at the start of the Eastern finals.