No, you’re not dreaming. Trust me, you’re not. The one accolade that has eluded both the team and its fans time and time again, into the 21st Century and beyond, has finally happened. The Montreal Canadiens are going to the Stanley Cup Final.
Having taken a 3-2 lead in their Semi-Finals series against the Vegas Golden Knights, Montreal sealed the deal on Thursday with a 3-2 win in Overtime. In spite of a constant back and forth battle as Vegas fought to keep their season alive, the Canadiens stuck right there with them. Helmed by a fantastic 37-save performance from Carey Price and a seemingly well, seamless transition from interim head coach Dominique Ducharme to assistant Luke Richardson, the Habs are now off to their first Cup Final since that fabled 1993 post-season.
Throughout every game, every second, of this continually defying playoff run, Montreal has managed to, time and time again, pull off the unthinkable, and now, with a date with destiny set against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday, they have a chance to do the improbable. To be honest, the Canadiens odds heading into these Stanley Cup Playoffs didn’t rank that far outside of any other major underdogs in sports history. From Leicester City F.C overcoming immense 5000-1 odds to win the Premier League in 2016, to the other team’s that make up the all-Canadian North Division alongside Montreal.
To put this entire situation and playoff Run into perspective, Canadian team success in the Stanley Cup playoffs has been few and far between, to say the least. Aside from what is now common knowledge, that being that a Canadian team hasn’t won a Stanley Cup since the Canadiens did so in 1993, there’s a lot more to this tale than meets the eye.
As Artturi Lehkonen rifled a beautiful Phillip Danault past Golden Knights goaltender Robin Lehner 1:39 into OT, the Canadiens have become the first Canadian team to reach the Cup Final since the 2011 Vancouver Canucks. With a 54-19-9 record that season, the Canucks were favorites to make a deep playoff run and did just that, ultimately falling to the Boston Bruins in a decisive Game 7.
And here it is, the goal that sends the @CanadiensMTL to the #StanleyCup Final.
— NHL (@NHL) June 25, 2021
Bravo, Artturi Lehkonen (@arsilehkonen)! pic.twitter.com/LfHHQCdfgz
With a potent offense helmed by the Sedin Brothers and Ryan Kesler, paired with the one-two punch of Cory Schneider and Roberto Luongo in goal, the Canucks were arguably the last Canadian team since 1993 with whom a Cup Finals appearance was expected. As surprising as that may sound, every other Canadian team (Montreal included) to make it to the Final since 1993, has been an immense underdog, and quite frankly, I feel as though there’s no place better for the Canadiens to be.
After an unbelievable 3-2 overtime win to clinch a Stanley Cup Finals birth, the Montreal Canadiens have fans partying like it’s 1993 all over again.
Just as the 2004 Calgary Flames and 2006 Edmonton Oilers benefited from the Martin Gelinas’ and Fernando Pisani’s that make up the unexpected heroes of the Stanley Cup playoffs, Montreal hasn’t been without their own surprises. From Corey Perry and Paul Byron going from the waiver wire to key, if not essential parts of Montreal’s lineup, to Josh Anderson getting the proverbial monkey off his back with two of the biggest goals thus far these playoffs in Game 3 against Vegas, Montreal has taken this Cinderella story and run with it.
All across Downtown Montreal, from just outside the Bell Centre to the limited capacity of 3,500 inside, to essentially every bar and restaurant that happened to be broadcasting the game, the aftermath of Game 6 led fans to party like it was 1993. Heck, even I, in the small confines of my friend’s duplex, watching the game with a continually irregular heartbeat as the game went into Extra Frames, found myself cheering and celebrating like I’d just won the lottery.
Throughout these playoffs, with every OT goal and series winner, whether you listened to the Chris Cuthbert’s or Dan Robinson’s of the play-by-play ensemble, the Habs have managed to do something that hasn’t been seen in this city in decades. Turn a sports team, and a sporting event, into something much more than that. Something that any person, hockey fan or not, can turn around and celebrate with the same energy and enthusiasm as someone that has counted the days since that fabled 1993 Championship.
Every other Canadian team’s fans/analysts outlooks aside (i.e., not the positive ones) I can say, for a fact, that these playoffs have turned me into a Canadiens fan once more. Just as I remember my younger self holding up a Go Habs Go sign with my Sergei Samsonov jersey (yes, that really happened) I find myself just as invested nowadays. The Canadiens are Canada’s team for the time being, regardless of any bias or viewpoints you have, (whether it be because the Leafs blew a 3-1 series lead or otherwise) and bringing a Stanley Cup back up North would do more for this city than most could imagine.
It’s safe to say that no matter who we face, the challenge will be as daunting as any we’ve faced thus far, but quite frankly, if Montreal’s managed to get to this point after the season they endured, I say skies the limit. Best look out Tampa Bay, the Montreal Canadiens, are coming for the Cup.