I decided to take a few days off and see my family in Canada's Hockey Mecca (sarcasm) - Toronto. And I also made a decision, since we are so early on in the season, to not watch hockey. After all - I don't get the opportunity to see them too often, and I had one of my closest friends wife celebrating her birthday this weekend - so I wasn't going to glue myself to a TV in a sports bar on Friday night. Instead, I made sure that my pal in Montreal texted me with score updates throughout dinner (Thanks Jordan). I had to show some level of appreciation for the Keg* steak, and wonderful bottles of Red that we were consuming.
So when I got home late on Monday night, I had to decide whether it was worth getting on the notebook and checking in on all the latest Tweets, Blog posts, and H I/O news. Exhausted from driving 1704km over the course of the weekend, I put my weariness aside, and did just that.
I think that the best comment I received from a fellow Tweep, was in response to me asking what the latest news was concerning the team. Expecting a flood of answers ranging from complaints on JM's coaching abilities, to the lack of PP offense (etc. etc. etc.); instead this response said "We're 3-1-1. What's to talk about. We're looking good".
Maybe it was because I was surrounded by Toronto Maple Leaf fans this weekend, and their incessant banter about how they were off to a better start than the Habs. Maybe it was the ludicrous talk of how being in first place in the Conference was a foreshadowing of the seasons results for Brian Burke's squad. I guess I was just expecting Montreal fans to not be happy enough, even though we're only five games in.
It's refreshing to see many of the fans throughout the city feeling a bit more secure and comfortable with the teams results so far. There seems to be a certain candor that I haven't noticed in quite some time. It feels a little more like the playoffs of last year, where despite having made some mistakes, and some costly errors, we know this team can prevail. There has come an understanding, that there is not going to be an 82-0-0 season for any team.
I certainly hope that we can continue to have this positive attitude continue throughout the season. There is no doubt that it will have a positive effect on the boys in Bleu, Blanc, et Rouge. It also has a less poisoning effect on the fan base as well. Which in turn .... well, you understand what I'm saying here.
It's good to be back in the land of hockey. It's good to once again be surrounded by fanatics that love not only the Canadiens franchise - but the sport. Having said that though, I better go check some stats and see who's on the second line for game six. There has to be SOMETHING that I can complain about.
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